Parents of NYC Toddler Who Drowned at Bronx Day Care File Suit After Months Waiting for Answers
Calls for Accountability After Drowning Incident in Bronx Day Care
Two months after their 1-year-old daughter drowned at a Bronx day care center, the parents of River Wilson said they just want to know why. After months of what the Wilson family called silence and little action from the daycare operators and state regulators, they have decided to file a lawsuit against the center, Ana’s Butterfly Garden Family Group, and its operators, Ana Gonzalez and John Guzman.
This case doesn’t just trigger the grief of River’s death. It also raises crucial questions regarding the safety oversight of child care and daycare facilities in New York, and the rest of the country. With advocates and lawmakers pushing for more extreme measures, like a nationwide ban on pools in in-home daycare facilities, the tragedy is sure to have its repercussions well beyond the Bronx.
Family Files Lawsuit Against Day Care Owners
During a press conference this week, River’s parents, Ifiok and Stephanie Wilson, discussed their desire to seek accountability through a legal approach from the day care. The care providers and the facility itself are included in the lawsuit for negligence and for maintaining an unsafe environment for children.
Ifiok Wilson, speaking through and just before the cameras, said bold and moving words.
“No parent should have to beg for answers for your child’s death. No parent should be… forced to grieve in the dark waiting for a phone call with answers that never come. Yet this is the misery my wife and I live every day,” Wilson said.
Family attorney James Williams stated that the lawsuit is about more than personal justice.
“Had Ms. Gonzalez and Mr. Guzman followed the law, kept a safe environment and safeguarded River like the precious beautiful God-given soul she was, we wouldn’t be here today,” Williams said. “This case illustrates the need for real accountability and a change to the minimum safety standards in the child care industry.”
A Pool Hidden in Plain Sight
According to the Wilsons, they were not aware the day care had a pool until July, the month before they buried River. By this time, their daughter had been enrolled at Ana’s Butterfly Garden for almost a year.
The lawsuit claims that the pool, which was behind the property, was improperly secured and poorly located. The lawsuit was filed after a property inspection revealed that the pool fence was too short and did not meet safety requirements.
Representative Ritchie Torres (D-NY), who has been very vocal about the case, commented on the lack of oversight.
“Only after River’s death did the state finally discover that the pool was dangerously close to the property line and that it was neither high enough nor secured enough to keep a baby from accessing it,” Torres said.
Safety Inspections Before and After the Drowning
Prior to River’s death, the New York State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) had done at least a precept eight inspections on the Bronx day care. During all these visits, the inspectors noted that all of the facilities were safe.
This record has brought about a troubling question: how can such a large and blaring hazard be missed?
River’s drowning prompted a change in the inspectors’ assessments, pointing out the pool’s proximity to the house and fencing inadequacies. This has led to criticism that state inspectors are either missing glaring violations, or inconsistently applying rules and regulations.
Parents Left in the Dark
The Wilson family, having received no explanation from the day care owners and vague statements from the state agency over the investigations, has testified that this lack of communication has only intensified their suffering.
Their own investigative journalists spent weeks trying to obtain transparency from OCFS and were denied access to the calendar of Commissioner Dr. Damia Harris-Madden, showcasing a troubling lack of oversight.
OCFS finally gave their short statement:
“Every child death is a tragedy and we offer our condolences to this grieving family. OCFS is very concerned on the safety and welfare of the children in licensed day care. We have the appropriate child safety practices in place and to protect the children in their care. We do thorough inspection and safety protocols to determine licensed programs have the proper safety measures. However, OCFS is not able to share more about this active investigation.”
Calls for National Reform: “River’s Law”
Even before the Bronx tragedy, Rep. Torres proposed “River’s Law,” which would make home-based day care facilities illegal.
“If we know that residential swimming pools are the leading cause of death among toddlers, then why do we allow them in residential day care centers?” Torres commented. “I have no confidence in the OCFS, and I feel the strongest guarantee of child safety is no swimming pool at all. There should be a ban.”
In this case, it seems overdue. As the CDC reports, toddlers are in the greatest danger of drowning in a residential pool, followed by the ages of 1–4.
A Father’s Parallel Story From California
The Wilsons are not alone in their grief. In 2019, Doug Forbes lost his 6-year-old daughter, Roxie, when she drowned at a day camp in California. Since then, Forbes has become an outspoken advocate for drowning prevention and stricter safety standards.
“She was a child with extraordinary compassion,” Forbes remembered. “I also believe that no day care facility should be proximate to a body of water. The best way to honor your child is to fight for justice. That’s my belief — to make sure that the people that contributed to their child’s death are held accountable in some way.”
Forbes has echoed Torres’s call for reform, arguing that both tragedies reveal the same deadly combination: a pool and a lapse in supervision.
Inspector Accountability
State inspectors continue to be a focal point of the controversy. The Bronx day care was inspected multiple times, and records show that it was approved each time.
“So how could that happen at a day care that had been marked as safe on at least eight prior occasions?” investigative reporter Saeidi asked in her CBS report.
These inconsistencies raise questions and possible scenarios surrounding inspector training, the potential for pressure to ok facilities, and the existence of undiscovered major gaps in the system.
Community Wants Accountability
In the Bronx neighborhood where River went to daycare and lived, residents say the tragedy has eroded their trust in the available childcare options. Parents have called for more transparency from the OCFS and for the release of inspection reports, safety violation records and the documentation of subsequent actions taken.
Communities have also brought this to the attention of the Wilson family during the vigil held in their honor.
“We trusted the system to protect our children,” said one parent, who wished to remain anonymous. “If this could happen here, it could happen anywhere.”
The Bigger Picture: Safety of Pools and Daycares
The inclusion of swimming pools in the debate for in-home daycare facilities has gained traction throughout the country. Some states have strict requirements for pool fencing, alarms, and distance regulations.
Proponents in this debate claim that checks and supervision are not enough. Research from the American Academy of Pediatrics states that the absence of supervision, even for a minute, can be a leading factor to the drowning of a young child.
Dr. Melissa Grant, a pediatric emergency physician, once said, “There’s no such thing as a safe pool at a child care facility. The risks are too great, and the consequences are irreversible.”
The Legal Process
The Wilson family’s Bronx, NY, lawsuit begins. Legal scholars predict the family’s attorneys will focus on the case’s “negligence” element. This will involve establishing that the daycare owners failed to care for the child and that the inspectors missed their obligations.
The Bronx District Attorney’s Office has confirmed that, with the NYPD, it is investigating the daycare owners, Ana Gonzalez and John Guzman. As of now, no charges have been filed against them. The owners have not responded to the press, and CBS News New York said that their efforts to contact the owners were ignored.
The Medical Examiner’s Office has not released the official cause of death for River.
The Wilson family has a long journey ahead, both legally and personally. They continue to advocate for their daughter and other families who trust their children to daycare providers.
“We won’t stop until we get answers,” Ifiok Wilson stated. “No other parent should have to live with this kind of preventable loss. Our daughter deserves justice.”
The outcome of their lawsuit, the ongoing investigations, the progress of River’s Law, and the recent developments of River Wilson’s short life could lead to meaningful change.
As Rep. Torres stated: “We have the power to prevent drownings. The question is, do we have the political will?”
Conclusion
The drowning of one-year-old River Wilson has exposed the lack of oversight of child care facilities in New York, along with the national discussion on the need of pools at day cares.
The case highlights how quickly tragedy can strike when supervision collapses, followed by the absence of adequate regulation. The lawsuit for the Wilson family is the absence of advocacy, and silence in the face of tragedy. For lawmakers and the rest of the advocates, this could be an attempt to change the national child safety laws.
For the time being, the grief of this one family from the Bronx will serve as the motivation of many.
