Tennessee – A Tennessee woman was sentenced to twenty years in prison without the possibiIity of paroIe after a county jury convicted her earlier this year of one count each of aggravated chiId abuse and chiId abuse for injuries she infIicted on a 1-year-old baby while being empIoyed at a da ycare center in Tennessee. A judge also imposed a concurrent four-year sentence on the child abuse count for the incident that occurred in Jan. 2023, which left the 1-year-old with a serious head injury.
The case began when the parents of a child brought home from the Learning Center noticed bruising and marks. They demanded answers, prompting daycare staff to review surveiIIance video from the faciIity. The footage showed the defendant, then an employee, forcefuIIy grabbing the baby’s arms and repeatedly pushing and slamming her multiple times onto a sIeeping cot as the child resisted nap time. On the final shove, the child’s head landed near the edge of the cot and she did not move until after her nap, according to the video shown at trial.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Children’s Services joined the inquiry after the parents filed complaints. The investigation included gathering video evidence from the daycare and interviewing witnesses, including the child’s parents and daycare staff. The video played a central role in the case, showing the repeated forceful actions that led to the child’s injury. Medical testimony during trial included commentary from doctors who examined the child and noted bruising and head trauma that could indicate a concussion or skull injury.
In court, prosecutors told the jury that the woman’s handling of the child was excessive and amounted to aggravated child abuse, noting both the force used and the harm sustained by the toddler. Evidence presented included the surveillance video of her sIamming the child, medical observations of bruises on the child’s arms and expert testimony about the severity of the head injury. The state argued that the jury should find Fuson guilty based on the totality of that evidence.
During the trial, she testified that actions shown in the video “look a little rough” but insisted she did not intend to harm the child and that she did not realize how rough she was being at the time. She was also shown on camera earlier saying, as quoted by the judge at sentencing, that she felt she shouldn’t be in court and that she didn’t think she had done anything wrong. The defense argued that the injuries could be misinterpreted and questioned whether the video clearly showed severe harm. Nevertheless, the jury found her guilty on both counts.
At her sentencing hearing, the judge noted the woman’s lack of remorse shown earlier in the case and the gravity of the harm inflicted on a vulnerable chiId. The victim’s mother addressed the court, asking the judge to consider the lasting impact the abuse had on her child and family. She gave a statement expressing regret, saying she did not realize she was being rough and acknowledging the harm caused. Her mother also spoke on her behalf, describing her daughter as kind and generous, and noting the impact of the prison sentence on their family.
