JAMES CITY COUNTY, Va. (WAVY) – A James City County daycare teacher is no longer employed and is facing charges of assault and battery.

Jasmine Gaither tells 10 On Your Side the incident happened at the Childcare Network in Williamsburg.

Her daughter went to the daycare for almost a year with no issues until an incident on Feb. 20.

She said it was a normal day until Miracle was at the dinner table.

“Miracle put her head down,” Gaither said.

She asked her what was going on.

Miracle told her about being in timeout and not listening to the staff.

“She told her one time to, like, stop, and she continued to doodle,” Gaither said. “My daughter admitted she continued to draw. She was bored in time out, you know. She is five years old. She got antsy, so she said the teacher came up to her and backhanded her.”

She said frustration filled her body, especially because the staff didn’t tell her about the incident.

“As parents, we should have been told, even if you did it or tried to hide that you did it,” Gaither said. “We should have known that her nose was bleeding.”

She took her daughter to the police station, where Miracle gave a report to an officer.

James City County Police Department investigated the incident.  

Police say a warrant was issued Monday for Alexandra Jackson for assault and battery. She was officially charged and arrested Wednesday.

“I hope she will never be able to work with children ever again,” Gaither said.

10 On Your Side reached out to the Childcare Network. The daycare released a statement:

On February 21, 2023 were notified of a concern about a staff member at our Childcare Network location in Williamsburg, VA. The safety and well-being of the children we serve is our top priority. We require all employees to report incidents to their school Director. Our management takes all concerns very seriously and immediately began an internal investigation. Our Director spoke to the family about their concern over the phone and also communicated to them via email. Once the family went viral with their concern, the school Director and District Manager were instructed to direct all communications to the Corporate office. The teacher involved in this incident is no longer employed with Childcare Network. We notified the proper authorities and are cooperating fully with the investigation. We follow all state and federal requirements when hiring our employees, which include state and federal background checks. The company also continually revisits staff training courses on incident reporting and interaction with our children.“The incident that occurred at the Williamsburg Childcare Network is still under investigation. The warrant for the assault and battery charge is for an unrelated incident that did not occur at Childcare Network. We do not have any knowledge of a warrant related to the incident that occurred at Childcare Network.

Childcare Network statement

“The least I can do is a call from someone from corporate, you know, saying, ‘Hey, so sorry that this has happened.’ I haven’t gotten any of that. They don’t care,” she said.

Gaither said the one thing she hasn’t gotten is a simple apology.

Gaither said she is working to move forward with her family.

She said Miracle is scared to go to school again.

10 On Your Side reached out to Jackson but hasn’t heard back.