While her criminal charges remain pending, the mom accused of attacking a Grovetown church daycare worker is suing the worker and church.
Kasey Brooks filed the complaint earlier this month on behalf of her son, Hatcher, and herself against worker June Barrow, St. Teresa of Avila Catholic Church and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Savannah.
Reports that the mother of a child with autism battered the worker she believed was abusing him quickly went viral almost two years ago. Police charged Brooks with battery, but determined Barrow, 61, had done nothing wrong.
Hatcher was two years and three months old when Brooks said she selected the Mother’s Day Out program at St. Teresa. Her son had significant speech and developmental delays l, and the family was anticipating an autism diagnosis when he turned three, according to her complaint.
Brooks said she discussed her son’s care at length with staff, while Barrow said she had a grandson with autism and told Brooks she expected Hatcher to do well in the program.
“At no time during open house did anyone communicate that the behaviors of a nonverbal two-year-old would warrant spanking or any type of physical punishment,” Brooks contends.
Then on Aug. 31, 2021, Brooks went to pick her son up at St. Teresa and Barrow complained he had kicked her. Cameras were throughout the daycare and Brooks asked to see footage when her son was present. Brooks was told she had to return the next day to view it.
On the Aug. 31 video she was allowed to watch, Brooks saw things law enforcement did not.
The recording showed Barrow allowing a vacuum handle to strike her son’s forehead, yanking him by the arm around the room, holding Hatcher between her legs, lifting him upside down by his ankles and spanking him a few times, according to her complaint.
The lawsuit claims Barrow wasn’t certified, trained or otherwise educated to care for children. It accuses her of battery and the church and school of negligence, in failing to hire appropriate personnel and not viewing the videos or acting on them to protect kids.
Church denies wrongdoing
While Brooks has waged a social media campaign and raised more than $45,000 for her defense on Gofundme, the church has denied all wrongdoing by Barrow against Hatcher or any other child.
St. Teresa had an exemption from being monitored by the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning, but the agency’s standards call for adaptations for children with autism and do not include physical punishment, Brooks’ case states.
Within days of Brooks’ arrest, Barrow had hired attorney Jack Long who filed a lawsuit against Brooks in October 2021 to recoup medical expenses and lost wages, as well as damages for mental and physical pain.
Barrow’s complaint states Brooks never informed the school her son had developmental or behavioral problems or delays or violent tendencies.
After asking Barrow to meet Brooks in an empty classroom, without warning Brooks attacked her from behind and tackled her to the floor. Striking her repeatedly on the body and face, Brooks bit Barrow’s thumb. In the video, Brooks’ shirt comes off as another worker tries to pull her off of Barrow.
Nothing has happened in Barrow’s civil case against Brooks since a February ruling by Columbia County Superior Court Judge Sheryl Jolly quashing Brooks’ request to view additional video.
In Brooks’ suit against Barrow and the church, filed by Tucker attorney Kimberly N. Martin, the defendants have not yet filed an answer.
Meanwhile last October, the criminal case was turned over to Augusta Circuit District Attorney Jared Williams after Columbia County District Attorney Bobby Christine cited a conflict as a longtime member of St. Teresa.
Williams declined to comment on a pending case.
