A former worker at a Bloomington daycare is facing felony charges after surveillance video allegedly showed her jerking a crib back and forth so forcefully that it broke apart, sending a 1-year-old child crashing through the bottom and onto the floor. Haylie Moore, 31, was fired from You've Got a Friend in Me Childcare and has since been charged with two felony counts tied to the Sept. 28 incident.
The daycare, located at 840 W. 17th Street in Bloomington, is in Monroe County, according to SuaraGarut. A Bloomington police detective was not assigned to investigate until Oct. 5, after the Indiana Department of Child Services brought forward a report about the injured child, according to WTHR. Moore was formally charged the following day, on Oct. 6, with Level 5 felony battery on a child under 14 and Level 5 felony neglect of a dependent, the station reports.
What the Surveillance Footage Allegedly Shows
According to the station's report, daycare surveillance video reviewed by investigators showed Moore pushing the large wooden crib away and then abruptly jerking it back, causing the middle of the crib to break and the 1-year-old toddler to fall through the bottom. Per the seed reporting from WKRC, the video reportedly captured the child lying on their stomach with their head raised while the crib was repeatedly jerked, moving the child from side to side before the crib separated in the middle.
Probable cause documents indicate Moore told police she believed the toddler hit his head during the fall, and surveillance footage allegedly showed her placing the crying child behind her on the floor while she first tried to repair the broken crib, per the same WTHR account. WKRC's reporting adds that the child began crying after hitting the floor.
Allegations of a Prior Pattern
Other daycare staff members told Bloomington police that they had previously seen Moore forcefully rock cribs when frustrated, and allegations surfaced that she had previously yelled at children and hit them with cribs, the same WTHR report states. SuaraGarut's account of the staff interviews echoes those claims. WKRC similarly reports that witnesses described Moore appearing visibly frustrated when children raised their heads in their cribs, and separately rocking another crib forcefully while yelling for a child to stop.
The owner of You've Got a Friend in Me Childcare told investigators that while gently rocking cribs is standard practice to help children fall asleep, she immediately fired Moore after watching the surveillance footage, according to the WTHR report. The research notes caution that these are witness allegations regarding prior, uncharged incidents, distinct from the video evidence tied directly to the Sept. 28 injury. Moore was taken to Monroe County jail following her arrest, per WKRC.
What Moore Faces Under Indiana Law
Under Indiana Code § 35-42-2-1, battery committed by an adult age 18 or older against a child younger than 14 automatically elevates simple battery to a Level 5 felony, according to Eskew Law. That statutory threshold is what turned the alleged physical contact into a major felony charge rather than a misdemeanor.
A conviction on a Level 5 felony carries a prison term of 1 to 6 years, with an advisory sentence of 3 years, and potential fines of up to $10,000 per count, per Justia Law's citation of Indiana Code § 35-50-2-6. With two felony counts filed against her, Moore's potential sentencing exposure could compound if she is convicted on both.
Child safety cases involving licensed or in-home daycare facilities in Central Indiana have drawn heightened prosecution this year, including a recent Marion County case where a daycare owner was charged with Level 3 felonies following a severe infant injury, according to WTHR's reporting. The charges against Moore remain allegations at this stage, and the case has not yet been resolved in court.
