Victoria Stanton, a former employee of Sweet Angels Daycare of Newfane, pleaded guilty to second-degree harassment Tuesday in Newfane Town Court.
The reduced charge stems from incidents that occurred between June 1 and Aug. 3, 2022 in which Stanton, 22, “acted with the intent to harass, annoy or alarm” two children at the daycare center and “struck, shoved, kicked or otherwise subjected (them) to physical contact or attempted or threatened to do the same,” Town Justice Bruce Barnes confirmed as he accepted her plea.
Stanton originally was charged with two counts of endangering the welfare of a child. As a part of her plea deal, 4-year-old Charlee Wojewoda and 5-year-old Gracie Stefanko were given two-year orders of protection. Stanton also agreed to waive sealing of the case.
Simultaneous with her plea, Barnes ordered Stanton to pay a $250 fine and complete 100 hours of community service within six months.
Upon Barnes confirming the terms of the plea, several of the approximately two dozen parents in the courtroom applauded, particularly when Stanton was sentenced to 100 hours of community service and was prohibited from any “use of illicit drugs or alcohol” throughout the duration of the orders of protection.
The mothers, Mallory Bumpers-Wojewoda, Kathy Chenez-Stefanko and Kelly Ciappa, said they had mixed emotions overall about the sentencing.
“It’s a step in the right direction, but it’s not the direction that I or any of us wanted it to go,” Bumpers-Wojewoda said.
A request by Bumpers-Wojewoda and Chenez-Stefanko to read a victim impact statement in the courtroom drew an objection from Stanton’s attorney, Anthony Lana, and was denied.
“The reality of the situation was that the request was made late last evening and there wasn’t an opportunity (for the defense to respond),” Lana told the Union-Sun & Journal following the sentencing.
Both mothers said they were disappointed they were not allowed to voice what their children went through.
“I personally wanted to have the opportunity to sit with Barnes either face to face or write him something about what my daughter went through,” Chenez-Stefanko said. “Our kids were terrified (of Stanton).”
While initially denying all allegations of abuse, Lana said it was “finality” that led Stanton to accept the plea deal.
“She can move on with her life and put this behind her,” he said.
Stanton and a former co-worker, Karon Anterline, 66, both were charged with endangering the welfare of a child this past September by New York State Police. Anterline accepted a similar plea deal on Dec. 19.
A third employee, Alexis Cleveley, 22, was charged with three counts of child endangerment on Dec. 15.
After Stanton’s sentencing, Cleveley appeared in court for her arraignment and pleaded not guilty.
Barnes issued a six-month order of protection against Cleveley for one particular child.
All of the court cases stem from an investigation by state police based on complaints lodged in February 2023 by parents of children who attended Sweet Angels.
Bumpers-Wojewoda and Chenez-Stefanko are two of the parents who filed complaints with the state Office of Children and Family Services after they had noticed their children starting to behave abnormally. Their concerns were heightened when their children came home from Sweet Angels with bruises.
Bumpers-Wojewoda said she approached leadership of Sweet Angels about abuse of her daughter, and was led her to believe that it was the child’s fault.
Following that, she and Chenez-Stefanko removed their children from the daycare and filed reports with OCFS and state police.
Along the way, the mothers said, they came into contact with about a dozen other parents who had similar experiences and ended up pulling their children out of the daycare.
The ensuing investigation into the daycare center, which is ongoing, is what led to the arrest of the three former employees.
In the wake of the investigation, Sweet Angels closed its Newfane location Dec. 29 due to “charges filed against former employees as well as demographic and staffing challenges,” the owner’s press spokesperson said.
Moving forward, the parents said, they want to continue their advocacy and “go all the way to Albany” to make changes to state laws concerning child abuse.
“We’ve already spoken to (New York state senator) Rob Ortt’s office and we appreciate his support,” Bumpers-Wojewoda said.