A Bronx toddler's tragic death at a daycare center has been ruled an accident, according to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. River Wilson, just 20 months old, drowned on August 1st while in care at Ana's Butterfly Garden Family Group in Castle Hill. The ruling came nearly two months after her passing.
River's parents, Ifiok and Ima Wilson, have taken their fight for justice to court, suing the daycare center and its operators over allegations of negligence that led to their daughter's death. The lawsuit was filed earlier this month with the support of U.S. Rep. Ritchie Torres.
In a recent inspection in May, state officials found no issues with pool access, but just three days after River's death, inspectors cited the daycare center for nine violations, including an inadequate pool fence and suspended its license.
Despite the suspension, River's death remains under investigation by law enforcement authorities, who have yet to criminally charge anyone in connection with her passing. A spokesperson for the Bronx district attorney's office stated that evidence is still being evaluated.
Torres has introduced federal legislation, dubbed "River's Law", aimed at banning swimming pools at residential day care centers and requiring door and window alarms. The family's attorney and the daycare operators have yet to comment on the medical examiner's ruling.
River's parents, Ifiok and Ima Wilson, have taken their fight for justice to court, suing the daycare center and its operators over allegations of negligence that led to their daughter's death. The lawsuit was filed earlier this month with the support of U.S. Rep. Ritchie Torres.
In a recent inspection in May, state officials found no issues with pool access, but just three days after River's death, inspectors cited the daycare center for nine violations, including an inadequate pool fence and suspended its license.
Despite the suspension, River's death remains under investigation by law enforcement authorities, who have yet to criminally charge anyone in connection with her passing. A spokesperson for the Bronx district attorney's office stated that evidence is still being evaluated.
Torres has introduced federal legislation, dubbed "River's Law", aimed at banning swimming pools at residential day care centers and requiring door and window alarms. The family's attorney and the daycare operators have yet to comment on the medical examiner's ruling.
I mean, can you even imagine a 20-month-old toddler drowning in a pool at daycare? 
it's a nightmare come true. what's going on with our system of care for kids?! first they're saying it was an accident, then the parents take them to court and suddenly there are all these new 'violations' that weren't even noticed before... 
like what were the inspectors doing just sitting around waiting for a tragedy to happen? 
and now we have this new "Ritchie Torres" bill that's kinda cool I guess, but is it really enough to prevent something like this from happening again? 
This is so sad... a 20 month old little life cut short in such a tragic way. I can only imagine how devastating this must be for River's parents Ifiok & Ima Wilson 
. The fact that there were 'only' 9 violations at the daycare center is just not enough - it should've been prevented earlier 
.
. And poor Ana's Butterfly Garden Family Group - their license got suspended just 3 days after the tragedy... hope they can recover from this 
.
. Fingers crossed that law enforcement finds those responsible and makes them accountable 
.
my heart goes out to her parents, Ima & Ifiok 
it doesn't feel right that they're still in limbo with no clear answers about what happened 
"River's Law" sounds like a good idea, maybe it'll bring some real change to these situations 
but I wish we could've seen more action sooner 
still so much uncertainty around River's passing... 
I'm not buying this 'accident' ruling for a second... what kind of checks and balances are there really in place? It seems like they just swept it under the rug, given those nine violations just three days after River died 
. I mean, are we seriously going to ban pools at daycares because of one tragic incident? It seems like a lot of people want a scapegoat and some politicians are happy to oblige 
. We need real accountability here, not just a Band-Aid solution that doesn't address the root issues 
9 violations in May and then just days after... that's not good enough 
. The law rep, Ritchie Torres, is trying to do something about it but it's gonna take time 
her life was so young and full of promise 
what really gets me is that the daycare center had already been cited for pool safety issues just days before River's death 
hope the authorities do some serious digging into this one... 
. it's frustrating that no one has been charged yet, it feels like there's still no accountability for what happened 
. the fact that they suspended their license 3 days after River's death just feels like more evidence of negligence...
The parents are still pushing for justice and I gotta respect that, but at the same time, you've got to wonder what really went down in those last few days before she passed away... was it a total accident or is there more to it? 
I also feel bad for River's family, but it's frustrating when we don't see action being taken ASAP.