A Denver day care operator will face a felony charge of child abuse resulting in death in connection to the death of a Denver police officer’s 17-month-old son in November.
The baby, Jeremiah Saunders, had been at Dammi Seneviratne’s day care at 4332 Ceylon St. on Nov. 4, before he was rushed to The Children’s Hospital in Aurora, because he was not breathing.
The police officer has not been named.
Seneviratne, 36, told a reporter soon after that Jeremiah had been sleeping, and she did not know what happened.
The criminal charge alleges that she left the child unattended, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
The Denver coroner reported the boy died of “asphyxia” after he strangled on a toy made of beads and wire.
Seneviratne has operated the day care since 2002. She was cited by the Colorado Department of Human Services in 2008 for having too many people in a van without proper restraints.
Seneviratne is free on $50,000 bond.
