When you think of the job of a daycare owner, you probably think about someone who cares for children during the day while parents are at work or school. Janna Thompson was a daycare owner, but in September of 2014, she made a horrible mistake. A young boy by the name of Thomas Maxwell Stephens, was murdered while he was in the care of Thompson…
She was charged with second-degree murder as a result of the actions that were committed on her property. There have been a few motions to try to get the charges dropped, but courts in Fulton County want to proceed with the hearing.
In July of 2014, Thompson left the little boy, who was 3 at the time, outside alone. He was playing on a slide when she went indoors. She was trying to discipline another child, and in the time that she was away, the young boy died. There was a piece of twine left wrapped around his neck.
While the boy wasn’t murdered by another person, laws in the state have declared that if a child dies while in the care of a daycare worker, then the caretaker can be charged with manslaughter. The second-degree murder charge is somewhat easier to obtain in court because there is no malicious intent that needs to be proven. It’s a matter of neglect, and that is what has been presented in this case.
