Court Reaches Compromise in Yerushalayim Daycare Case; Bereaved Mother Testifies in Support of Caregivers
A court in Yerushalayim approved a compromise agreement on Thursday in the high-profile daycare case in the city, ordering the caregivers involved to remain under house arrest for nine days under restrictive conditions, even as the mother of a child who died in the tragedy appeared in court to speak forcefully in their defense.
Under the agreement reached with the prosecution, the caregivers were placed on house arrest and barred from returning to their workplace. Additional conditions imposed by the judge include a 45-day prohibition on working in childcare and a ban on contacting parents of the children or other individuals connected to the case.
In an extraordinary development, Chani Katz, the mother of Aharon Katz, the infant who died in the daycare tragedy, left her home during the shivah period to testify on behalf of the daycare director and staff. Addressing the court, she said the caregivers were being treated unjustly and insisted they bore no responsibility for her son’s death.
“We are like family. A terrible wrong is being done here,” Mrs. Katz told the court. “She lost a child just like I did.”
Standing before the judge only days after her loss, Mrs. Katz added, “I lost my son two days ago. I have known these caregivers for seven years. I sent all my children to them. I still have two children who have been with them for years. My children always loved being there. I know exactly who they are, and I am the most anxious mother in Jerusalem.”
Fighting back tears, she recounted the decision she made the night before the tragedy. “I hadn’t planned to send him to a permanent daycare. The night before, I debated where to place my most precious treasure — with my family or with Miriam. I chose Miriam because I felt calm and safe. This decree was from Heaven. He was meant to pass away on that day and at that hour, and God showed me kindness by not taking him while he was at home with me.”
Mrs. Katz went on to criticize the way the caregivers were being portrayed. “It hurts me to see them sitting here like two terrorists,” she said. “My pure Ari merited to be with Miriam longer than he was with me. Just as I lost a son, Miriam lost a child. I will get up from this and choose life, but she will never recover from this. It’s important to me to seek justice. They are innocent.”
Turning directly to the daycare director, Mrs. Katz concluded, “Miriam, be strong. We are with you.”
At the same time, other parents whose children attended the daycare submitted a letter to the court expressing their support for the educational staff. In the letter, they wrote that the caregivers’ “care, devotion, and sense of responsibility went far beyond what is expected,” adding that “each child received personal attention, meals on time, and every mother received a full report on her child’s day.”
The parents further stated that since the daycare was shut down, the absence has been clearly felt by the children. “The rumors, suspicions, and publications that have circulated are nothing more than fabrications and lies that harm innocent people,” the letter said.
Emergency response at the scene of the incident involved United Hatzalah, which assisted in evacuating children from the daycare following the tragedy.
{Matzav.com}
