Day care teacher accused of slapping, choking a child

Kennesaw woman is arrested, charged with cruelty to children.

A Kennesaw woman who was a teacher at a Woodstock day care was arrested late last month on child cruelty charges after authorities said she was seen physically abusing a boy on security camera footage.

Ashley Marie O’Connor, 28, was fired from her position at the Sunshine House and later arrested after the abuse was brought to light, according to a spokeswoman for the day care company.

The event took place March 13 and was discovered during a routine review of security footage the next day.

The footage was reviewed by Cherokee County sheriff’s deputies, who used the evidence to take out arrest warrants against O’Connor. She was taken into custody March 28 on counts of first-degree cruelty to children and aggravated assault.

O’Connor was released from the Cherokee jail the same day on $15,000 bond.

According to the arrest warrant, O’Connor pinned the boy to the floor with her body weight, dragged him across the floor by his neck and picked him up by his left arm and leg before dropping him on his head. She is also accused of grabbing the boy by his neck and shaking his head so that it struck the ground, as well as slapping him and choking him with a blanket. His age was not provided.

The spokeswoman for the Sunshine House said the company terminated O’Connor immediately and contacted the child’s parents and authorities.

In addition to the sheriff ’s office, Sunshine House informed the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning (Bright from the Start) about the incident.

O’Connor “was not present in a classroom at any time after reporting of this incident,” the Sunshine House spokeswoman said.

According to the spokeswoman, O’Connor passed a state and national background check and a child abuse and neglect registry check before being hired.