Daycare Center Workers had Few Options

When a Hatboro parent appeared to be last month, the only thing staff members could legally do was notify police.

That’s because even though parents and guardians rely on daycare centers to take care of their children during the day, the centers’ responsibility for the children ends at parent pick up.

Regardless of the parent’s state, a childcare provider cannot legally keep them from their child, said Mike Race, spokesman for the state’s Department of Public Welfare, which licenses daycare facilities.

Race said his department recommends that staff members notify police immediately in emergency situations, but noted that childcare providers are not obligated to call police. He called it a “common sense situation.”

After staff members called police, William McGuckin, of Hatboro, was arrested and charged with DUI, endangering the welfare of a child and a related traffic offense.

Michelle Zubyk, Just Like Home Daycare director, said her staff did everything they could and followed proper protocol.

The two staff members involved in the April 22 incident called the police and tried to stall McGuckin, Zubyk said, adding that one of the women followed him to his car and was “short of standing behind his car.”

“They followed exactly the procedure we have in place,” Zubyk said.  She noted that one staff member involved has been with the center for 21 years and the other has been there for 10 years and they handled the situation “excellently.”

“They assessed the situation and called the police. That’s all they can do,” she said. Regardless of the parent’s state, Zubyk said she agreed with Race that her staff  “cannot stop a parent from leaving the center with their child.”

She said this is not the first time Just Like Home staff dealt with this sort of situation and that all staff members are trained in emergency situations within their first week of employment.

“A regular person cannot prevent another person from taking their child,” Race said, noting that only police can. Race also said that a childcare provider could not legally determine if someone was intoxicated.

Zubyk, who has owned Just Like Home Daycare for 17 years, said “the center has taken the steps necessary to ensure that this will not happen again with this family.”