WEST MELBOURNE, Fla. — Parents trust daycare workers with the most precious thing in their lives. Latasha Mullings, 41, apparently saw that trust as an opportunity to terrorize toddlers.
Mullings, a teacher at Mustard Seed Kidz in West Melbourne, Florida, now faces 11 counts of misdemeanor battery and one count of misdemeanor assault after surveillance footage caught her attacking five children — all between the ages of 2 and 4 — on at least 11 separate occasions between May 19 and May 26.
The disturbing case came to light on May 27, when the daycare director called police after a parent reported that Mullings had flicked a child in the face. A deeper review of classroom camera footage made things far worse.
What investigators found on that footage was chilling. Mullings was seen striking children on the head with a metal stapler, slapping one child across the face three times in a row, and hurling a shoe at another toddler. When the shoe missed, she grabbed the child by the shirt and screamed directly into their face. Police noted that students showed “visible pain” after each incident.
When the school director confronted Mullings and terminated her on the spot, her response left everyone speechless.
“My babies are gonna miss me,” she reportedly said — apparently unbothered by what the cameras had recorded.
Mullings was arrested Friday and booked into the Brevard County Jail. She posted a $37,000 bond and is due back in court on June 23.
Mustard Seed Kidz released a statement saying the safety of every child is their “highest priority” and that they are fully cooperating with law enforcement and the Florida Department of Children and Families.
For the parents of the five victims — some barely old enough to speak — cooperation statements offer cold comfort. The people paid to protect their children were the ones hurting them.
Anyone who believes their child may have been affected is urged to contact the West Melbourne Police Department immediately.
