Omaha day care worker found guilty in death of girl left in hot van
LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — An employee at an Omaha day care was convicted Thursday for leaving a 1-year-old girl in a van for several hours, leading to her death.
After a three-day trial, Judge Peter Bataillon found Ryan Williams guilty of negligent child abuse resulting in death.
On Aug. 21, Williams picked up about nine children and took them to Kidz of the Future Childcare near 50th and Leavenworth streets.
When he was unloading the kids, he got distracted by a boy who did not want to get out, according to court documents.
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Williams said he would normally conduct a “sweep” of the van but didn’t on that day, an arrest affidavit says.
About five hours later, he went to the van to do his afternoon route and found the girl unresponsive, police said.
The girl was taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Her temperature was 109 degrees, according to court records.
The heat index in Omaha that day was 114.
Williams is scheduled to be sentenced on July 22.
