La Plata, MD – Brittany Danielle Gaillard, 25 of La Plata, will face sentencing June 14 for second-degree child abuse after she accepted an Alford Plea in Charles County Circuit Court Tuesday, May 3 in La Plata.
Judge H. James West said the defendant’s counsel, Philip Gundlach, had asked for a different sentencing date.
Although the offense carries a maximum penalty of 15 years, under the terms of the agreement Gaillard would face no more than a year of incarceration.
Charles County Assistant State’s Attorney Tiffany Campbell told the court that the charges stemmed from an incident Dec. 4, 2014 when parents of the 2-year-old female victim dropped their child off at daycare in Waldorf.
“The mother received a phone call informing her that her daughter had been injured while in the defendant’s care,” Campbell said.
She alleged Gaillard held the child’s hands under hot water resulting in second-degree burns on the toddler’s hands.
“She was ultimately taken to Civista Hospital and later transported to Children’s Hospital,” Campbell stated. “Photos were taken and the state would have introduced those into trial.”
Campbell added that the defendant was not accredited to work at a licensed daycare provider.
Had the case gone to trial, witnesses would have included Charles County Sheriff’s Office investigators and the physician from Children’s Hospital who examined the child, she said.
Gaillard pled guilty to count one, second-degree child abuse.
West set sentencing for June 14.
Contact Joseph Norris at joe.norris@thebaynet.com