Sisters working at day care accused of abusing eight kids under age 2 in Wisconsin
Two sisters who worked in the same Wisconsin day care classroom are now facing felony charges after child abuse was caught on camera, prosecutors said.
Jilnya L. and Jakya D. Chandler, both of Milwaukee, were each charged Feb. 10 with eight counts of physical abuse of a child, according to a criminal complaint. Attorney information was not available.
Investigators identified eight children all under the age of two who were abused by the 25-year-old Chandler sisters while attending The Nurturing Nook – Riverpoint from September to November, court records show.
McClatchy News reached out to The Nurturing Nook Feb. 11 for comment but did not immediately hear back.
Authorities said surveillance footage from inside the classroom showed the women “aggressively” handling the toddlers and screaming and swearing at them instead of consoling them when they cried, according to the complaint.
The video captured the sisters pinching, dragging, hitting, kicking and forcefully lifting the kids off the ground by one arm, records show.
One child seen on video crying out for his “mama” was told by Jilnya to “shut the (expletive) up,” according to the complaint.
In an incident with a 17-month old, Jakya screams at the toddler before saying “ugh, you ugly (expletive),” records show.
The cameras also captured a conversation between the sisters in which Jilnya admits she pulled a child’s ear, adding that she was about to “about to pull that (expletive) off,” records show. Before the exchange, the video shows a 19-month-old walking away holding her ear.
Jilnya told investigators there was “nothing concerning” on the classroom footage, records show.
The Chandler sisters were both fired from Nurturing Nook following their arrests in November, WDJT reported.
This story was originally published February 11, 2025 at 4:18 PM with the headline "Sisters working at day care accused of abusing eight kids under age 2 in Wisconsin."
