Daycare employee caught on camera throwing 3-year-old into cabinet: 'That was not what happened'

A daycare worker caught on surveillance footage throwing a 3-year-old girl against a cabinet denied that it happened for days after the incident.

Wilma Brown, a former employee at Brighter Day Care and Preschool in St. Louis County, Mo., came under question after a student was rushed to a nearby hospital on Feb. 1 with a head injury that required seven stitches, according to KTVI.

The same day, the child was released to her parents, who later received a note from the teacher stating she had hurt herself in an accidental "fall."

For nearly a week, Brown stuck with her story, telling Missouri's Section for Child Care Regulation that the child "was having a meltdown and jerked away" from her, causing the injury, KTVI reports.

Five days later, one of the child's relatives was able to record a cellphone video off of a surveillance monitor showing what actually happened to the young student. In the disturbing footage, the 3-year-old appears to calmly stand by a chair in the classroom for about two minutes before the teacher crosses the room, grabs her by the arm and throws her against a cabinet.

However, according to a 17-page license revocation report filed against Brighter Day Care and Preschool, Brown continued to claim her story was true, insisting "that was not what happened" even after watching the damning video.

Brighter Day Care and Preschool reportedly fired Brown after reviewing footage of the incident, which appears to be the latest in a series that plagued the daycare, KTVI uncovered. The facility is now appealing its license revocation.

Governor Mike Parson said in a news conference on Monday that "more can be done to ensure the safety of every Missouri child."

"One is we think we can do better in training people before they even get involved in daycare," he said. "We now require 12 hours but we think we can do work on that."

Jennifer Hansen, an attorney representing the injured toddler, said the girl's family is angry Brown was allowed to continue working at the facility for such a long period following the incident.

"The daycare could've reviewed that footage at any time," she said. "They didn't and they allowed the daycare worker who assaulted this little girl to continue to work at the facility for five additional days."