Massachusetts

Ex-Day Care Director Gets Probation for Not Reporting Abuse

The former director of a campus day care center in Massachusetts who was accused of failing to act on concerns about an employee who later pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting children has been sentenced to three years of probation.

The Boston Globe reports 55-year-old Judith Ritacco, of Boylston, was sentenced Thursday. Ritacco is the former director at the now-closed Bridgewater State University day care center.

Authorities say 24-year-old Kyle Loughlin inappropriately touched three preschool-age children while working at the center in 2015. He was sentenced to seven years in prison.

Bridgewater State University Police asserted in court that Ritacco had been notified multiple times in March regarding Loughlin's suspicious behavior.

An investigation revealed that Ritacco was informed that a parent had reported abuse of her child by Loughlin on March 27.

Ritacco contacted Bridgewater State University Police Department on March 28; however, she told the teacher who informed her about the abuse not to speak to anyone about the incident.

Ritacco admitted to sufficient facts for a guilty finding in her case. She was scheduled to go to trial on charges of reckless endangerment of a child, failure to report child abuse as a mandated reporter and witness intimidation.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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