A mother of 4 children who attended Bradford Preschool said she was concerned after noticing bruises and scratches on the children's bodies. Last November, Brenda Perez said she picked up her kids from Bradford Preschool, and her 4-year-old had marks around one of his eyes.
"I contacted them asking, you know, what happened? Nobody said they saw anything. He also came home with like this really bad scratch on his chest and they don't know what happened with that one either," Perez said.
She said another one of her children came home with a bite mark on his face, and her 1-year-old also got hurt.
“He would come home with bruises, like on his forehead and things," Perez said.
She said that all happened within one month. Then, she pulled her kids from the school, filed a police report, and complained to the Department of Children and Families, but she said they refused to investigate because she had not enough evidence to open a case.
"When's enough going to be enough? Like nothing happened with my case, unfortunately, which baffled me so much. I was just completely disgusted," Perez said.
Starke Police Department said they have been investigating the facility since last August, including seizing a DVR with video inside the school.
"There were several administrative code violations through the Department of Children and Families," Starke Police Department Detective Hunter Redding said.
Once DCF saw the footage, the state ordered the school to close, about seven months after Perez complained.
“We will continue to bring justice to them and investigate this to its natural resolution," Redding said.
The school remains closed under an Emergency Suspension Order.
Perez said she wants to share her experience with other parents and shares her advice.
"Don't sit and be quiet. Talk to your kids. I mean, because they're young right now so they know what's going on. And most little kids aren't going to lie, especially when something happens to them at this age," Perez said.
The Starke Police Department said the investigation is still ongoing.