Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Debbie Ann Allard, 56, has been sentenced to 30 days in jail, followed by five years of probation, after entering a plea of nolo contendere to child abuse without great bodily harm. Adjudication of guilt was withheld by Judge David Kreider.

Allard was reportedly caught on surveillance cameras on June 6, 2022, at Cuddly Kids Daycare, carrying a 3-year-old child by her shoulders and then “aggressively” tossing her onto a cot on the floor. The child reportedly “flew back onto the cot and her legs flew into the air.” The child reportedly hit her head on the corner of the cot when she landed. The camera reportedly showed the child sitting up, holding the back of her head, as Allard walks away. At the time the report was written, the child had been taken to an emergency room and was not seriously injured.

Allard was reportedly immediately terminated from the daycare but quickly got a job at a different daycare facility before charges were filed.

Post Miranda, Allard reportedly admitted to the incident, saying she had been frustrated with the child and that her finger had locked up as she carried her to the cot, causing the child to slip out of her hand. She reportedly said she stepped away to calm down and did not immediately check on the child because she was trying to get the other children down for their naps. Allard has reportedly worked at five different daycare facilities.

Allard was booked into the Alachua County Jail on May 4. The terms of her probation after release include the completion of an anger management class and prohibitions against working in any daycare facility or having any unsupervised contact with minors.