A California daycare owner wept in court as she admitted her negligence led to the death of a 16-month-old girl, whose head became fatally trapped between a plastic cot and the railing of her crib.
Stacy Lee Snow, 54, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in connection with the child’s death. The toddler was found unresponsive in her crib on April 8, 2025.
At a sentencing hearing on Friday, Snow faced the infant’s family before receiving a three-year county jail sentence. During an emotional apology in court, she acknowledged responsibility for the tragedy.
“I am ashamed of my negligence,” Snow said.
“I will not ask for your forgiveness because I do not deserve it.”
Snow had operated Snow Angels Childcare and Preschool, an in-home daycare in El Cajon, California, for 13 years. Prosecutors said the day the girl died was only the fourth time the child had been left in Snow’s care.
Prosecutors said the infant was ‘fussier’ than usual that day, so Snow put her into her crib for a nap to try and calm her down.
She then covered the crib with a plastic cot and a mesh center to prevent her from climbing out, before leaving the girl in the room alone with the door closed.
The baby girl was found an hour later with her head wedged between the plastic cot and a railing on the crib, and a medical examiner found she died by asphyxiation.
California daycare owner Stacy Lee Snow, 54, admitted to allowing a baby to die when its head became fatally wedged between a plastic cot and her crib’s railing, as she was sentenced to three years behind bars
Snow owned and operated an at-home daycare center called Snow Angels Childcare (pictured) and Preschool in El Cajon, California, for 13 years, but admitted she left the baby girl alone for over an hour with a plastic cot over her crib to force her into a nap
Under California law, Snow was required to check on the baby girl at least every 15 minutes while she was in her care.
The baby girl’s mother, who remained anonymous during the court proceedings, also reportedly told Snow not to let the girl sleep while she was at her daycare, as she wanted her to stay awake through the day to tire her out.
But Snow admitted to ignoring this as she left the girl alone in the room for at least an hour, telling police she returned to the room to find the girl passed out and wedged in her cot.
Snow said she tried desperately to perform CPR as paramedics raced to the scene.
The San Diego Sheriff’s Office said first responders found the infant ‘on the living room floor’ when they arrived.
The baby girl was raced to a local hospital where she was tragically pronounced dead, and a medical examiner ruled the cause of death to be ‘accidental asphyxia’, per Law & Crime.
At her sentencing, the judge slammed Snow for her ‘intentional and negligent choices’, and handed her the maximum sentence allowed for involuntary manslaughter charges.
The judge branded the infant’s death ‘a tragedy that was absolutely and wholly avoidable.’
Snow apologized to the victim’s mother in her own sentencing statement, telling her: ‘There is not a day that goes by that I don’t think about this tragic incident and all the ways it could have been prevented had I not been so careless with my actions.’
As she was sentenced to three years in prison, Snow apologized to the victim’s mother and told her: ‘I am ashamed of my negligence. I will not ask for your forgiveness because I do not deserve it’
Snow was condemned by the judge at her sentencing, who told her she killed the infant in ‘a tragedy that was absolutely and wholly avoidable’
The daycare owner had operated the daycare for 13 years, and before the child’s death she had no citations or issues with the Department of Social Services
As part of her three year sentence, Snow will serve the final six months released under mandatory supervision, and her childcare license was revoked.
The victim’s mother said at the sentencing that the tragedy devastated her family, saying that she has still not tidied her baby’s toys or clothes over a year later.
‘I still cannot bring myself to pack away her belongings because doing so feels like losing her all over again,’ she said.
‘I can’t shake the last time that I said goodbye.’
The daycare owner is now facing a pending wrongful death lawsuit from the victim’s family.
She had operated the daycare for 13 years, and before the child’s death she had no citations or issues with the Department of Social Services, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported.
