A Granville woman who pleaded no contest to endangering children and kidnapping them at a Pataskala day care center will spend at least eight years in prison.
Katelyn Ann Strohacker, 24, pleaded no contest May 1 in Licking County Common Pleas Court, where she faced more than 30 criminal charges involving kidnapping and endangering children after prosecutors alleged she used painter’s tape and other objects to harm children while working at Over the Rainbow Children’s Center in Pataskala.
A no contest plea means the defendant admits to the facts of the case but not their guilt.
Licking County Common Pleas Judge Thomas Marcelain sentenced Strohacker to 8-12 years in prison, with credit for five days already served, and 2-5 years of parole.
Strohacker did not speak at the hearing other than to answer procedural questions from Marcelain. Her attorney, Sierra See, read a statement on her behalf:
“I am deeply sorry to all of the victims and their families for the pain my actions have caused,” See said, reading from Strohacker’s statement. “I did not mean or intend any harm. I sincerely apologize.”
See also said she continues to have concerns about Strohacker’s cognitive skills.
Strohacker worked at the facility for more than three years, according to court documents. The center fired her and its director, Jamie Schoelkopf, after the events.
A parent of one of the victims reported the accusations to the Licking County Sheriff’s Office on Aug. 7, after Schoelkopf told them about them, the documents state.
What prosecutors said footage from the center shows
In court documents, prosecutors alleged that Strohacker used painter’s tape to bind a then-1-year-old child’s eyes, hands and feet July 21 at the center, leaving her unattended with her face down under a blanket in a bed for an hour. Prosecutors alleged that Strohacker admitted to doing so more than once.
Detectives reviewed video from the center that they alleged in the documents shows Strohacker did something similar four times before, including on July 17, when she taped the child’s hands behind their head and stepped on their shoulder and neck area.
Other video, between July 7 and Aug. 7, show Strohacker committing other abusive acts to seven other children, including kicking, pushing, yanking and yelling, prosecutors alleged. Strohacker frequently shoved one of the children, also age 1 at the time, and shut their finger in a cabinet door on July 11.
The acts happened on more than a dozen days during that one-month period, the documents state.
“Even with your own educational limitations, you knew this was wrong,” Marcelain said during the hearing. “You knew you shouldn’t do this.”
Nationwide Children’s Hospital treated four of the victims and staff recommended some of them for mental health counseling. Licking County Prosecutor Jenny Wells said other victims have also undergone mental health evaluations in recent months.
“This is a parent’s worst nightmare,” Wells said. “You have entrusted your child to someone, and they’re harmed while in that person’s care, and those children aren’t even able to tell you that they’ve been hurt.
“These families entrusted this defendant with what mattered most to them – their precious children. The emotional and psychological harm that these children have suffered and families have suffered extends far beyond what is visible in the medical records.”
Parents of victims report their children’s struggles following the events
Several parents who sent their children to the center spoke at Strohacker’s sentencing, including some who consented to being publicly identified and said their kids are having trouble sleeping and going to school.
Marina Trent said her daughter has been experiencing night terrors ever since and refuses comfort from her. She also tries to stay awake, which Trent believes is because her daughter associates sleep with harm and that her daughter shudders after hearing loud noises.
“My daughter, nor the other children, were developed enough to express that something was wrong,” Trent said of her daughter. “Kate knew that and capitalized on it.”
Another parent, Ryan Freehafer, said he felt compelled while seeing the footage to reach through the screen and save his then-1-year-old daughter. He also reported his daughter struggling with sleep and feels she must put her hands behind her back when she naps.
He described Strohacker’s actions toward the children as a “calculated routine of torture.”
“For months, I dropped my daughter off at Over the Rainbow, believing she was in a safe and nurturing environment,” Freehafer said. “Instead, I was hand delivering her to a monster.”
What else to know about the case
Schoelkopf also faces child endangerment charges – Wells alleges Schoelkopf waited around two weeks to tell police about the accusations against Strohacker.
According to Wells, Schoelkopf first learned about Strohacker taping the child after a coworker reported it July 21. Wells alleges Schoelkopf didn’t call a parent of one of the victims about the behavior until Aug. 7, continuing to allow Strohacker to work there.
Strohacker posted a $50,000 bond Aug. 18 and was release from jail. She pleaded not guilty to the charges in September after a grand jury indicted her a few weeks earlier. After undergoing mental health evaluations, psychologists found her competent to stand trial, court records show.
During the May 1 sentencing, Marcelain encouraged parents to not blame themselves – something, he said, they tend to do in these types of cases – and said he thinks family members’ support can help with healing.
“As a mother, I had anticipated having to accept I wouldn’t be able to protect my child forever,” Trent said. “However, I did not anticipate it would be this soon or at such a young age. This process has already been long and painful. Navigating the aftermath of others’ choices will be an ongoing battle.”
Advocate reporter Josué Perez can be reached at jhperez@newarkadvocate.com.
This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Ex-day care worker accused of binding kids with tape sentenced
Reporting by Josué Perez, Newark Advocate / Newark Advocate
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