A Minnesota nanny is facing first-degree assault charges after she was accused of slamming a child to the ground and breaking her jaw.
According to a criminal complaint, 22-year-old Ashley Ann Fields-Page was the live-in nanny for a family in Blaine, and she was reportedly entrusted to care for their 21-month-old daughter.
Authorities say that Fields-Page sent the child’s mother a text message on September 30, saying the toddler had hurt her tooth while eating a cracker.
Fields-Page also reportedly sent the mother a photo of a blanket with blood on it to explain what had happened after the little girl hurt her mouth.
When the mother returned home later, however, she immediately noticed that her daughter’s outfit had been changed, and that the original clothes she had worn that day had been washed and folded—something Fields-Page never did for the family.
Seeing that the toddler’s jaw looked swollen, the mom rushed the little girl to the emergency room, where she was told to see a dentist for the potentially cracked tooth.
It wasn’t until the family took the little girl to the pediatric dentist that they finally learned the truth: her jaw was broken.
Police quickly approached Fields-Page about what happened, but she repeatedly changed her story.
At first, Fields-Page insisted that the toddler had fallen off her bike outside, then said she actually fell while getting up from a nap.
The nanny finally admitted that she had slammed the toddler’s face into the ground after authorities arrested her.
Fields-Page reportedly attacked the little girl for trying to talk with a mouth full of crackers.
If convicted of the charges against her, Fields-Page could spend up to 20 years behind bars
