After baby's deadly injuries from Detroit daycare, mother files $10M lawsuit against business

DETROIT (FOX 2) - A parent's nightmare became reality in Detroit after Tiara Burton lost her infant daughter following an injury she sustained at a home daycare in 2023.

Her 1-year-old baby Marleigh was found wedged between a mattress and a headboard for at least 30 minutes at the Little Learners Village of Love LLC. She died months later.

"I just want answers. I still don't know what happened," said Burton.

With tears streaming down her face, Burton told FOX 2 the experience was the worst a parent could go through.

"I really thought they loved Marleigh, but it was all about money," she said.

When Marleigh was first discovered, she was rushed to nearby Sinai Grace Hospital. But she died four months later.

Filing a $10 million lawsuit against the home daycare, Burton is represented by Southfield-based attorney Mike Morse. He said Burton understood the home daycare was licensed and trusted the owner Latoya Moore and her daughter to take care of an older child.

She received public assistance to help with childcare, using money from the state to supplement the cost to attend the daycare while she worked. It required she submit paperwork to the state, which would send checks that would go toward the daycare.

"Our client had some peace of mind thinking the state knew who she was giving the money to," Morse said.

FOX 2 reached out to the state about the incident, which provided a statement that the provider was not licensed to provide childcare at the address 16910 Manor Street, where she lived. She does not currently have a license.

"Latoya Moore was a License Exempt – Unrelated provider until Nov. 4th 2023, which means she was permitted to provide care to child care scholarship recipients in the child's home," the statement read.

After attempting to contact Moore at her home, she later called FOX 2 and said her attorney advised her not to comment.

"We are hoping to get justice for baby Marleigh," said Morse.

There are also efforts to find if any other children were harmed while in the care of Moore.

"Any information that you can give us please contact us at the Mike Morse Law firm so we can help bring justice for this family," said Morse.