West Jordan woman arrested, accused of seriously injuring the baby she nannied
Feb 28, 2024, 5:46 PM | Updated: Feb 29, 2024, 6:25 am
WEST JORDAN — A West Jordan nanny is behind bars, accused of seriously injuring a baby.
It was in the seemingly quiet West Jordan neighborhood, located near 7253 S. Brittany Park Avenue, that police arrested 51-year-old Leslie Ann Percell. The Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office has filed charges against Percell.
According to arresting documents, the baby’s parents noticed something was off on Dec. 7, 2023, when they picked the baby up from Percell’s home.
“They started to notice after one incident that the baby was fussy, vomiting, and they subsequently, as a concerned parent, took the child to the ER,” said Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill.
According to charging documents, the baby’s father also noticed the baby had a large bruise behind his ear. Doctors later discovered a broken occipital bone, retinal bleeding in both eyes, and two brain bleeds, one appeared to already be in the process of healing hinting at a previous injury.
“In fact, some of the injuries seem to indicate that they were in the process of healing, indicating prior incidents that happened,” Gill said.
On Wednesday, the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office announced three charges of aggravated child abuse for incidents in October and December 2023. It appears Percell was running an unlicensed daycare out of her home and watched over at least four other children.
“I think that what this really speaks to is that you [parents] have to really pay attention to what is going on around them,” Gill said. “In this case, it really helped them and helped us to identify somebody, potentially, who may have injured this child.”
Detectives interviewed Percell on Jan. 17, and she admitted to caring for the baby but “denied shaking, dropping or hitting him” or “anything happening” while the baby was in her home, according to charging documents.
The documents also indicate Percell was the only adult present when she cared for the baby.
“It’s important to note, these are allegations only. There is a presumption of innocence that applies here as it applies to any defendant … but as we outlined in our probable cause statement, we think these charges are warranted,” Gill said.
West Jordan police said they have no reason at this time to suspect there are other victims. However, concerned parents are encouraged to report any suspicious circumstances at 801-840-4000, the West Jordan Police Department tip line.
The charges stem from incidents in October and December of last year. 5Percell is currently being held in the Salt Lake County Jail. Each count of aggravated child abuse carries between one to 15 years in prison, with a conviction.
