A woman is accused of endangering young children in her care at her home in Walpole, Massachusetts, while attacking her husband with a baseball bat last month, according to court documents.
Diane Fenton, 58, is facing several charges including assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and three counts of reckless endangerment of a child in connection with the Sept. 20 incident, according to court documents.
Stream NBC10 Boston news for free, 24/7, wherever you are.
WATCH HERECalled about 4:45 p.m. that Wednesday afternoon, officers found Fenton in the road, hitting her husband in the arms and torso with a wooden baseball bat, according to a police statement filed in court. She dropped the bat when the officer arrived and drew out a stun gun and was taken into custody.
Inside the home, officers found three children, ranging in age from six months to 4 and a half, whom Fenton's husband said she was looking after through a day care, the police statement said. The infant "was found face down on her stomach in the carpet," according to the statement, and Fenton, "crying inconsolably," wouldn't help call the children's parents.
Get updates on what's happening in Boston to your inbox with our News Headlines newsletter.
SIGN UP The children were later taken home by their parents, the police statement said, and a report was submitted to the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families.
A mom of two of the kids who were there that day tells NBC10 Boston that Fenton was a very nice woman, highly recommended and there were no red flags. She says her 4-year-old daughter was upset and disturbed after she reportedly saw Fenton attack her husband with a butterfly garden decoration and a bat, and wanted to know why it happened. Police said the mom reported she was "distraught over the evidence of emotional trauma brought upon her daughter" and wanted resources to help her child navigate what had occurred at the daycare.
The police statement said Fenton has a history of alcohol abuse, becoming physically violent while intoxicated, her husband reported. Fenton's husband also told police that he had given her an ultimatum where they would remain married if she would abstain from alcohol and attend Alcoholics Anonymous.
Fenton's husband told the responding officers that he had arrived at the home that day to find Fenton intoxicated, and when he confronted her, she started hitting him with her fist and pulling at his clothes, even though she had the three kids in her care at the time. She then allegedly grabbed the bat and went after her husband.
According to police, there is Ring camera footage that shows Fenton's husband running from the home with Fenton chasing him and then hitting him with the bat. A wooden bat was also recovered from the scene.
Fenton's husband declined to speak with NBC10 Boston on Wednesday, and her attorney declined to comment. We also tried to reach Fenton by phone, text and Facebook but we have not heard back.
Following a hearing the day after her arrest, Fenton was ordered to not drink alcohol or care for children under 14, according to court documents. She's due back in court on Thursday.
Her name and the home's address didn't appear in Massachusetts' licensed child care lookup on Wednesday. She had been licensed to operate Diane's Daycare since 1998, but state officials say the daycare surrendered the license this week in the wake of this investigation.
