PARKLAND, Wash. — A Pierce County jury has returned a $130M verdict in favor of the estate of a 2-year-old who died from “prolonged abuse.”
The lawsuit filed alleged that both the Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) and Love and Laughter Learning Centers, Inc. “ignored clear warning signs of abuse and failed to take basic steps that would have saved Sarai Brooks’ life.”
This is the largest verdict of its kind in the state’s history.
What happened
Around 8:15 a.m. on March 11, 2022, deputies responded to a report of a 2-year-old girl who was not breathing in an apartment complex on 129th Street South in Parkland. She was found by a social worker.
Despite the efforts of deputies and medics, the child died.
While interviewing the parents, deputies learned there was a protection order in place between the mother’s boyfriend and two of the children in the home.
At the time, the Department of Children, Youth & Families had an active investigation involving abuse by the boyfriend.
Deputies arrested the 29-year-old boyfriend, Augustino Maile, for the previous child abuse case and booked him into the Pierce County Jail for the assault of a child.
On March 12, 2022, the medical examiner’s office performed an autopsy and confirmed the child died by homicide.
On March 13, 2022, detectives interviewed Maile again. They determined the nature of the child’s injuries and charged the mother’s boyfriend with the child’s murder.
The victim’s mother, Jharmaine Baker, was also arrested.
Both were charged with her murder.
Maile was sentenced to more than 16 years in prison in July 2024 after pleading guilty to manslaughter and other felonies in a plea deal, according to the Tacoma News Tribune.
Baker was sentenced to six years in prison in June 2023 after she pleaded guilty to criminal mistreatment and child assault in a plea bargain, the News Tribune reported.
The lawsuit
Following a five-week trial, a jury found that “systemic failures across both the child welfare system and the daycare directly contributed to Sarai’s death,” a lawyer for Sarai’s estate said.
That jury found liability between the state and the daycare.
According to the attorney for Sarai’s estate, “evidence presented at the trial showed that DCYF returned Sarai to a home where her abuser remained present despite a court order prohibiting contact, then failed to follow up on repeated warning signs, including missed daycare attendance and visible injuries.
Court documents also show that staff at the Love and Laughter Learning Center daycare observed visible injuries, including a black eye and other concerning marks, but failed to report them to authorities as required by law. "
According to paperwork filed in the case, the verdict found that “defendant State of Washington (DCYF) was negligent” and that that negligence was “a proximate cause of the death of Sarai Brooks.
The verdict used the same wording for Love and Laughter Learning Centers, Inc.
In total, $130 million was awarded to her estate.
$52 million in personal damages was named for Sarai. The rest was awarded between four others named in the estate for Sarai.
The ruling found that the state must pay 90% of the damages, and the daycare pays the rest.
“This verdict gives Sarai a voice,” said Ray Dearie of Dearie Law Group, which represented the family. “The jury had the very difficult burden of hearing in graphic detail exactly what Sarai endured, and how many opportunities there were to save her.”
In a statement, DCYF said:
“DCYF is unable to comment on the specifics of this matter as we evaluate our legal options. DCYF remains dedicated to the safety and well-being of children.”
KIRO 7 has also reached out to Love and Laughter Learning Centers, Inc. for comment and is waiting to hear back.