Infant found unresponsive at unlicensed Smyrna daycare, cause of death probed

In Smyrna, Tennessee, investigators are probing the death of a seven-month-old infant found unresponsive at an at-home childcare operation on Lake Farm Road, where police say they were not contacted until about 30 minutes after the baby was found. The Tennessee Department of Human Services says the home was operating as an unlicensed daycare with 16 children present when officers arrived, and a temporary injunction was served to stop the caregiver from continuing without a license, while the cause of death remains under investigation and no arrests have been made. Authorities report the case is part of a joint inquiry involving law enforcement and the state Department of Children’s Services, and the department has declined to provide further specifics citing confidentiality rules. A mother who had been using the home for more than a year says her son had complained about being hit and returned hungry, leading her to stop bringing him in before the infant’s death. The Smyrna case follows other alleged incidents in the region involving unlicensed childcare, while a separate multi-agency investigation in Memphis has focused on Kid University after a child with autism was left on a hot bus and records indicate transportation and licensing violations at the facility shortly before that death.