Delaware daycare operator gets maximum sentence for abusing, endangering 14 children
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A Delaware County woman who pleaded guilty to multiple charges related to the abuse of children while running an in-home daycare center will spend over four decades in prison.
According to court records, 55-year-old Rhonda Coomes was sentenced to 42 years in prison – the maximum sentence – after pleading guilty to 14 counts of endangering children, which included a 10-month-old infant, while operating her own daycare center at her Randor home.
The sentence issued included three years in prison per charge, while three counts of kidnapping were dropped as part of the plea agreement.
According to the Delaware County Sheriff’s Office, the investigation into Coomes began after anonymous complaints were made of potential child abuse, which the office said happened between January 2021 and September 2023. Coomes was arrested and charged in January 2024.
Video evidence revealed that Coomes injured a 10-month-old girl by hitting her multiple times in the face with the palm of her hand and six times with a “hard plastic diaper wipe container.” The child suffered a black eye, court records state.
On Jan. 26, Coomes was arrested and initially charged with one count of kidnaping. At the time, the sheriff’s office said the charge was a “placeholder” and that she would likely “be charged with felonies related to her physical abuse of more than a half-dozen different kids.”
Additional complaints surfaced and Coomes was also accused of throwing a child onto its back into a playpen and then hitting the child. That same day, Coomes abused a 3-year-old for not eating fast enough, the sheriff’s office said.
Coomes was indicted in April on 17 charges and was issued a $500,000 bond. Coomes entered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity in May. A competency hearing was scheduled in August 2024 and a judge ruled her to be competent, after which Coomes’ attorneys withdrew the insanity plea.
She pleaded guilty in December to all 14 counts of child endangerment, with each count related to a different child.
If you suspect child abuse is occurring with someone you know, please reach out to Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422- 4453 or to our local Department of Job and Family Services at 740-833-2300.