Inset: Sarah Fuson (Montgomery County Sheriff's Office). Background: The day care center where Fuson previously worked in Clarksville, Tenn. (Google Maps).
A Tennessee woman and onetime day care worker will spend decades behind bars for injuries she inflicted on a 13-month-old under her care.
In October, Sarah Jo Fuson, 24, was convicted by a jury in Dickson County on one count each of aggravated child abuse and child abuse.
On Thursday, the defendant was sentenced by 23rd Circuit Court Judge David Wolfe to 20 years in prison without the possibility of parole over her actions that left the toddler in question with an injury to her head. Fuson was additionally assessed a four-year sentence which will run concurrently, or at the same time.
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During the sentencing hearing, the judge used the defendant's own words against her to stress the severity of the case, according to a courtroom report by Nashville-based ABC affiliate WKRN.
"On multiple occasions the defendant made the statement, and I'm going to quote it exactly as it's written… 'I shouldn't F–ing be here, I didn't do anything,'" Wolfe said.
The judge went on to say the sentencing hearing was the first time he had seen Fuson appear to express any sort of remorse for her actions.
"She called the victim's mother a liar," Wolfe continued. "She reported she wasn't allowed visits at the jail and that her family needs to sue the jail so she can get out of there. She also discussed how the food 'sucked' and she really wanted a Dr. Pepper."
In April 2023, Fuson, the daughter of Montgomery County Sheriff John Fuson, was indicted in her home county — the same county where the day care center in question is located. In August 2024, the case was removed to Dickson County due to her father's position.
The underlying incident occurred in January 2023, at the Tylertown Learning Center in Clarksville, according to authorities.
During Fuson's trial, prosecutors showed a video belatedly discovered by day care staff that showed the child's head being slammed into a cot. Medical experts testified a CT scan showed areas on the victim's head possibly indicating a "concussion or skull fracture."
The video was discovered after the baby girl came home from the day care with "marks and bruises on her arms," according to the charging document prepared by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and obtained by WKRN. The child's parents complained and Fuson was subsequently fired before the criminal investigation began.
The footage shows the defendant initially grabbing the child by her arms to reposition her in a high chair, according to a courtroom report by Clarksville Now. Later, as the child kept resisting nap time, Fuson is seen grabbing her and slamming her down on the cot over and over. On the eighth and final shove, the baby's head lands near the edge of the cot and the child does not move again until waking from her nap. Witnesses reportedly disagreed about whether or not the child's head actually made contact with the hard, plastic edge of the cot.
The defense, for its part, argued that misinformation quickly spread about the severity of the child's injuries — saying the girl did not, in fact, suffer a skull fracture from the incident.
But the jury sided with the state.
In an allocution, Fuson addressed her behavior and apologized.
"I didn't realize that I was being rough with Olivia in the moment," the convicted woman said. "I recognize that I was rough with her and regret my conduct. To Olivia and her parents, I am so very sorry that this happened and what this has put your family through."
Fuson's mother also spoke on her behalf.
"Sarah is not a throw away person, she is kind, she is generous, she is loving," the defendant's mother said. "As her family, we need her, we depend on her, and we will have a big hole at our table and in our hearts until she is returned home to us."
The victim's mother also spoke — and apparently offered a more convincing narrative.
"Your honor, I ask the court to remember that behind this case is a real child," the girl's mother said. "A baby who was frightened, abused, and betrayed. I ask the court to fully understand the deep, lasting harm that this has caused to Olivia and our family. She deserved to feel safe, she deserved to be protected."
