Former Menomonee Falls preschool teacher sentenced to 3 years of probation for child abuse

MENOMONEE FALLS, Wis. (CBS 58) -- A former Menomonee Falls preschool teacher was sentenced to three years of probation in court.

Twenty-eight-year-old Madeline Ferguson was found guilty of two felony counts of child abuse back in May.

On Sep. 19, 2022, security video from Cadence Academy Preschool shows Ferguson hit a 3-year-old boy in the head with a water bottle and grab him by the back of his neck. She also can be seen grabbing another girl by the arm and lifting her off the ground.

Parents of one of the victims spoke at the sentencing hearing.

“It felt like a bad dream that I thought I would surely wake up from, but I didn’t,” said Allison Sacomano, the mom of the 3-year-old boy. “It’s a kid. It’s a 3-year-old, it’s my kid. It was very, very hard to sit through. We have lived the last 22 months with a dark cloud over our head. We deserve justice.”

The state asked for two and a half years of confinement and four years of extended supervision. The state’s attorney argued this should be a lesson to all child care providers that abuse will not be tolerated.

“We’re all here because she couldn’t handle herself when a 3-year-old spilled a cup of water, first thing in the morning at a day care,” said Mike Sacomano, the victim’s father.

The defense argued Ferguson has no priors and made a poor choice. Judge Paul Reilly agreed.

“It’s clear that it was child abuse,” said Reilly. He then stated Ferguson showed remorse immediately after the incident.

In court, Ferguson apologized to the families.

“I put the children that were in my care in danger. Every child in my care had to watch me, their teacher, lose control,” said Ferguson. “Again, I am so sorry for hurting your children.”