Former daycare worker arrested

CLOVIS — A former daycare worker fired for fighting in front of more than a dozen 4-year-old children was arrested Wednesday.

Elizabeth Parrez, 25, is charged with 13 counts of abuse of a child (does not result in death or great bodily injury) and one count of battery, court records show.

Parrez was booked into the Clovis jail at 2:37 p.m. on Wednesday. No bond information was immediately available.

A civil lawsuit was filed against Parrez and her employer, Future Generations Early Concepts Learning Center on June 12.

The lawsuit and now the criminal charges are related to a May 3 incident in which Parrez is alleged to have been fighting another employee.

The other employee is not named in the lawsuit and not charged criminally in connection with the fight.

The lawsuit alleges one child was kicked in the head, “traumatized” and “emotionally shaken up,” according to Attorney Eric Dixon who filed the suit.

Daycare Director Ashleigh Tackitt said she immediately called police when the fight began and also notified parents and Children, Youth and Families Department.

Tackitt said Parrez was fired and also banned from the premises right after the fight.

It was not immediately clear if Parrez were represented by an attorney.

The abuse of a child charges are third-degree felonies. The battery allegation is a petty misdemeanor.