The Central District Court in Lod convicted Shelly Sheinker, an assistant caregiver at a private preschool in Netanya, of abuse and assault against helpless children.
The verdict, delivered Monday by Judge Efrat Fink, noted that Sheinker worked as an assistant in the toddlers' class at the "Gan Hashakuf" childcare center in Netanya, caring for children between the ages of seven months and one-and-a-half years. Video footage from the preschool revealed that, over the course of about a month, Sheinker committed violent acts against the children, in numerous incidents.
The ruling stated that the acts included, among others, hitting the toddlers on their heads and faces, pushing them down, lifting and throwing children onto surfaces or into cribs, and pulling them forcefully by their hands or hair. In several instances, the court found that toddlers fell and were injured, and that in more than one case, Sheinker continued her actions even when the children were crying.
The court also noted that in some cases, the actions were in response to crying, the toddlers' movements, or because they were in Sheinker's way, while in other cases, there was no apparent reason. The court pointed out that some of the acts occurred while the toddlers were sleeping or in particularly vulnerable states.
The ruling emphasized that this was an ongoing saga in which acts were carried out again and again against the same toddlers within a short time, exploiting the power imbalance and the total dependency of the children on the defendant. The behavior pattern involved violence, intimidation, and ignoring the children's distress.
In addition to the convictions, the court acquitted Sheinker of some of the assault charges due to legal reasons, stating that those charges were subsumed under the abuse charges. The judge clarified that the acquittals do not imply that the acts did not occur but concern the legal classification of the offenses.
At the same time, she was convicted of 33 additional acts of attacking a helpless individual in a way which caused tangible harm, and two counts of aggravated assault.
The court noted that the toddlers were helpless and entirely dependent on the defendant, and that the frequency, nature, and disregard for the children's reactions pointed to serious harm and intimidation.