South St. Paul council member's daycare license revoked after child exposed to meth

Daycare indefinitely closed after drug test

A day care owned by a South St. Paul City Council member must stay closed indefinitely, according to a new state order. FOX 9’s Mike Manzoni has the latest details that stem from a child testing positive for meth under her watch

SOUTH ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - The State of Minnesota has revoked the daycare license for South St. Paul City Council Member Pam Bakken after a child was reportedly exposed to meth at her facility.

License revoked

What we know:

Minnesota Department of Human Services records show Bakken's license was revoked last week after state regulators suspended the license back in March.

The suspension came after a mother said her 3-year-old son ingested methamphetamine at Bakken's in-home daycare. The state initially shut down the daycare in December after the boy was hospitalized.

The backstory:

The boy’s mother said her son became seriously ill at the daycare on Dec. 6. He was hospitalized but recovered.

He told his mother that he ate something in the bathroom at the daycare shortly before falling ill. 

"He didn’t stop talking the whole time as we sat in the ER room in a bed. He just talked and talked and talked," she told FOX 9. "My son’s statements that he ate onion crumbs off of the floor at her house, and we figured out that that’s what meth looks like."

Fallout from the exposure

Dig deeper:

The exposure was investigated by Lakeville police to avoid a conflict of interest. Ultimately, the Dakota County Attorney said they couldn't bring charges in the case because authorities were unable to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the exposure happened at the daycare.

Local perspective:

Since reports of the exposure became public, Bakken has faced calls to resign from office.

Bakken was just elected to city council back in January with her term expiring in 2029. She has not stepped down from office.

In April, a group of South St. Paul residents launched a recall petition. The group had until May 12 to collect 2,763 signatures for the petition – which is equal to 25% of the total vote in the January election.