Skip to content
Triangle Local

Fuquay-Varina, Wake County

Fuquay-Varina: Woman charged in unlicensed childcare case

WRAL and CBS 17 report felony counts against Mia Lashawn Pennington, 55, after an infant in her care was hurt. The warrant language and the charge labels do not match word for word. The counts are accusations.

UpdatedThis story has changed since it was first published.

By Alexandru Stanciu · Published

The downtown Raleigh skyline on a sunny day

File photo: Abhiram Juvvadi (CC BY-SA 4.0), via Wikimedia Commons.

What we know

Confirmed

  • WRAL's page, by WRAL News staff, has article:published_time 2026-11-12T21:16:36Z and article:modified_time 2026-11-13T04:44:21Z. Those instants are 4:16 p.m. and 11:44 p.m. Eastern on Nov. 12, 2026. The visible clocks read 9:16:36 p.m. on Nov. 12 and 4:44:21 a.m. on Nov. 13, which match the UTC figures. This file does not treat those labels as a second Eastern time.Confirmed by WRAL page, read Nov. 13, 2026
  • WRAL, citing court documents, said Fuquay-Varina police officers arrested 55-year-old Mia Pennington on Wednesday and charged her with felony child abuse and with felony providing child care without a license.Confirmed by Court documents, as reported by WRAL
  • WRAL said Pennington's arrest warrant states that a 9-month-old child in her care had multiple leg fractures, and that police said this happened while she was running a childcare facility without a license. WRAL did not print Aug. 13, a lower-right-leg description, or an allegation that the infant was left unattended.Confirmed by Arrest warrant, as reported by WRAL only
  • WRAL said Pennington made her first court appearance on Thursday and that her next appearance is on Dec. 3. It did not print a bond.Confirmed by WRAL only, for the completed appearance and for Dec. 3
  • WRAL quoted Stephanie Shell, director of Little Captains Academy, who said she was aware of the incident. Her comment to WRAL was that it was probably an accident and that things happen in a split second. She is a director at a different childcare program. She is not an investigator on this case, and this file does not treat her comment as a finding about how the injury happened.Confirmed by Stephanie Shell, as reported by WRAL only
  • Shell also told WRAL that unlicensed childcare is becoming more common because options are short, and that she tells people it is a felony in North Carolina to watch more than three children without a license. That is her comment. It is not a statute reading by Fuquay-Varina police, and it is not a count of children in this case.Confirmed by Stephanie Shell, as reported by WRAL only
  • WRAL pointed readers to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services child-care search. The page at that address is headed Search for Child Care Facilities. This desk opened the search page and did not run a name query.Confirmed by WRAL, linking https://ncchildcare.ncdhhs.gov/childcaresearch
  • CBS 17, by Matthew Sockol, was read from the station's AMP page and its WordPress post for the same story. The desktop URL returned a bot check. Analytics on the AMP page list publicationDate 2026-11-12T09:42:18-05:00 and lastModifiedDate 2026-11-12T20:22:34-05:00, which are 9:42 a.m. and 8:22 p.m. Eastern on Nov. 12. The WordPress GMT fields match those instants. The AMP time element stamps 09:42:18 with a +00:00 suffix. This file uses the -05:00 fields.Confirmed by CBS 17 AMP page and WordPress post, read Nov. 13, 2026
  • CBS 17 said a warrant filed by the Fuquay-Varina Police Department shows that 55-year-old Mia Lashawn Pennington was providing care for a nine-month-old infant, as a caretaker, when the infant suffered fractures to the lower right leg on Aug. 13. The station also described the injury as happening at an unlicensed childcare over the summer. It did not print a year next to Aug. 13.Confirmed by Warrant, as reported by CBS 17 only
  • After the first sentence, CBS 17 uses Lashawn as if it were the surname. The full name in the warrant sentence is Mia Lashawn Pennington. This file uses Pennington.Confirmed by CBS 17 wording, read Nov. 13, 2026
  • CBS 17 said the warrant alleges Pennington left the infant unattended and/or exposed and prone to injury. The station's sentence omits the word the before infant and uses Lashawn as the surname. The allegation is kept. The wording error is not.Confirmed by Warrant, as reported by CBS 17 only
  • CBS 17 said the warrant also accuses her of operating a childcare without a license. Separately, citing court records, it said she was arrested on Wednesday and charged with negligent child abuse with serious bodily injury and with providing a childcare without a license.Confirmed by Warrant and court records, as reported by CBS 17
  • CBS 17, citing court records, said Pennington was not given bond and was scheduled to make a first appearance in Wake County court on Thursday afternoon. That page does not print Dec. 3. It said the station had asked the police department for more information.Confirmed by Court records, as reported by CBS 17 only, for the bond and the scheduled appearance
  • The Wednesday named by both outlets, read against stories dated Nov. 12, was Nov. 11, 2026. Neither page printed the calendar date Nov. 11. The Thursday appearance falls on Nov. 12, 2026. Neither outlet printed the infant's name, a street, or a house number.Confirmed by Comparison of WRAL and CBS 17, read Nov. 13, 2026

Alleged or reported

  • Mia Lashawn Pennington committed felony child abuse and felony providing child care without a license.Court documents, as WRAL listed the counts. WRAL's labels are not the same words CBS 17 used. A charge is an accusation. Pennington is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
  • Pennington committed negligent child abuse with serious bodily injury and providing a childcare without a license, and the warrant accuses her of operating a childcare without a license.Court records and the warrant, as CBS 17 printed them. These words are not merged into WRAL's felony child abuse and felony providing child care without a license. A charge is an accusation. Pennington is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
  • On Aug. 13, a nine-month-old infant in Pennington's care suffered fractures to the lower right leg after she left the infant unattended and/or exposed and prone to injury.Warrant filed by the Fuquay-Varina Police Department, as reported by CBS 17 only. WRAL instead wrote that the warrant described multiple leg fractures while she was running a childcare facility without a license, and did not print the date or the unattended allegation. This is an allegation. It is not a finding that the injury was an accident.

Still unknown

  • How the injury happened, beyond the warrant language each outlet printed
  • Whether WRAL's felony child abuse count is the same charge CBS 17 calls negligent child abuse with serious bodily injury
  • The year of the Aug. 13 date. CBS 17 did not print one. It did describe the injury as over the summer
  • How many children were in the childcare. Shell's remark about more than three children is a general comment, not a count for this case
  • A plea, a lawyer, or a statement from Pennington
  • Where she is being held. CBS 17 said she was not given bond. It did not name a jail
  • Whether the Thursday appearance CBS 17 described as scheduled is the appearance WRAL later described as completed
  • The infant's name, sex, family, and address. They are not in these accounts, and this file does not add them
  • Any street or house number for the childcare

What this means for you

Public safety
A charge is an accusation. Pennington is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court. Shell's comment that the injury was probably an accident is not a police finding. This story is not an official or emergency notice. If a child is in immediate danger, call 911.

Instructions from Court records and a Fuquay-Varina police warrant, via WRAL and CBS 17

This site is not the Fuquay-Varina Police Department, the Wake County courts, or the N.C. child-care licensing office. WRAL pointed readers to the licensed-facility search at ncchildcare.ncdhhs.gov/childcaresearch. To report suspected abuse that is not an emergency, contact your county department of social services. If a child is in danger, call 911.

What happened

In Fuquay-Varina, police have charged a 55-year-old woman after an infant in her care was injured. WRAL and CBS 17 each published an account on Nov. 12, 2026. The charges are accusations. Mia Lashawn Pennington has not been convicted.

The Wednesday in both stories, read against that publication date, was Nov. 11, 2026. Neither page printed that calendar date. The infant is not named here. No street is either.

What WRAL reported

The WRAL news staff published at 4:16 p.m. Eastern and the page was modified at 11:44 p.m. Eastern. The clocks printed on the page match those instants in UTC.

Citing court documents, WRAL said officers arrested Mia Pennington on Wednesday. It did not print the middle name Lashawn. The counts it lists are felony child abuse and felony providing child care without a license.

On the warrant, WRAL wrote that a 9-month-old child in her care had multiple leg fractures, and that police tied that injury to an unlicensed childcare facility she was running. The date Aug. 13 is not in this story. A lower-right-leg description is not in it. An allegation that the infant was left unattended is not in it.

WRAL said she made a first court appearance on Thursday and is due back on Dec. 3. It did not mention bond.

Stephanie Shell, director of Little Captains Academy, told WRAL she knew of the incident. She said it was probably an accident and that things happen in a split second. Little Captains Academy is a different program. Shell is not an investigator, and her remark is not a finding about the cause.

She also told WRAL that unlicensed care is becoming more common because open seats are scarce, and that she warns people it is a felony in North Carolina to watch more than three children without a license. That is her comment. It is not a head count for this case, and it is not this desk's reading of the statute.

WRAL pointed parents to the state search for licensed child care. The page it linked is headed Search for Child Care Facilities. No name was run through that search for this file.

What CBS 17 reported

Matthew Sockol's story was published at 9:42 a.m. Eastern and modified at 8:22 p.m. Eastern. The desktop address returned a bot check. The text used here is the station's own AMP page and WordPress post for that same address.

CBS 17 said a police warrant shows Mia Lashawn Pennington, 55, was the caretaker for a nine-month-old when the infant suffered fractures to the lower right leg on Aug. 13. The station called it an injury at an unlicensed childcare over the summer. It did not print a year beside Aug. 13.

Later sentences in that story use Lashawn as the surname. The full name is Mia Lashawn Pennington. This file uses Pennington.

The warrant, as CBS 17 reported it, alleges she left the infant unattended and/or exposed and prone to injury. The station's sentence is missing a word and uses the wrong surname. The allegation is the one in the warrant. The same warrant, the station wrote, accuses her of operating a childcare without a license.

Court records, in this account, say the Wednesday arrest included negligent child abuse with serious bodily injury and providing a childcare without a license. Those are not the labels WRAL used. CBS 17 also said she was not given bond, and that a first appearance in Wake County court was scheduled for Thursday afternoon. Dec. 3 is not in this story. The station said it had asked the police department for more information.

What is not in either account

The infant's name, sex, family, and address are not reported. Neither is a street for the childcare. No lawyer, plea, or statement from Pennington appears. Which jail, if any, is holding her was not reported. WRAL's completed appearance and CBS 17's scheduled appearance are not written here as the same event.

A charge is an accusation. Shell's "probably an accident" line stays her comment. It is not a police conclusion.

Triangle Local is not the Fuquay-Varina Police Department, the courts, or the licensing office, and it is not an emergency service. If a child is in danger, call 911. To report suspected abuse that is not an emergency, contact your county department of social services. The licensed-facility search WRAL cited is at ncchildcare.ncdhhs.gov/childcaresearch.

Related coverage

Wake County stories are on the county page. Other Fuquay-Varina news, about a park plan and not this case, is an earlier file. More public-safety reporting is in the public safety section.

Photos

Text-only. No image or video from WRAL or CBS 17 is used.

Why it matters

Fuquay-Varina police have charged a 55-year-old woman after an infant in her care was injured, and both outlets say the childcare was unlicensed. The charge labels and the injury description are not the same in the two stories. Parents need those differences, and they need the counts labeled as accusations.

Updates

  1. Nov 13, 2026, 6:08 AM

    First published. WRAL's charge labels, multiple-fracture wording, Dec. 3 date, and Shell comments stay with WRAL. CBS 17's Aug. 13 warrant language, the no-bond line, and the statutory charge names stay with CBS 17. The infant is not identified. No address. lead is false. Not TikTok. Text-only. No outlet video or photo.

Sources

  1. Fuquay-Varina woman charged after child fractures leg, accused of running unlicensed daycare (WRAL News staff, article:published_time 2026-11-12T21:16:36Z / 4:16 p.m. Eastern Nov. 12, article:modified_time 2026-11-13T04:44:21Z / 11:44 p.m. Eastern Nov. 12. Visible clocks 9:16 p.m. and 4:44 a.m. match UTC, not a second Eastern time. Court documents: officers arrested 55-year-old Mia Pennington on Wednesday. Counts as WRAL listed them: felony child abuse, and felony providing child care without a license. Warrant: a 9-month-old had multiple leg fractures while she was running a childcare facility without a license. No Aug. 13, no lower-right-leg line, no unattended allegation, and no bond. First appearance Thursday. Next appearance Dec. 3. Stephanie Shell, director of Little Captains Academy, a different program, said it was probably an accident. That comment is not an investigator's finding. She also spoke about a shortage of care and about watching more than three children without a license. Those sentences are hers. WRAL linked the NCDHHS child-care search. Text-only. No WRAL photo or video used.)

    Official sourcePublished by Fuquay-Varina Police Department and court documents, via WRAL · Checked Nov 13, 2026, 6:08 AM

  2. Woman accused of running unlicensed childcare in Fuquay-Varina after baby seriously hurt: Warrant (CBS 17 / WNCN, Matthew Sockol. Desktop URL returned a bot check. Article text read from the station AMP page and WordPress post for the same URL, post id 3193438. publicationDate 2026-11-12T09:42:18-05:00 / 9:42 a.m. Eastern. lastModifiedDate 2026-11-12T20:22:34-05:00 / 8:22 p.m. Eastern. Warrant filed by Fuquay-Varina police: Mia Lashawn Pennington, 55, was caring for a nine-month-old when the infant suffered fractures to the lower right leg on Aug. 13. No year printed on that date. Station copy then uses Lashawn as a surname. This file uses Pennington. Warrant alleges she left the infant unattended and/or exposed and prone to injury, and accuses her of operating a childcare without a license. Court records: arrested Wednesday, charged with negligent child abuse with serious bodily injury and providing a childcare without a license, not given bond, first appearance scheduled Thursday afternoon in Wake County court. No Dec. 3. Station said it had asked police for more information. Text-only. No CBS 17 video used.)

    Official sourcePublished by Fuquay-Varina Police Department warrant and court records, via CBS 17 · Checked Nov 13, 2026, 6:08 AM

More from Wake County

Wake County news

Related stories

File photo

Public Safety

Fayetteville: Man charged with murder in Owen Drive death

WRAL and CBS 17, both citing Fayetteville police, report a first-degree murder charge after Rogers Melvin, 75, was found dead on Owen Drive. The name, the time, and the place line are not the same. The count is an accusation.

File photo

Public Safety

Fuquay-Varina: Mother charged after teen son's death

WRAL and The News & Observer report a felony negligent child-abuse charge against Jennifer McGrath Butler, 49, after an August incident. The outlets do not agree on the teen's age or on the arrest. The count is an accusation.