An increase in child deaths has prompted a state panel to recommend tougher safety requirements for at-home daycare providers. Three-fourths of the 96 deaths reported since 2002 involved sleeping infants. The panel says more training and consequences for providers is needed. Lucinda Jesson, commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Human Services, is trying to get legislative leaders on board after seeing resistance to legislation in the past.

An Oakdale daycare provider is facing child endangerment and child neglect charges, stemming from an alleged incident after social workers showed up unannounced at her in-home daycare in February. According to a criminal complaint, Jennifer Lynn Goldetsky, 43 rushed three children out the back door of her daycare and locked them in a shed -- without shoes or jackets -- because she had too many children in her care.

Public records reveal that two child-care centers that failed to follow safe-sleep practices where infants died this year have been shut down by state regulators. A Carver County licensing inspector has also been found at fault for not following through on sanctions in one of the cases, which was discovered just days before an infant's death.

A North Chisago Lakes Township woman was acquitted Thursday night in the death of 8-month-old child at her unlicensed home day care last year. Salli D. Schultz, 43, was found not guilty of second-degree murder and manslaughter in the death of Brooke Kowarsch, of Lindstrom. Defense attorney Earl Gray said Friday that authorities rushed to judgment in filing homicide charges.

A Farmington day care's provider's license has been suspended by Minnesota regulators following the death of a 3-month-old infant in her care on Tuesday. The death was the eighth in an in-home day care this year.

The judge issued a restraining order preventing the union election Dayton had authorized last month. Opponents argued Dayton didn't have the power to order an election.

The Star Tribune reports 51 children have died at licensed child-care facilities over the past five years. During the previous five years there were 24 deaths. The majority of fatalities over the past decade happened at private home based daycare settings, including six deaths already this year. Officials are trying to figure out why.