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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) - South St. Paul City Council Member Pam Baken has had her home daycare license reinstated following an appeal over its revocation after a child tested positive for methamphetamine that was believed to be ingested under her care.
South St. Paul daycare license revoked
What we know:
Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) records show Bakken's license was revoked in July, after state regulators suspended the license the previous March.
The suspension came after a mother said her 3-year-old son ingested methamphetamine at Bakken's in-home daycare on Dec. 6, 2024. 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," the boy’s mother, Victoria Kane, told FOX 9 of the after-effects that he eventually recovered from.
The state initially shut down the daycare in December after the boy was hospitalized.
License reinstated
Dig deeper:
Bakken appealed the decision, and prosecutors ultimately determined that it couldn’t be proven beyond a reasonable doubt that it happened at her daycare.
As a result, Dakota County prosecutors agreed to rescind the determination that she was responsible for maltreatment, and a two-year conditional license has been reinstated, according to DHS records.
Bakken was not charged for the incident.
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Resignation calls after meth case at daycare
Residents of South St. Paul are demanding one of their council members resign her position after a child enrolled at her home daycare tested positive for methamphetamine, forcing it to shut down.
The backstory:
Bakken was elected to city council in January 2025, with a term expiring in 2029.
In April, a group of South St. Paul residents launched a recall petition that has since gathered more than 2,500 signatures.
Bakken has not yet stepped down from office.