Dad scolded for taking toddlers to men's restroom

A family wants an apology after a father said he was publicly accosted by a security guard after taking his 3-year-old and 1-year-old daughters to the men's restroom at the Frederick County Department of Social Services.

"He banged on the (stall) door like he was a cop," said Donovan O'Neil. "He was just really inappropriate about it."

The scene that occurred Friday morning turned ugly, O'Neil said, when the guard reprimanded him outside the bathroom in front of a crowd.

"We would just like an apology, that is all," said wife Ashleigh O'Neil, the girls' mother.

The guard was responding to a complaint made by someone who had used the restroom while O'Neil was in the stall with his daughters, according to DSS.

"There were other staff present when the incident unfolded, and they did not feel anything unpleasant was said," said DSS spokeswoman Deborah Lundahl.

The building, at Carroll and All Saints streets, does not have a family restroom, but Lundahl said staff would have been happy to clear the men's room for O'Neil to use.

She said the department director contacted the family.

"We reviewed the incident and are satisfied with how it was handled," she said.

Ashleigh O'Neil said she had not been notified of any review of the incident and disagreed that nothing unpleasant was said.

She said the guard was aggressive, gesturing toward his crotch about what their 3-year-old daughter could have seen.

Ashleigh O'Neil said she met her husband and daughters at the building, where they inquired about receiving energy assistance.

As they were preparing to leave, her 3-year-old daughter said she had to use the restroom, and the 1-year-old needed a diaper change. She asked her husband to take the girls to the restroom while she checked the parking meter and picked up an additional form.

O'Neil said she came back into the building and heard a secretary call for Child Protective Services to immediately report to security.

When she went to the restroom area to check on her family, she found the security guard and a group of people including DSS staff, she said.

"To this day (the 3-year-old girl) is scared to go to the bathroom," O'Neil said.

The guard is employed by Abacus Corp., a company DSS subcontracts for building security.

Ed Cussina, an area manager for the company, said he was looking into the incident.

He said he will likely have a supervisor interview the guard and review a report of the incident, usually filed no matter how minor the occurrence.

"If there's further action that needs to be taken, we take it," Cussina said.

Copyright 2009 The Frederick News-Post. All rights reserved.