Night nanny accused of child abuse placed on probation

Lindsay Johnson, the 34-year-old night nanny accused of aggravated child abuse, was placed on probation in a Summit County case that drew attention across Park City and the Wasatch Back because it involved an infant and an in-home caregiver. The outcome kept the focus on how families vet someone they trust with overnight child care, and how a serious criminal case can still end in a monitored sentence instead of prison.

Johnson’s case moved through several court stages before the probation sentence. A Third District Court judge ordered her to remain in custody on May 6. One day earlier, a Summit County jury had found her not guilty on some counts and declared a mistrial on others after trial. By June 4, a second trial had been scheduled for the remaining aggravated child abuse charges.

That second trial never became the final chapter. On July 15, Johnson was sentenced to probation in the Summit County shaken baby case. A separate July 18 account of the case said a woman caring for a 6-week-old boy received three years of probation after pleading no contest to child abuse. In that same resolution, jurors had found her not guilty of five charges, and two other charges were dismissed in a plea deal.

The sequence helps explain how the case landed on probation: partial acquittals, a mistrial on remaining counts, then a negotiated resolution that avoided another full trial. For local readers, the details matter because night nannies work in private homes, often overnight, when parents are not present and direct oversight is limited. In a setting like that, a criminal case involving aggravated child abuse raises immediate questions about screening, references, training and the warning signs families may have overlooked.

For Summit County households hiring in-home child care, the most important safeguards are the ones that reduce blind trust. That means checking references carefully, confirming any childcare or infant-care experience, asking direct questions about discipline and overnight routines, and watching closely for evasiveness, inconsistent stories or reluctance to provide documentation. In a case involving a very young child, especially a 6-week-old infant, those checks are not routine paperwork. They are the first line of protection.