San Jose daycare owners remain out of jail after drownings

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON) — The owners of a San Jose daycare where two toddlers drowned remain out of jail, and their case could be settled before reaching trial in Santa Clara County.

A preliminary hearing for Nina Fathizadeh, 42, and her mother, Shahin Gheblehshenas, was scheduled to begin on Monday. The hearing was delayed until December, when a judge will decide if prosecutors have enough evidence for the case to stand trial.

Fathizadeh and Gheblehshenas are charged in the deaths of two toddlers who drowned at Happy Happy Daycare, located in Gheblehshenas’ home at 1054 Fleetwood Drive.

The victims, Payton Cobb, 1, of Hollister, and Lillian Jade Hanan, 1, of San Jose , drowned in a backyard pool on Oct. 2, 2023 when no one was watching them, according to investigators. A safety gate around the pool had been left propped open, and the girls were found floating in the deep end of the pool, investigators said.

A 2-year-old boy also fell into the pool and was revived with CPR. Santa Clara County prosecutors charged Fathizadeh and Gheblehshenas with nine counts of child endangerment .

“If convicted, the defendants could face over 14 years in state prison. Both defendants are currently out of custody on bail and subject to terms of supervision,” Deputy District Attorney O’Bryan Kenney told KRON4 on Monday.

The deaths of little Payton and Lillian raised questions about how such a tragedy could happen at a licensed daycare. Parents dropped off their children at Happy Happy Daycare less than an hour before the drownings happened on on October 2, 2023.

Police and prosecutors said the daycare was understaffed that morning, and Fathizadeh was the only employee working. Payton and Lillian entered the pool and drowned while they were “unsupervised and out of her sight,” a police report states.

Gheblehshenas, 65, was not at Happy Happy Daycare that morning because she drove to Fathizadeh’s home, where they operated an unlicensed daycare, San Jose Police Department Detective Amanda Estantino wrote in a police report. A third employee had called out sick.

Just after 8 a.m., Lillian, Payton, a baby, and a 2-year-old boy were playing in the living room of Happy Happy Daycare. Fathizadeh put the baby in a crib with a bottle. Then she “opened the sliding glass door to the backyard and directed all three victims to go in the backyard. (She) had a view of the pool gate, which was still propped open, yet she did nothing to close it. (Fathizadeh) then walked to the kitchen to finish preparing tea and oatmeal,” Estantino wrote.

Fathizadeh could not see any of the children in the backyard from the kitchen, Estantino wrote.

After at least five minutes in the kitchen, Fathizadeh walked into the backyard to check on the children, the police report states. She found the 2-year-old boy floating in the shallow end. Fathizadeh attempted CPR multiple times, called 911 at 9 a.m., and carried the boy into the living room.

It’s unclear if she realized that two toddlers were still in the pool. Fathizadeh woke up her brother who was sleeping inside a bedroom.

The brother found the two toddlers in the deep end and pulled the girls out of the water, Estantino wrote. Sixteen-month-old Lillian and 18-month-old Payton were declared deceased at the scene.

Police said the pool gate was propped open by Gheblehshenas’ husband sometime between the night of October 1 and the morning of October 2 while he was watering garden plants.

“(Gheblehshenas) was aware that her husband regularly watered these plants and on occasion failed to close the pool gate. (She) failed to inspect the pool gate prior to the daycare opening Monday morning,” Estantino wrote.

District Attorney Jeff Rosen previously said, “There is a responsibility to watch over little children in your care like a hawk.”

Before the preliminary hearing is held in December, Fathizadeh and Gheblehshenas are set to appear in court on October 30 for an early resolution conference.

Kenney told KRON4, “It is an opportunity for the attorneys and the court to discuss whether settlement is possible. These conferences are encouraged by the court in their role to resolve cases short of trial.”

Happy Happy Daycare’s license to operate remains revoked by state officials.

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