Family of child that left school unsupervised to sue city of Baltimore

BALTIMORE, MD (WBFF) — The family of a 6-year-old child who wandered off the premises of Fallstaff Elementary School unsupervised last year has notified the city of Baltimore of their intent to sue.

In May 2025, Belinda Curry said her son, Liam Livingston, was supposed to go to an after-school program, but said Liam decided not to, leaving the school to go home instead.

Curry said she believes he took a wrong turn and ended up at Reisterstown Road Plaza.

The shopping center is located about half a mile away from the school, along Reisterstown Road, which is a busy roadway.

“When I drop them off or when any parent drops them off at 7:30 a.m., it’s with the understanding that your child is safe until pickup,” Curry said in May 2025.

However, since Liam was supposed to be at the after-school program when classes ended, she said she was unaware of this until around 3 p.m., when she said she received a call from the school principal, who notified her that her son had been missing, but had since been found.

“I said where did you find him at, he said Reisterstown Plaza, and my heart just instantly dropped.”

Curry said school officials later found Liam at the Five Below store in the shopping center and brought him back to the school.

On Wednesday, former Maryland Deputy Attorney General Thiru Vignarajah, who is representing Livingston’s family, stood outside the same Five Below store to announce the lawsuit against the city.

“When we drop off our kids each morning, we entrust to the school system our most precious asset — our children — at an age when they are most vulnerable and need the greatest supervision,” said Vignarajah, via a press release. “For a six-year-old to be able to leave school and navigate a major city thoroughfare is a chilling indictment of current safety protocols.”

“It is not just about losing Liam, but the City’s failure to notify parents until after he was recovered,” Vignarajah continued. “That is a strategy whose goal is damage control, not protecting the child. When a six-year-old goes missing, every minute counts. The school’s first call should have been to the mother, not to a lawyer or a PR person.”

Livingston’s family is seeking compensatory damages for emotional dress and ongoing therapy for Liam.