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Daycare site of Rock Island drug bust

ROCK ISLAND, Ill.— UPDATED Feb. 16 at 4:15 p.m.:  Daycare owner and operator Lorrie Myers was released on bond after being jailed on a misdemeanor charge of pos...
ROCK ISLAND, Ill.— UPDATED Feb. 16 at 4:15 p.m.:  Daycare owner and operator Lorrie Myers was released on bond after being jailed on a misdemeanor charge of possession of cannabis.  Myers' bond was $2,000 and 10 percent was needed to secure her release.

Myers was arrested the day after her son, Royce Harmon, and Laron Carr were arrested by MEG agents for allegedly dealing marijuana from the site of Myers' Rock Island, Illinois daycare.

Both men remained in the Rock Island County Jail Thursday afternoon, February 16, 2012.  Harmon was held in lieu of $20,000 bond.  He was appointed a public defender at his first court appearance, and is next scheduled to appear in court February 21, 2012.

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Previous story:

UPDATED Feb. 15 at 3:4 p.m.:  The owner and operator of a Rock Island daycare was jailed a day after her son and another man were arrested for allegedly dealing marijuana from the daycare.

Lorrie D. Myers, 44, was arrested February 15, 2012.  She was held in the Rock Island County Jail.  Myers was charged with misdemeanor possession of cannabis.

Police said they arrested two men for allegedly dealing marijuana from the site of Myers' Rock Island, Illinois daycare.

Royce (aka Royace) Harmon, 20, and Laron Carr, 19, were arrested Tuesday evening, February 14, 2012 after police executed a narcotics search warrant at Lorries Licensed Daycare, 2433 Tenth Street in Rock Island.

The daycare is across the street from ball fields next to Frances Willard Elementary School.

Both men are charged with manufacture with intent to deliver 30 to 500 grams of cannabis.

Police said the warrant and arrests came after an ongoing narcotics investigation by the Quad City Metropolitan Enforcement Group (MEG).

Harmon and Carr were held in the Rock Island County Jail.  Both men were expected to appear in Rock Island County Court on Wednesday, February 15, 2012.

Court records show Carr was also facing a misdemeanor charge of possession of marijuana filed February 1, 2012.

Police confirm Harmon is the son of the daycare owner, Lorrie Myers.

Online court records show Lorrie Myers pleaded guilty in 2003 to a misdemeanor charge of contributing to the neglect of a child.  She was sentenced to 12 months of probation.

The Illinois Department of Family and Children's Services public records confirm the operator of the daycare at the address holds a valid license issued in 2009 and valid through September 15, 2012.  The facility can accomodate up to eight children.

"I'm speechless,” said Linda Housby, who lives a few doors down. "That's just wrong. We don't have a lot going on here and then this, at a daycare?!"

What makes the story even more disturbing is the fact that the home where the drug bust occurred is right across the street from Frances Willard Elementary.

Linda doesn't have any kids.

But, she says, if she did- "I think I'd be on the warpath, big time. Especially when you've got a grade school."

QCMEG Director, Kevin Winslow, says investigators still don’t know how many kids were being taken care of at the home, but he does know special attention was made to ensure no kids were in the home at the time of the arrests.

Lorrie's Licensed Daycare has been licensed with the state since 2006 and according to a spokesperson, hasn't had any serious violations until now.

The Department of Children and Family Services has launched a licensing investigation and no kids will be allowed to stay there pending the outcome.

"I don't see how, from what I saw in that house, how anybody else that lived there that was adult age, would not know something like this was going on," said Winslow.

"It needs to be shut down, plain and simple. We don't need it around here."

Department of Children and Family Services conducts annual checkups for all daycares, both centers and homes.

In this case, Lorrie's Licensed Daycare only had minor violations like smoke alarms not working and no CPR certification.

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