law on child supervision article

[nursedesi]

www.yahoo.com/parenting/parents-under-investigation-for-neglect-after-108180228512.html


I knew we had a talk awhile ago about when we would let our kids go to the park by them selves.... I had no idea there was a law about it.

What do you think... does this change your mind?

[trixi282]

Again?! (not you, the fact that someone called authorities on kids walking a 1/2 block alone)

In the 90's I used to ride my bike a 1/2 mile to the school/park alone to meet my friends when I was in 3rd/4th grade, and under 10 years old. ALONE. I seriously think people need to stop reporting these people for neglect or child endangerment just because they themselves are afraid to let their 8 year old pee by themselves at home.

As long as the kids aren't crossing a highway to get to the park, or a major intersection with no crosswalk, I highly doubt they were in that much danger. It sounds like it was a neighborhood park just down the street. When can we let our children be children and experience independence and responsibility without the fear that we will be reported or arrested for being bad parents?

There's a woman who fucking left her 3 and 4 year old at home alone to get her hair done and came home to her house/apartment up in flames. Both kids died. Now THAT woman deserves to be charged with child endangerment, neglect and maybe even something worse... that's clearly neglect and utter stupidity. Letting your 8 and 10 year old children play at the neighborhood park while you are home a 1/2 block away, not so much.

[nursedesi]

I guess I'm just nieve and had no idea there was a law about this. My mom said before that bad things happened before, its just now every little thing is televised and on social media now so we are more aware of these dangers. Which I can completely see. I live in a bubble and like to pretend the world is a nice place.

Each kid reaches maturity at a different age.... which I think we came to the conclusion ar with the last discussion.

I just cant believe the stupidity some parents (woman who leaves her kid to get her hair did). Which I guess is the reason they make these laws.

[paddyb]

I think that whole situation is crazy. They shouldn't be investigated for this, and it is completely reasonable for the parents to think their 6 andv 10 year old could walk home from the park by themselves.

[lainikins]

I understand why they were investigated if there is a law on the books against it (even though the law applies to enclosed spaces), but I think it was ridiculous that someone reported it. A ten year old is more than capable to walk a 1/2 block with a six year old. If the kids looked like they had not not cared for, or groomed, or like they were fending for themselves, that is a different story. People need to relax a little and realize that kids are capable of more than we give them credit for. The world, while there are scary things that happen, as a whole is not a bad place. I am sure the people who reported it were coming from a place of wanting to help the kids, but it still put them I an even tougher position of their family having no to go through this.

I just reread and it seems like it was the police that saw this, not a person who reported it. I feel like my points are still valid as a whole, so I will leave it. I find it ridiculous that the police picked them up knowing the law does not include the outdoors In it and then send six police cars to their house. That seems like it was a slow night in Montgomory County.

[lainikins]

I just read another article that says it was one mile and it was on a very busy street. I am changing my mind a bit. I still think six cars was a lot, but it also says that the father had a difficult time dealing with the police that night. Here is the link.

link

[paddyb]

If there is a law against it, I think that is crazy too. It seems like we are trying to take away parents rights to make decisions about what is best for their family. In my mind, letting a kid walk home from the park, be it one block or 1 mile, by himself at 10 (even with a younger sibling) is well within reasonable decisions a parent could make.

[lainikins]

I see the law as being a way of not letting babysitters to be less than 13. I think that would be why they only put in language that talked about enclosed places. I am not saying that it is a good law, only that the law seems to have a different intent than it is being used for here. I think it is very different to be out in a public area than it is to be alone at home for who knows how long. I do not think they should use that law to justify a case here.

[sarahandeddie]

I think the parents showed poor judgment in this case. A mile away is to far IMO. I also don't think a 10yr old should be responsible for supervising the 6yr old. 10yr olds are easily distracted. I think it's unreasonable to expect her to watch her sister. If she isn't allowed to babysit (legally) than she shouldn't be babysitting her sister.

The fact they were on a busy street also concerns me. Who's to say the 6yr old wouldn't step into traffic? The 10yr old should not be responsible. It's just not fair to her.

I will add - if the park was across the street, where the parents could easily check on them, I'd see things differently.

[aimeefarrahfowler]

This happened in my area. That picture shows them in their neighborhood, I think, but the story I saw on the news says the cops picked them up at a 7-11 in a very urban part of Silver Spring, and that they were going to a park a mile away from their house. It's a downtown city area with lots of cars and stoplights they'd have to cross at. I actually know that area because H used to work there and I used to take the train up there when I got off work so we could drive home together. I hated crossing the streets there as an adult (short crossing signals, lots of cars turning, lots of drivers that DGAF, lots of busses), and I would definitely not be comfortable with my kids walking that alone at 10 and 6.

My parents used to let me and my sisters walk to our neighborhood convenience store and parks when we were about that age, but it was less than 1/2 mile away and on neighborhood streets.

[aimeefarrahfowler]

oh, and another thing - they interviewed the mom and she seemed like a giant douchecanoe. All like "the police don't have anything else to do? ugh" kind of tone. And then talked about how she grew up in NYC and kids went everywhere by themselves.

And she runs some website (blog?) about "free range parenting" and her kids wear laminated cards that say "I'm not lost, I'm a free range kid" and has the parent's contact info. Great, so you put a giant sticker on your kid that says "I am not being supervised, perverts please abduct me"

[trixi282]

Yeah, the Yahoo article clearly didn't outline the full story. silver spring is a busy area, but there ate plenty of neighborhood areas that at not bad, which is what that first article alluded to. The other information definitely changes that.

However, I still stand on the fact that there are a lot of people who are overprotective and get innocent parents in trouble for letting their kids go to the park alone. This seems to have turned into a case that does not fit that, but it still does happen.