When Will these Parents Learn Not to Leave the Baby In the Car?!?
By drknlvly6781
@drknlvly6781 (6246)
United States
August 21, 2008 6:03pm CST
If you have been around that long, you will remember last year after the 23rd of August I posted a discussion about a Principal here in Ohio leaving her child in the car to die, while she made several trips once she got to the school to get doughnuts. You would think that a horrible story like that would serve as a lesson for others not to leave their kids in the car. Well...
On Tuesday, just three days shy of the anniversary of the last child dying in a hot car, yet another woman, a teacher this time, leaves her infant in the car while she works. "Forgets" that she is in the car, and she dies from heat exhaustion. Here is the link to the new story.
http://www.wlwt.com/news/17258212/detail.html
The story is a little different this time. A college professor of a Christian College instead of assistant principal. But the outcome and my reaction is still the same. How in the blue f*ck do you forget you left your child in the car??? I am all for independent women and working mothers, but if this carelessness is to be the outcome, I think we need to go back to the days where women didn't leave the house, seriously!!!!
Staff and students at the school are backing her to, saying that even though this is a tragedy, they hope that they remember Jesus teaching "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone." Well, I for one would never dream of leaving my child in the car, and I have never forgotten about my kids, either inside or outside of the home, so let me find my rock!!!
I really just hope and pray that they don't let this one slide like they did the first mother. They both truly needed the book thrown at them, and now prosecutors have the chance to do so with this one. If they don't I fear that this time next year we will be hearing of yet another incident. What do you think MyLot. Is it an excuse to have forgotten about your infant in the car? Can a mother truly be that busy? Should they prosecute this professor, mother, DOCTOR to the fullest extent of the law, or should they let her slide because she has too much on her plate?
10 people like this
19 responses
@maddysmommy (16230)
• United States
22 Aug 08
I have heard and read a few stories of babies being left in cars and it really saddens me that this happens, but it does. There is no excuse to leave a child in a car or anywhere, and charges need to be given but to what extent, I don't know. Mothers do become busy, both working and stay at home moms, but still, the number one priority should be your children and family, and work is secondary.
I feel for her because she's going to have to live with this for the rest of her life.
@drknlvly6781 (6246)
• United States
22 Aug 08
I'm sorry but I can't feel sorry for her, nor the woman in Batavia. They both should have to live with this, because there is no reason on Earth that I would forget my children. NONE. I will be completely honest with you, I have gone places and drank, gotten high, and still haven't forgotten my children in any place!!! This woman is supposed to be highly educated, but couldn't think enough to remember that she had a child when she got in the car, shouldn't she have had her when she got out? No, I can't feel sorry for her, because you just don't forget about your children.
4 people like this
@drknlvly6781 (6246)
• United States
22 Aug 08
Maddysmom, you don't have to agree with what I do. I have come to terms that a lot of people don't agree with it. But I feel like as long as my kids are taken care of, they are fed, clothed, and sheltered, they are loved to the utmost and not abused, what I do is minor. I don't neglect my kids, even with my addictions. (And yes, even though I have them under control I do consider them addictions) I have never, since they were born, allowed my children to be out of my sight for a second, unless I knew they were with someone responsible. And IMO in the end, that's all that counts.
2 people like this
@checapricorn (16061)
• United States
22 Aug 08
Hi drknlvly,
[i]This is an absolute negligence! I will never buy that excuse, no matter how busy a certain person is if the is responsible, she will never ever forget her kids in the car! I guess that is always our instinct like picking up our purses in the car or bringing our cellphone everywhere, how much more a life that you are bringing!
Such a bad example![/i]
3 people like this
@drknlvly6781 (6246)
• United States
22 Aug 08
Right! We can remember our keys or our purses, but this woman forgets her child. Bull mess!!!
3 people like this
@kenzie45230 (3560)
• United States
22 Aug 08
You make a good point. I'm sure this professor didn't ever forget her briefcase.
1 person likes this
@aseretdd (13730)
• Philippines
22 Aug 08
I can never imagine how a mother could forget her child in such a dangerous place... these people have no right to use or quote the words of Jesus to save them from being punished... parents should learn that the car is a dangerous place to leave thier kids alone... there is no excuse for this kind of mistake... and they should accept the punishment that will be given to them by the law...
3 people like this
@drknlvly6781 (6246)
• United States
10 Sep 08
I wish there were a punishment. They told us a couple of weeks ago that no charges will be filed against this mother either. The same as before with the assistant principal last year. I'm beginning to think status and skin has a lot to do with this. And I'm off to make another discussion about it.
@ShellyB (5241)
• United States
22 Aug 08
First of all I do not believe one forgets a baby in the car, I think one might think it is convenient not to lose five minutes getting baby out of car and another five minutes putting baby in car, but really forget that one has a baby, that to me is just a way of saying please do not be hard with me, I forgot.
I leave to the law how women should be punish. Letting her go will make a pattern that other lawyers can follow to set their clients free as well.
Tough job these people have.
2 people like this
@drknlvly6781 (6246)
• United States
22 Aug 08
Right. I never thought of that. They might even try to use the woman in Batavia's case to get this woman off, I hope not though.
2 people like this
@ShellyB (5241)
• United States
22 Aug 08
It is truth, I hear lawyers study other cases and then also presented those cases as examples in the court, it seems to be part of their job.
I am not sure if they will let her go or not.
In CA there seems to be a poster (where I live that is at least) that says do not leave your baby in your car alone.
It should be common sense but saddly either we losing common sense or people prefer to do whatever they want.
2 people like this
@trishasantos (1297)
• Philippines
22 Aug 08
I've read it. Well there is a similar discussion too. I answered a few minutes ago. Anyway, I think its irresponsibility. I am not married yet, or have kids of my own. But how could a parent forget about their child. I think they need counselling on parenting.
3 people like this
@drknlvly6781 (6246)
• United States
10 Sep 08
I'm sorry to say, but the only way you can view this as the child being rescued is that the child is in the arms of the Lord, and not with this crazy mother anymore.
@uath13 (8192)
• United States
21 Aug 08
There's been several stories like this in my area lately. One even had the nerve to leave her kids in the car while she went into children's services. The police were called of course, the car was opened & they were ok. Now she's really in for it. There was another who left her kid in the car outside the bar she worked at....
Idiots abound... they're breeding
I blame the surgeon general & his warning for helping so many idiots to survive to breeding age.
2 people like this
@uath13 (8192)
• United States
22 Aug 08
When we have to label a silicon package FOUND IN YOUR SHOES when you buy them " Do Not Eat " there's a problem....
If your stupid enough to eat some strange package you found in your shoes when you bought them , you deserve to die. The sooner you die the better so you don't further dilute the gene pool with your stupidity.
Now before anyone can bash me saying " It's for the kids" , if they're old enough to read & understand then they're hopefully already well beyond the sticking everything they find in their mouth stage. If they're not, they're retarded & fall into what was said above.
1 person likes this
@drknlvly6781 (6246)
• United States
22 Aug 08
She went into CHILDREN'S SERVICES with her kids in the car??? I wonder what on Earth for? And I know from experience those appointments take forever! Maybe it is Everett C. Coop's fault. Maybe we should have just let natural selection take its course. If you do something stupid enough to kill yourself, you don't deserve to live.
2 people like this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
22 Aug 08
I read it is because parents are not allowed to keep their babies in the front seat anymore. Well why could they not open the back window just a trifle to get some air in and why can they not put the car seat in the front so the mother will not forget? Now a whole lot of babies are dying. Oh and I have a granddaughter and both my son and daughter-in-law work. I think parents should not leave their babies in the car, that they check behind them when they are on an errand, and who cares if the boss or so and so complains, take the child in with you.
2 people like this
@drknlvly6781 (6246)
• United States
22 Aug 08
That is a pitiful excuse they are using. I don't care if the child is in the back seat or the front, and you shouldn't have to check. The baby should be the first thing on your mind when you get out of the car, point blank. Yes, babies aren't kept in the front seat anymore because its dangerous to do so in the event of a crash. But you can't use that excuse to say you forgot your child was in the car. What are you trying to say, out of sight, out of mind? Really....
1 person likes this
@slickcut (8141)
• United States
21 Aug 08
This is so stupid anyone should know that you cannot leave a baby in the car while you go in a place..I always felt that where ever i went my child could go..I would take them in ,they probably drove everyone nuts but at least all 5 of mine are alive..I have never forgotten my kids either,how the heck can you forget your kid,i mean they hang on you 24/7,as it is...No one can be that busy to forget their kid...When i was 15 years old i was a mother already and as stupid as i was back then i knew better & i was not soooooooo educated ..Its just common sense.I think now they are charging these mothers with murder or neglect & rightly so...
@drknlvly6781 (6246)
• United States
22 Aug 08
You have to wonder if getting an education actually makes you dumber. Here is a woman who has a PhD, teaches college classes, and yet forgets that her infant is in the car. I get antsy when my kids are in the other room, and I can still hear them. They need to start having a test for women when they start their menstruals to see if they are mentally capable of taking care of a child. If not, they get their equipment taken. I know this seems a bit extreme, but it isn't IMO because we would have a lot less incidents like this.
1 person likes this
@ravinskye (8237)
• United States
22 Aug 08
I feel for these parents, but I just don't get how they could forget their child either. I could see maybe for a few minutes, but the whole day? Don't they think about their child during the day. You'd think they would be thinking about what their child was doing at that momement and then realize that they never dropped them off at daycare. I think they should start punishing these parents. If they don't its going to be a free for all. People that can't handle being parents anymore are going to just "forget" their kids in the car too and start getting away with murder.
2 people like this
@shontia08 (846)
• United States
22 Aug 08
i think that it's crazy for a parent to leave their child in a car like that. i mean after so many cases like this i would think that parents would be extra careful. i don't know about you but when i go some where with my niece and nephew i can't forget them because they are always making some type of noise. it's funny how people remember to get their purse or keys but manage to forget their kids. very good discussion ( although sad ) maybe it will be something that someone may remember the next time they have their kids on the car with them.
@mikeysmom (2088)
• United States
22 Aug 08
this is such a sad set of circumstances and i fully share you disgust and disbelief that someone could "forget" their child in a car or anywhere else for that matter. i love my son so much and i know his every move and i watch him like a hawk so no harm comes to him. with that said, i also agree with you that it is great to be independent and to work and make your way in this world but not at the expense of your child. i am a stay at home mom and we struggle financially because i do not work and my husband is the sole income earner but i do it by choice. not out of laziness but to be here to raise my son and get him off to school and be here after school and help him with his homework and on and on. i am with him all summer long so he does not have to be farmed out to strangers or whoever just so i can go to some job. do not get me wrong, i do all i can from home to make extra money, like here on mylot etc and i cut corners and get any help we can get for our income bracket just so i can be here for him. it has been so worth it. i have a car that is almost 9 years old and i wonder how we will ever pay for another should something happen to this one but to be home with him so he is safe from harm is worth it all.
2 people like this
@faln_angel1205 (1192)
• United States
22 Aug 08
Totally unbelievable, and extremely sad. I dont feel she should get to slide at all, we all have loads on our plates, but if you let her slide cuz she has such a crazy busy life, then what about the next person with their list of things on their plate. There is nooooooo excuse for forgetting your child, and it really surprises me that the students are on her side...plllleeeaaasse.
2 people like this
@drknlvly6781 (6246)
• United States
22 Aug 08
The bad part about this is she is the next person. She may even think that she won't get anything but a slap on the wrist, for the simple fact that she is in higher status than the woman who did this last year. But you are right, this woman needs the whole legal library thrown at her. There must be an example set this time, or we will see yet another woman do the same thing.
2 people like this
@prinzess1515 (1341)
• United States
21 Aug 08
It has been happening alot over here in Houston and it isn't just mothers doing it. One couple left there kid in their truck while they ran into a pawn shop. The child/toddler was sleeping and they didn't want to wake him up. They left him in there for an hour with no A/C in Texas! Thank God someone noticed the kid and rescued him.
2 people like this
@drknlvly6781 (6246)
• United States
21 Aug 08
I am glad that someone rescued that child. But its still no excuse to leave a child in the car. If they are sleep, wake them up!!! Its just shocking to me that almost a year to the day, the same situation happens again in the same town. I just really hope that they do something to the mother this time. The last one only lost their job. I think that a person who can forget their kids like that shouldn't be allowed to have any.
2 people like this
@Kowgirl (3490)
• United States
12 Sep 08
I asked the same question and received the same answer on another site. It seems that some people are actually feeling sorry for these forgetful mothers. I too would NOT leave any child in a locked car, even a 12 year old. They just might try to drive or pull the gear shift into neutral and cause an accident. What bothers me is the status of these women. They are in positions where their memory should be much better. After so many deaths have been reported in the news you would think every working mother would check to see if they forgot they had a child with them. There is no excuse for what any of them have done. I will join you with my "stone" at the ready. If they start letting these deaths slide in the courts I would bet there would be even more. So my answer is... Hell NO! Prosecute them!
1 person likes this
@lucky_witch (2707)
• Philippines
22 Aug 08
Oh I don't know what to say. I don't think that a mother could be that busy to be able to forget her child in her car. I am a mother of two, and no matter how busy I am, never in my life that i left my children alone even in our house. I always fear that something bad may happen to them while I am gone.
All the mothers that you have mentioned, are all professionals. I think they are aware of what will happen to their kids if they leave them in the car. I dont think being busy is not an excuse for this. And they should have known it better that nobody will buy those alibis.
I don't want to judge them. I am not a perfect mother. But they should realize it themselves, that their carelessness killed a poor child. How on earth would they expect the world to react?
1 person likes this
@sid556 (30960)
• United States
22 Aug 08
These sort of stories are very common during hot weather season not only with children but with animals as well. It is illegal to leave a young child alone in the car even for a minute and animals in the extreme weather. I am a single mom and raised 4 children on my own. I certainly had a lot more on my mind and plate that the professor or asst. principle who probably did not have to worry so about finances, etc. I get extremely angry when I read stories such as this and more so when it turns out it is some professional person, someone that is supposedly "intelligent". Worse, the 2 examples that you show are of women who are teaching our youth and supposed to be setting an example! I'll be angrier still, if she gets a slap on the wrist. I was extremely busy raising my children and I also always worked full time and on the side babysitting etc. Tired? oh very! Plus I'm blonde and known for being a bit ditzy ...not once ever did I space any child..anywhere. Not once no matter how much extra work it was to unload all of them, did I leave them for even a minute unattended in a car or anywhere. Heck, back then, I was taking showers at 3 in the morning just to fit them in around them. There is no excuse in the world. Am I free of sin? nope but I'll join you in the rock throwing!
2 people like this
@metschica25 (5399)
• United States
22 Aug 08
Hi,
This story is just too sad . How can you forget about a sweet little baby , or child . Why would anyone take the chance and leave , or how can you forget . That all is just uncalled for and what the heck is wrong with people . So tragic . My fiance and me wont even think of leaving a pet in the car .
