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Society & Culture1 min ago
Children left in car.
14 Answers
Yesterday, I parked at our local B&Q, in the car next to mine, twin babies were in child seats in the back, no adult to be seen.
I did think about phoning the police, instead, I kept a watch, fifteen minutes later, their mother appeared, I spoke to her, but she just got in the car and drove away, I don't know in total how long they'd been left.
In the light of the Mcanns, wht would you have done, I still feel a bit guilty, not phoning the Police.
I did think about phoning the police, instead, I kept a watch, fifteen minutes later, their mother appeared, I spoke to her, but she just got in the car and drove away, I don't know in total how long they'd been left.
In the light of the Mcanns, wht would you have done, I still feel a bit guilty, not phoning the Police.
Answers
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This sort of thing really infuriates me. People are so incredibly stupid - but then we all know they think it will never happen to them. Unfortunately the fact is that it does happen to some people sometimes!! Lonnie, good for you. I would have kept watch too - and when the mother eventually returned I would have given her a piece of my mind. If you'd have called the police, it would have been no more than she deserved. Shameful!
I think that you did exactly the right thing as it was, without overreacting. It was lucky you had the time to look after the kids until their mum got back, otherwise I suppose you could have alerted the B&Q staff. It was weird that the mother didn't speak to you when you approached her. Perhaps she was afraid or had gone into B&Q for some sort of help...if she was a new-ish mum then she might still have been taken ill (I'm only guessing as I don't know, of course).
The only problem with calling police is that they obviously haven't got the resources to send out people immediately, and also of course that police intervention might involve Social Services, which might make the children in a worse position than with their own mother. (How did you know it was their own mother, btw, and not a nanny?)
The only problem with calling police is that they obviously haven't got the resources to send out people immediately, and also of course that police intervention might involve Social Services, which might make the children in a worse position than with their own mother. (How did you know it was their own mother, btw, and not a nanny?)
I would like to point out before anything else that I totally disagree with people leaving babies in a car, particularly for as long as 15 minutes or, as is probable in this case, longer.
If you're going to be objective however, you need to put things in perspective. Statistically speaking that entire family were more likely to die in a horrific car crash on the way home than someone breaking into that car. The odds enter the realm of the ridiculous if you're worried about a baby snatching pedophile or murderer kidnapping a small baby from a car park (which probably has CCTV) in broad daylight. Actually, if I may digress momentarily, it's a common trend nowadays - parents are constantly scared of their children being abducted or murdered when in actual fact the chances of it happening are just about as low as in the 70s. Nevertheless, people hark on about how they used to leave their front door open when they were kids. The media is largely to blame for this unbridled and unwarranted hysteria.
Putting aside my Dr. Spock personality, I wouldn't take any chances with my neice and nephew (who are 2 and 4) and nor would my sister. It's very easy to speak statistics but when it's your own children or family involved you're not quite as happy to take the chance (and quite rightly). Whether the woman's actions actually constitute child abuse is another matter, I would say it's more of a moral than legal issue. You know nothing about the woman's day, what she was doing, how regularly she leaves her children in a car (quite possibly the first time ever, and will never again), or anything else. Therefore, all we can do is speculate. I do not think it would have been wise to call the police.
Certainly given the situation you were faced with, you did the right thing and should feel guilt free. Move on :)
If you're going to be objective however, you need to put things in perspective. Statistically speaking that entire family were more likely to die in a horrific car crash on the way home than someone breaking into that car. The odds enter the realm of the ridiculous if you're worried about a baby snatching pedophile or murderer kidnapping a small baby from a car park (which probably has CCTV) in broad daylight. Actually, if I may digress momentarily, it's a common trend nowadays - parents are constantly scared of their children being abducted or murdered when in actual fact the chances of it happening are just about as low as in the 70s. Nevertheless, people hark on about how they used to leave their front door open when they were kids. The media is largely to blame for this unbridled and unwarranted hysteria.
Putting aside my Dr. Spock personality, I wouldn't take any chances with my neice and nephew (who are 2 and 4) and nor would my sister. It's very easy to speak statistics but when it's your own children or family involved you're not quite as happy to take the chance (and quite rightly). Whether the woman's actions actually constitute child abuse is another matter, I would say it's more of a moral than legal issue. You know nothing about the woman's day, what she was doing, how regularly she leaves her children in a car (quite possibly the first time ever, and will never again), or anything else. Therefore, all we can do is speculate. I do not think it would have been wise to call the police.
Certainly given the situation you were faced with, you did the right thing and should feel guilt free. Move on :)
i would have been more concerned with the children being dehydrated and suffocating than them being snatched, you wouldn;'t leave a doig in a locked car would you? if they had become upset when they woke up, that would have added to their dehydration rate and they could have easily suffered appallingly, lonnie i would have alerted the security at the retail park, they would have known what to do
http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_st yle/women/families/article1762734.ece
As you can see from this article, the mother or whoever faces possible charges for abandoning her children.
I have to say, they shouldn't have been left and calling the police would have been a high priority for me.
Children shouldn't be left in cars, it isn't safe. There are loads of cases were cars are stolen with kids in the back.
Don't feel guilty lonnie, you weren't the one in the wrong
As you can see from this article, the mother or whoever faces possible charges for abandoning her children.
I have to say, they shouldn't have been left and calling the police would have been a high priority for me.
Children shouldn't be left in cars, it isn't safe. There are loads of cases were cars are stolen with kids in the back.
Don't feel guilty lonnie, you weren't the one in the wrong
Lonnie.
A very hard call to make but I think you did the right thing. You stayed and watched that no harm came to the children. Hope you gave her a piece of your mind.
No lessons have been learned by some people over the McCanns. This should have made people more aware of the dangers their children could be in.
You did the right thing. Well done you!!!!!
A very hard call to make but I think you did the right thing. You stayed and watched that no harm came to the children. Hope you gave her a piece of your mind.
No lessons have been learned by some people over the McCanns. This should have made people more aware of the dangers their children could be in.
You did the right thing. Well done you!!!!!
Hi naomi,
Thanks for what you say about my rection, and as an aside to this,
Today, coming home fro work, in my own high st, a trafic warden was putting a ticket on a car, in the car, was a toddler strapped in the back seat, (I stayed and watched), the tw had obviously phoned the police, because within five mins of me being there, a squad car pulled up, this time, I suppose it was the father appeared, an almighty scene developed, then the police drove off, the said car followed, with one of the police in the car.
I don't know, but i'm assuming it was because of the child being left alone.
cointreau,
Your right, I just assumed it was the mother, because she had the keys to the car,
As for her not speaking, I just thought it was because she didn't want to talk about it, as she knew she e=was in the wrong.
Apart from that, I also thought it was rude, I was polite, all I said was, 'Excuse me, you know you left your children alone, anything could have happened', that was it.
campfire, thanks for your reply, but i'm not interested in statistics of car crashes etc,
No-one asks to be born, the very least we can do, is look after our children properly, or at least, the best we can, and that includes not leaving them alone in places where they coukd be abducted or injured.
Thanks for what you say about my rection, and as an aside to this,
Today, coming home fro work, in my own high st, a trafic warden was putting a ticket on a car, in the car, was a toddler strapped in the back seat, (I stayed and watched), the tw had obviously phoned the police, because within five mins of me being there, a squad car pulled up, this time, I suppose it was the father appeared, an almighty scene developed, then the police drove off, the said car followed, with one of the police in the car.
I don't know, but i'm assuming it was because of the child being left alone.
cointreau,
Your right, I just assumed it was the mother, because she had the keys to the car,
As for her not speaking, I just thought it was because she didn't want to talk about it, as she knew she e=was in the wrong.
Apart from that, I also thought it was rude, I was polite, all I said was, 'Excuse me, you know you left your children alone, anything could have happened', that was it.
campfire, thanks for your reply, but i'm not interested in statistics of car crashes etc,
No-one asks to be born, the very least we can do, is look after our children properly, or at least, the best we can, and that includes not leaving them alone in places where they coukd be abducted or injured.
You might not be interested in such statistics, but they are relevant.
As for dehydration... what? A baby can comfortably go without food or water for a couple of hours. "Suffering" wouldn't start until 3-4 hours or later. Certainly 15-30 minutes alone isn't going to do a baby any harm.
To reiterate I don't think what the woman did was right, I wouldn't do it myself nor would I defend her if she were here to speak up for herself, BUT there is a word known as "overreaction". Calling the police or accusing a woman you don't even know of child abuse is an overreaction, and certainly dwelling on the issue so much you feel the need to post on a website is, in my opinion, unnecessary if not bizarre. As I said before you did the right thing, congratulations... what more needs to be said?
As for dehydration... what? A baby can comfortably go without food or water for a couple of hours. "Suffering" wouldn't start until 3-4 hours or later. Certainly 15-30 minutes alone isn't going to do a baby any harm.
To reiterate I don't think what the woman did was right, I wouldn't do it myself nor would I defend her if she were here to speak up for herself, BUT there is a word known as "overreaction". Calling the police or accusing a woman you don't even know of child abuse is an overreaction, and certainly dwelling on the issue so much you feel the need to post on a website is, in my opinion, unnecessary if not bizarre. As I said before you did the right thing, congratulations... what more needs to be said?
How about THIS one! Whilst shopping in a large supermarket some weeks ago, I noticed a baby in a pram had been left unattended in an aisle. Five minutes later, the child was still there, with no one offering to go to her. I kept watch for several minutes until I couldn't stand it any longer. I rushed off and alerted security. It took them another 2-3 minutes to arrive, and STILL the person in charge of the child hadn't appeared. A call was put out over the tannoy system, & TEN minutes later, a young girl wandered in to claim her. She laughed & said she'd been outside for a cigarette and "forgot" the baby!!!
Someone should take that young lady aside and explain the dangers of leaving a child alone like that, and ask her how she would feel if it had been taken.
Unfortunately, this kind of thin is happening all to often.
Well done for watching the baby, maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea, when one is left like that, to ask the person who comes to claim it, to prove the baby is theirs.
Unfortunately, this kind of thin is happening all to often.
Well done for watching the baby, maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea, when one is left like that, to ask the person who comes to claim it, to prove the baby is theirs.
Makes me wonder sometimes. Have kids now become a throw-away commodity? I feel sad every time i see kids cut out like this, lacking real parent love. And angry that these foolish people do not realise the potential issues both now and in th efuture. Perhaps they should buy a pit bull to guard their kids to make sure of thier imbecility.
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