Toddler dies in hot car, mother not charged

I don't think I would make this mistake, but I can feel for the woman as a parent.    Assume you made a mistake that resulted in your child's death.  Should you be charged?    What if you fell asleep while you were home with the kids and one ran into the road?    What if your wife was the woman in the story, should she be charged?   

From the article:

since the mid-1990s, totaling around 340 in the past 10 years. According to an Associated Press analysis, one reason cited was a change made to protect children by putting them in the back seat away from air bags, where they are more easily forgotten.

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I wonder how many lives have been "saved" from being in the back seat.  I am no expert, but sometime some of these rules are made not thinking about other ways it can cause harm, and sometimes even end up being worse (not saying this is the case in this particular point).

I feel for her as a parent, but I'm not sure that's the point.  It doesn't really matter if I feel for her... or if the person was me, or my wife.  I just wonder about the precedent being set by not charging her.  It seems that now, if someone in Florida wants to off their kid, and they are a good enough actor, they have an out. 

Hard to tell.  Many years ago I worked with a guy who, I came to learn, backed over and killed one of his children (playing behind the car).  It's fair to say he was never the same and explained his demeanor - alive, but not living.  He appeared to be just north of "coping" and the only thing that probably kept him going day to day was his wife, their other children, and faith.

Though the context is different, each death could be construed as neglect or as accident.

In the case of this toddler, it truly sounds like the woman made a horrible, horrible mistake that'll haunt her for the rest of her life.  Very sad for her.

That is a good point.

I'm really not sure what to think, really... I do think what happened does not meet the standard of the care and caution of a reasonable person in similar circumstances.  Am still open to the possibility that I am being a hard-a$$.  

I've been lurking and trying to avoid the topic...

These cases suck!!!   We get one of them about every other year, as well as the toddler in the swimming pool type cases.  They pose problems for just the reasons that have been identified:  was leaving the child in the car really accidental or was it simply a matter of convinience?  Do we punish the mother even further by filing criminal charges?  Will justice be served in filing criminal charges?

All these answers are pretty case specific, and usually just guess work on the part of prosecutors and police based upon the totality of the circumstances.

In Florida there would be several possible charges (1) Manslaughter:  The killing of a human being by the act, or culpable negligence of another (2) Aggravated Child Abuse:  the intentional infliction of physical or mental injury upon a child causing great bodily harm; (Not a great choice because you have to show that the harm caused was intentionalluy caused)  (3) Aggravated Child Neglect:  a caregivers failure or ommission to provide a child with supervision necessary to maintain the childs physical and mental health and thereby causes great bodily harm, permanent disability or permanent disfigurement;

The problem is very prevelant in Fla.

I don't really have any answers on such a difficult question, but I have a different question.  If she isn't charged with anything what happens if she does it again?  Maybe using her as an example to deter others isn't a good way to think about it, but does something have to be done to make sure SHE can't hurt anyone else?  If she's done it once she may be capable of doing it again, even if there was not one ounce of intention behind her actions. 

People are Stoopid.

My ex-friend was visiting her old High School teacher (while class was in session).  She parked her borrowed-from-the-father-in-law car out in FRONT of the building and left her sleeping 14 month old daughter in the car while she went inside to "real quick" visit.  She knew the kid was in there, didn't want to wake her up.   It was what, May I think.  Of course, being a high school campus, some kids were walking around, saw the kid, and they called 911.  By the time she got back to the car, the cops were there and the kid was out of the car alive but hot.  She was arrested, taken off, and given probation.  Kid was released to grandma.  She told me afterwards she was sick of probation, thought it was mean and unfair,  and she didn't do anything wrong.   uhhhhhh   yeahhhhh...  and to top it off, her (now ex) husband is an emergency care pediatrician.  Made the news big time around here a few years ago.  

She hasn't changed much....  she has put the kid in the car with me (her car) with no car seat or seat belt.   No helmets on the bike, etc. 

We haven't talked in over a year now.  

Point: some people know what they're doing.   They know it's wrong but do it anyways.     

I had duty at the Fd one day and my wife had to work late at the E/R, so my mother picked up my son from daycare. My wife was going to pick my son up from my mothers when she got off work. She got about two blocks from our house when she realized she had forgot to pick him up. I think that is about as close as she (or I ) would ever come to forgetting our son is somewhere. In her defense my mohters house is very close to ours so it is close to being on the way home. She just got on her normal route to the house and kept driving. As far as leaving a child in a car, I just can't understand how...or why.

I never forgot my daughter, but a couple weeks ago at a bbq a friend of mine arrived with his hole family in tow (wife, 3 daughters). The said hi to everyone and settled in. A few guys wen't into the garage and we're talking for about 30 minutes when out comes his wife

"is ivy with you?"

"No, she's hasn''t been out here... she's not in there?"

"I looked everywhere..."

"Are you sure?"

"Neil, did you get her out of the car?"

"Oh my god!"

He runs to his car and opens the door and their 1 year old is in the car seat screaming... she'd been there for about 45 minutes. I don't know if I'd say they were /negligent, but what they did was not criminal, in my opinion.

Of course it's not... the child is still alive and it appears that no harm came out of it.

What if the woman was doing something socially unacceptable rather than going to work at City Hall?  Would people's opinions differ then?  Given the rather low IQ of most of the population, I would say probably.

Suppose she was going to a bar to tie a few on and, as in this case, really did forget about the child?  Would there be charges?  What if she was going to get laid at her boyfriends and really forgot about the child?  Charges then?

Just thinking out loud...

There was a case in Texas last year or the year before where the mom went into a business to fill out a job application, leaving baby in the car.  Bad ending.  A really, really bad judgment call.  Yeah, okay, she probably couldn't afford child care during the job search - so walk in with the kid on your hip to fill out the application then.  Do what you have to do.  I'm not sure what that state should do though.