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Hot Topic (7/3): When babies die in hot cars...
posted to Current Events & Hot Topics
in Current Events & Hot Topics
on Jul. 3, 2009 at 12:36 AM
- 42 Replies
- 547 Total Views
Unimaginable heartbreak for a Howard County family when a toddler died from heatstroke after being left in a hot car. Emergency crews rushed to the scene in Ellicott City after the child was found, but it was too late. Mike Hellgren has more on this tragedy.
Police say the parents had a different routine that morning. They didn't realize the little girl was left alone in the car. They say it was unintentional so the parents haven't been charged. The investigation remains open.
At the ritzy Oaks subdivision, tragedy struck as the sun beat down. A 23-month-old girl died after police say she was left strapped inside her carseat for nine hours. The girl's mother was distraught after finding her tiny, dead body.
"Right now this does appear to be a horrible tragedy but one that was very likely an accident," said Sherry Llewellyn.
A change in routine, investigators say. The parents have not been charged.
"We believe there was something different in the morning for the parents and their vehicles," Llewellyn said.
Neighbors heard the commotion. They say the parents are good people and are heartbroken.
This is the fifteenth case this year. Last year, 42 children died in hot cars nationwide.
The danger is real. Heatstroke sets in when body temperatures hit 104 degrees. At 107, it's deadly and internal organs shut down.
At 80 degrees outside, a car warms to 99 inside in 10 minutes and quickly heads into triple digit territory.
In 49% of cases, charges are filed against caregivers. Prosecutors get convictions 81% of the time. It doesn't appear for now that anyone will face any charges in this case.
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Your reaction?
Do you think caregivers and/or parents should be charged in these cases?
Do you think you could ever forget your child in a car?
Replies:
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- by on Jul. 3, 2009 at 12:44 AM
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No i don't think they should be charged. I think losing s child is punishment enough. They will have to live with that for the rest of their lives.
I would hope I would never forget my child in the car. I mean these parents probably said the same thing.
I feel very sad for them.
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- by on Jul. 3, 2009 at 12:50 AM
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Do you think caregivers and/or parents should be charged in these cases? Yes they should be charged with something, jail time? Depends on the case..
Do you think you could ever forget your child in a car? No. And I can not understand how anyone could ever forget where there child is, ever...
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- by on Jul. 3, 2009 at 2:18 AM
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Your reaction?
Utterly tragic and horrifying I can not imagine how these poor children suffered.
Do you think caregivers and/or parents should be charged in these cases? I think something should be done if your so busy and focused on something other than your child then yes something is wrong with this picture
Do you think you could ever forget your child in a car?
No I do not know how people do this I know why I was pregnant I had nightmares about forgetting my kid or leaving her and it was horrible .Now when she has a function I go and I am early getting her there and early getting back so she will not have to wonder if I forgot.
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- by on Jul. 3, 2009 at 2:42 AM
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Realistically i don't think I would leave my child in a car period but this is one of my huge irrational fears. I can't even imagine what these families are going through.
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- by on Jul. 3, 2009 at 2:54 AM
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Ok, those parents left their child for 9 HOURS! How do you not think "oh shit" after just a few seconds, or moments? That child is supposed to be the most important person in your life and NO change in routine should skew your thoughts so much that your child in the car "slips your mind" for 9 hours.
They killed there child. Was it intentional? Only they know and they have to live with it. This is becoming more and more common though, even with all of the awareness. It seems like such an easy way for parents to unload a "burden"
You would be charged if you put your child in an oven, you should be charged if you leave them to roast in a hot car. There is NO excuse for leaving your child in the car, I'm sorry but it's just not something a good parent forgets. Imagine the pain and suffering these poor babies go through. I bet she cried and sweated, calling her mommy and daddy, wondered why they weren't coming for her. They deserve to be punished.
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- by on Jul. 3, 2009 at 8:48 AM
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no i dont think the parents should be charged. i think it is just an unfortunate accident, and the guilt the parents will live with for the rest of their lives is punishment enough.
i dont think i would forget where my daughter is, but i am sure the parents who have lost their children this way would answer the same way.
i have narcolepsy and often suffer from automatic behavior.....i will drive and not remember how i got places and the other day i went through the drive thru at dunkin donuts without meaning to (which is kind of funny that because of a symptom i have from a sleep disorder i buy caffeine without meaning to) i will also drive and sometimes wonder what time it is, like should i be driving too work or home, and there have even been times that i have panicked cuz i havent seen my daugher in her carseat but then i realize that she is at home with her dad. my point of this rambling is that there could very well be medical issues or substance issues in a parents life. i know that doesnt make it right at all, but things like this arent really in the parents control.
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- by on Jul. 3, 2009 at 10:17 AM
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Yes they should be charged. Maybe not jail time, but some thing. It's just plain irresponsible and there needs to be a repercussion for their carelessness.
I can honestly say that NO I could never leave my child in the car. But...I'm a SAHM. My kids are what I do all day. If one of them wasn't here, it would be noticeable. I can see how a working mom who is used to be away from her children 8-10 hours a day could easily forget the child. Especially if a routine was changed and that was a time when that child was usually away from the parent.
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- by on Jul. 3, 2009 at 10:22 AM
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I am sorry but I do think the parents should be charged fully and totally. It is horrible having a child die (I know) but these parents are the reason that their children are dying. This baby in the story was left for NINE HOURS.
This used to happen a lot when I lived in Atlanta, GA. The news was full of parents leaving their babies in the car so they could go shopping. People need to know that there is going to be a punishment for this type of crime. And losing a child is not enough.
For any normal person this would destroy them but what normal person leaves their child alone in a car. This isn't running to the teller to give him the $20 for gas. This is way past that. These people are murderers and need to be fully punished.
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- by on Jul. 3, 2009 at 11:27 AM
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I am sure none of us think we could forget our children....I am sure that most everyone would say that. But I have driven all the way to work and forgot my child was in the car until I got there, had to turn around and take her to daycare. No I didn't leave her in the car but even something that I did every single day slipped my mind for some reason. After my second child was born, my oldest was off visiting her father and the baby was asleep (she was about 2 weeks old). My husband and I wanted ice cream from DQ so we both hopped in the car. As we were backing out of the driveway, he said "oh crap, you have to stay with the baby."
So I can understand how it could happen....for 9 hours I'm not so sure though. I have never lost track of any of my children for 9 hours. That seems like an extreme amount of time. But in normal cases, no I don't think the parents should be charged for an accident. They didn't leave their child in there on purpose with the intention of burning them to death. I believe the guilt of the loss and the torture they will live with for the rest of their lives would be enough of a punishment. I cannot imagine.
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- by on Jul. 3, 2009 at 11:44 AM
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I think that parents need to slow the f*ck down and realize that they need to always see where the children are first. I bet they are living with unimaginable guilt... but its because of their own error and stupidity. I can understand a parent tell the other get the kid and then 2 minutes later you realize that nobody got the kid... and of course you immediatly go but it should ALWAYS take a parent less than 5 minutes to realize that their kid isn't there.
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