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Strollerderby
Couple Enjoys Martinis, Leaves Baby in the Car
Date night is hard to come by when you’re a new parent. But Bryan and Tina Vannoy don’t let a little thing like no babysitters stop them from a Friday night out on the town.
When the Iowa couple couldn’t find someone to watch their 4-month-old baby girl, the decided to take her along to an Omaha martini bar. They left her in the car while they drank enough to raise their blood alcohol levels to up to twice the legal driving limit.
But, BUT! They checked on the baby repeatedly, so that makes it okay. Right?
Wrong. A bartender called police, the couple were cited for misdemeanor neglect, and the baby has been taken into protective custody.
You know, I know that in many ways parenting is complicated. But in so many ways, it really isn’t. Kids are hungry, you feed them. Kids are tired, you put them to bed. Can’t find a babysitter for your four-month-old baby? STAY HOME.
But what if your kids are older? A Michigan mom was just charged with breaking a brand new state law that says that kids under the age of five can’t be left alone in the car unless someone 13 or older is watching them.
This mom of four ran into a grocery store to pick up a cake, leaving her three older kids — 8, 6, and 4 — in the car and taking her baby with her. The cake wasn’t ready, so a five minute errand turned into 20. When she came out, the police were waiting for her.
There’s a big difference between these two cases, I think. When I first read about the new Michigan bill, I thought, “Wow. Now here’s a law that’s going to unfairly target overwhelmed mothers.” The Michigan mom made an err in judgment, while the Vannoy’s were clearly neglectful.
The only time I ever leave my kids in the car is in my own driveway and never for more than a minute. And if this law saves even one child, it’ll be worth it. But a lot of Michigan moms are going to have to change their ways if they don’t want to be slapped with a misdemeanor.
Do you ever leave your kids in the car unattended? When did you decide they were old enough?
Photo: treehouse1977, Flickr
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0 Comments
pqbon commented on Sep 29 09 at 1:44 pmThe Michigan mother did not make an error in judgment.
I’m so tired of reading about parents doing reasonable things that either some legislator or some cop decided was not reasonable labeled as “errs in judgment”.
Rosana commented on Sep 29 09 at 1:59 pmHmmm, I think both cases are bad. On the first case, thank God the bartender called the police, if not, those parents would have drove back home DRUNK with that infant. In the second case, there is a lot of things that could have happened on those 20 min. If she left the keys in the car, the 8 year old could have thought about driving it, he kids could have been kidnapped or worse. I will never leave my son in the car by himself, if you cannot take your kids inside the grocery store or elsewhere, leave them with another adult at home and if that is not a choice, well make sure you leave the house early enough to take your time taking them all out of the car and in the store with you.
Maggie commented on Sep 30 09 at 7:50 amMy 12-year-old often opts to stay in the car if I’m running in the store for a quick errand. We have strict rules about it, though. I take the keys, I leave my cell phone with him, he’s not to get out of the car for anything (even if he sees someone he knows), etc. Also, we really only do this in my dinky, tiny Mayberry-type town. (Which, I KNOW, small towns aren’t exempt from crime, but it certainly is an unusual occurrence here.)
Chris commented on Sep 30 09 at 8:47 amAll I have to say is, think about what you do at the gas station before any of you so called perfect parents pass judgement. Give it a second it will dawn on you!
Andrea commented on Sep 30 09 at 9:09 amA few minutes at a gas station is totally different than a few hours at a martini bar. No one is perfect, but surely anyone can do better than that.
snarky mama commented on Oct 01 09 at 10:57 pmHere in Oregon it is illegal to leave a child under 10 alone in a car. It is also illegal to pump your own gas.
Madplanner commented on Oct 02 09 at 2:08 pmHelicopter governing…it’s similar to helicopter parenting. Parents: take responsibility for your own actions, take good care of your children, and don’t judge others.
Sam commented on Nov 03 09 at 8:32 pmI don’t think the Michigan mom did anything that many parents hadn’t done before, it wasn’t an err in judgment, just a longer than expected wait.
My mom would leave me in the car to go grab something quickly from the grocery store if it was really bad weather, and it made sense for her to just to run in. She took the keys with her of course and locked the door. There were no car seats back then, especially not for 4 year olds, so I could have run in to the store had I felt scared.
The other couple are just idiots really. Who get plastered with their baby in the car? There is no litmus test for parents, but shouldn’t there be, really? If you are an total idiot should you really be allowed to have kids? Oh, i just opened a big ol’ can of worms there, didn’t I?
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