Here it is — ABCnews.com looking into the case of Bridget Kevane, the mom who trusted her 12-year-old daughter and the daughter’s friend to take their younger siblings to the mall. For which she got arrested.
ABC found that most people felt support Kevane and believe the authorities overreacted, as do I. And a little later today I’ll post my thoughts on same. Meantime, here is the ABC piece. — Lenore
Filed under: GOOD News, Uncategorized | Tagged: 12-year-old, babysitting, child endangerment, Kevane, mall |
FreeRangeKids 
The comments there are abysmal. I’m so tired from the comments *here* that I don’t know if I can make any comments *there*. Maybe just one.
(Don’t read the comments, folks.)
“..And the meth problem we have here in Bozeman.” I’ll say it again, THAT to me is the big issue with leaving your child(ren) unsupervised at a mall. The druggies: users and pushers and the bheaviour that goes with it.
When did we get sidetracked from drugs and go over the deep end with the whole “my kids will be snatched??” Seriously!
I understand the 12-year-olds in question didn’t act in the most mature manner, but still…child endangerment?! Sheesh.
A couple of weeks ago,we let our 11.5 year-old take his siblings, 9 and 6, on a tour of Jerusalem’s most crowded mall while us old fogies sat in the food court. He was grateful for our trust and got them all back safely…imagine that!
FYI, there have been 15 deaths in NASCAR since 1964. The last one was in 2001. I’m not sure if that’s the best comparison.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_racing_drivers_who_died_in_racing_crashes
Thanks for the heads up on the comments. I was tempted but I knew where it would go….
Yikes … a little scare that someone quoted in the article thinks that, “To entrust a 3-year-old in the care of a 12-year-old, even if it’s a small town, is irresponsible.” Eh. At 13, I was taking care of (babysitting) 3 kids, ages 3-8, 5 days/week while their parents worked (during the summertime). As we’ve done already on this site, we can debate the wisdom of 2 12-year olds taking a 3-year old to the mall, etc., etc. but why would taking care of a 3-year old (in and of itself) be too much for a 12 year old? And what authority (none, as far as I can tell) does the person cited as having given this quote (on p. 3 of the ABC article) have?
er, a little scarY, not a little scarE. My typing, also, a little scary. Sorry.
@Ali, the drug scare moral panic ran out of steam a couple years ago; child snatchers are the new drug pushers, we’ll dredge up the drug menace when we need a new moral panic to keep everyone terrified and complacent.
“There are people out there who are going to grab children and a 12-year-old is not equipped to handle all situations,” said Rhodes.
“There are very very few people out there who are going to grab children, and in that unlikely event, even 42-year-old is not equipped to handle all situations,” said David Veatch.
Do any of these over paranoid types have kids? Have they spent a week with one in the house? If, so what are those kids lifes like?
I wish I was an artist, I’d love to paint what their view of world looks like concerning kids. Then contrast with what a well founded, in risk assesment, person’s view is.
why did I read the comments? why, why did I read the comments?
You know, all these hysterical parents panicking about a “child molester on every corner” and saying that 12-year olds aren’t responsible — the thing is, I have no dobut that *their* 12-year olds aren’t responsible enough, and they probably never will be, having that for a parent.
[…] ABC News Weighs in On Mom Who Let 12-Year-Olds Take Younger Sibs to Mall Here it is — ABCnews.com looking into the case of Bridget Kevane, the mom who trusted her 12-year-old daughter […] […]
[…] who left kids at Montana mall is now a national story [ABC News; earlier post with many comments; Free Range Kids and […]
why did I read the comments? why, why did I read the comments?
I warned you! I made the first comment HERE!
You know, all these hysterical parents panicking about a “child molester on every corner” and saying that 12-year olds aren’t responsible — the thing is, I have no dobut that *their* 12-year olds aren’t responsible enough, and they probably never will be, having that for a parent.
They’re also ignoring the simple fact that it is 12 year olds who are more at risk of molestation and abduction (still not a very high risk), not three year olds. NOBODY wants a three year old, not for good purposes or bad! I know some parents who don’t want their three year olds until they turn four!
Usually I am in agreement with the ridiculousness blogged about here. However, I would not leave my 3 year old alone in a mall with a 12 year old. Not to mention the fact that most malls have chaperone rules and do not allow unsupervised children. It would be perfectly OK to allow a 12 year old to babysit a 3 year old in a home, but not OK to leave them in charge in a mall. Sorry, guys.