Woman arrested for leaving 14-year-old daughter home alone

[darklordoftech]

https://reason.com/2021/10/11/cop-family-lawsuit-midland-qualified-immunity-cps/?fbclid=IwAR10ggcFr5uSuGvKCww4Xqbbd2JoaONcglUQuTkeqB1KS_EZRlhCgyJn7L4

[emailking]

My mom first left me home alone when I was 8 lol. Just for short periods though like going to the store.

[DaleCooper]

I see this as a natural consequence of two things, the first being the infantilization of teenagers and the second being the expansion of the police state into public schools. I'm not sure which one is more to blame for this specific incident, but I'd say broadly the former is a bigger problem. Teenagers are not "babies" and frankly they shouldn't even be referred to as "children" either. Obviously they're not quite adults yet and shouldn't yet have all the responsibilities and privileges that adults have, but the notion that they aren't individuals capable of being unsupervised at home is ridiculous, especially since the parents made sure to arrange for check-ins from trusted friends and the school itself. Treating them like children just leads to them being helpless adults. Of course the wannabe SS officers sent by the school deserve a lot of the blame here and they should be fired immediately, as well as criminally charged for kidnapping the teenager and for searching the home without a warrant.

[Illiniwek]

Lock the cops up.

[Santander]

A few thoughts:

- Obviously, a massive overreaction by the police that was disproportional to the situation at hand. There was nothing wrong with them visiting the house, but when CPS verified the children's care arrangements and closed the case, the police should've closed the case, too.
- If neighbors and a school counselor don't qualify to be temporary caregivers, then something is wrong with America.
- Going to Kuwait for 5 days is different from leaving your kids at home for the day while you run errands or going out of town for a few days to deal with a family emergency. Kuwait is on another continent, the COVID situation worldwide is changing on a day-by-day basis, and the mother really should've insisted the kids go with her.
- The school counselor was sh**tty. She had one job, which she agreed to, and then backed out. You can't do that to someone who is halfway across the world from their kids.

[John Dule]

I can't believe it's not a dead0 thread.

[Orwell]

Kinda dumb ngl

[DINGO Joe]

Midland TX?

[they don't love you like i love you]

My mom first left me home alone when I was 8 lol. Just for short periods though like going to the store.

This was apparently for five days. Much different. However per this: https://www.dfps.state.tx.us/child_protection/Child_Safety/child_supervision.asp

It's hard to say any crime was committed per Texas law. Good thing she was acquitted and can sue.

[vitoNova]

LOL Texas.

[Crane]

A few thoughts:

- Obviously, a massive overreaction by the police that was disproportional to the situation at hand. There was nothing wrong with them visiting the house, but when CPS verified the children's care arrangements and closed the case, the police should've closed the case, too.
- If neighbors and a school counselor don't qualify to be temporary caregivers, then something is wrong with America.
- Going to Kuwait for 5 days is different from leaving your kids at home for the day while you run errands or going out of town for a few days to deal with a family emergency. Kuwait is on another continent, the COVID situation worldwide is changing on a day-by-day basis, and the mother really should've insisted the kids go with her.
- The school counselor was sh**tty. She had one job, which she agreed to, and then backed out. You can't do that to someone who is halfway across the world from their kids.

This is the dad's fault for being a useless welfare queen and putting his family in that position. Obviously any cop is going to react suspiciously when finding out a 14 year old has been home alone for a week. Yes, they overreacted, but still. Also, the mom needs to learn geography.

[Alben Barkley]

14 used to be considered old enough to babysit other kids, let alone stay home alone, let alone with check-ins and supervision from adults. WTF is happening to this country??? My god, if you thought millennials and zoomers were infantilized, it will be nothing compared to the next generation at this rate. We have gone way, way, WAY too far in keeping kids in the nest for WAY too long. Funny thing is back in like the 70s and earlier, when there WAS generally much more crime and danger, parents would routinely let kids much younger than 14 just wander around on their own all the time. What the hell happened? Does it have something to do with the “Satanic Panic” back in the 80s or something? I do not understand this phenomenon at all.

[DaleCooper]

14 used to be considered old enough to babysit other kids, let alone stay home alone, let alone with check-ins and supervision from adults. WTF is happening to this country??? My god, if you thought millennials and zoomers were infantilized, it will be nothing compared to the next generation at this rate. We have gone way, way, WAY too far in keeping kids in the nest for WAY too long. Funny thing is back in like the 70s and earlier, when there WAS generally much more crime and danger, parents would routinely let kids much younger than 14 just wander around on their own all the time. What the hell happened? Does it have something to do with the “Satanic Panic” back in the 80s or something? I do not understand this phenomenon at all.

I think the Satanic Panic definitely played an essential early part of this society-wide obsession with policing the independence of young people. At the very least, it seems to have been when fear over high-fantasy versions of child abuse became a mainstream political concern, but the current situation is bipartisan and manifests itself in many different ways.

Obviously, there's always been a bunch of handwringing about "the youth", but at some point it switched from complaining to actively trying to keep young people dependent upon adults for as long as possible. We've gotten to the point where college students are treated as though they're elementary school kids in need of round-the-clock care. There are huge societal implications here even beyond the nanny state. Growing up is and always has been a gradual process, or in other words, you learn basic skills over the course of your life so that when the time comes you'll be fine on your own. Once you're out of the house, you should ideally have some experience with preparing your own food, taking care of your hygiene, earning money, paying bills, managing relationships (friends, family, and romantic), and planning your schedule. Some people these days can make it through college and graduate without learning to do any of that, but time moves on and they end up on their own without any of those skills. It's disgusting and I thank God I was spared this devastating upbringing.

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

The woman in question is owed a large sum of money in a civil case. This is outrageous.

[they don't love you like i love you]

14 used to be considered old enough to babysit other kids, let alone stay home alone, let alone with check-ins and supervision from adults. WTF is happening to this country??? My god, if you thought millennials and zoomers were infantilized, it will be nothing compared to the next generation at this rate. We have gone way, way, WAY too far in keeping kids in the nest for WAY too long. Funny thing is back in like the 70s and earlier, when there WAS generally much more crime and danger, parents would routinely let kids much younger than 14 just wander around on their own all the time. What the hell happened? Does it have something to do with the “Satanic Panic” back in the 80s or something? I do not understand this phenomenon at all.

And there is no minimum age to be left home alone under Texas law, just criteria that would have to apply and clearly did here. But she was acquitted by a jury so at least in this case the system worked and she's entitled to damages too. Just ridiculous it had to happen to begin with.

[Santander]

14 used to be considered old enough to babysit other kids, let alone stay home alone, let alone with check-ins and supervision from adults. WTF is happening to this country??? My god, if you thought millennials and zoomers were infantilized, it will be nothing compared to the next generation at this rate. We have gone way, way, WAY too far in keeping kids in the nest for WAY too long. Funny thing is back in like the 70s and earlier, when there WAS generally much more crime and danger, parents would routinely let kids much younger than 14 just wander around on their own all the time. What the hell happened? Does it have something to do with the “Satanic Panic” back in the 80s or something? I do not understand this phenomenon at all.

Letting your kids wander outside for the day is different from leaving your kids at home for 5 days while you fly off to Kuwait during a pandemic where travel restrictions can change on very short notice.

[brucejoel99]

The mom should be suing the prosecutor for wrongful prosecution too because the fact that the prosecutor decided to actually go ahead with charging her on 2 felony counts & taking this case to court in spite of CPS' own determination that there was no merit to this case is f**king ridiculous. What a f**king moron to actually take this & allow it to reach trial.

[Meclazine for Israel]

My girlfriend has a 14yo daughter and she won't leave her home alone.

Old enough to ring an ambulance but not old enough to answer the door to strange people, or deal with smoke or fire, flooding etc.

It's that impossible age where the adult brain is not developed yet to make effective and safe decisions.

[HisGrace]

This is insane. Have no idea who the cops thought they were helping by keeping the kids in custody for days and not letting them talk to their parents on the phone.

On top of that, this is just no big deal. Maybe not quite for for five days, but my brother and I stayed at home by ourselves at around that age. Our dad gave us like a five minute talk about what to do if there was a burglar or fire or whatever and we just hung out and watched movies. The world did not end.

[West_Midlander]

IIRC in NC a child only has to be 8-8.5 to be left home alone.

[Dr. MB]

14 used to be considered old enough to babysit other kids, let alone stay home alone, let alone with check-ins and supervision from adults. WTF is happening to this country??? My god, if you thought millennials and zoomers were infantilized, it will be nothing compared to the next generation at this rate. We have gone way, way, WAY too far in keeping kids in the nest for WAY too long. Funny thing is back in like the 70s and earlier, when there WAS generally much more crime and danger, parents would routinely let kids much younger than 14 just wander around on their own all the time. What the hell happened? Does it have something to do with the “Satanic Panic” back in the 80s or something? I do not understand this phenomenon at all.

Letting your kids wander outside for the day is different from leaving your kids at home for 5 days while you fly off to Kuwait during a pandemic where travel restrictions can change on very short notice.

This took place in 2018

[DPKdebator]

The lack of teaching independence to children these days has been detrimental for our society. Past generations might have been a little too loose in this regard, but kids learned to fend for themselves and to not always rely on their parents to solve all their trouble. We have overcompensated and the prevalence of things like helicopter parenting have made today's kids more sheltered and they aren't as readily prepared to head out into the world on their own.

[Santander]

14 used to be considered old enough to babysit other kids, let alone stay home alone, let alone with check-ins and supervision from adults. WTF is happening to this country??? My god, if you thought millennials and zoomers were infantilized, it will be nothing compared to the next generation at this rate. We have gone way, way, WAY too far in keeping kids in the nest for WAY too long. Funny thing is back in like the 70s and earlier, when there WAS generally much more crime and danger, parents would routinely let kids much younger than 14 just wander around on their own all the time. What the hell happened? Does it have something to do with the “Satanic Panic” back in the 80s or something? I do not understand this phenomenon at all.

Letting your kids wander outside for the day is different from leaving your kids at home for 5 days while you fly off to Kuwait during a pandemic where travel restrictions can change on very short notice.

This took place in 2018

Excellent point, I didn't read that part. Still, going to Kuwait for 5 days, you should take your kids with you.

[beaver2.0]

This sounds like a mess all around.

[Cokeland Saxton]

She's 14. Wtf is wrong with people? Infantilization of children has gone way too far. 14 is old enough to be left at home for a few days as long as there's enough food and the kid knows some basic life skills such as cleaning up after themselves and the like. Heck, 14 is the minimum age for getting a job in select places.