Wednesday, October 9, 2002
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Wednesday, October 9, 2002 |
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There's more than one kind of child neglect By MONROE ROARK Is there anything like a news story about a suffering child that makes you just want to turn off the television or flip as fast as you can to the next page in the newspaper? If current media coverage is an adequate indicator, child neglect is an epidemic in this country. Sadly, that neglect comes in a variety of forms. Two cases in the metro Atlanta area spring to mind, both having occurred within the past few days. A man found an abandoned baby, just days old, outside his place of employment and reported it to the authorities. The infant was taken to the hospital for treatment as law enforcement officials tried to find the parents. A few days after the initial discovery, the man who claimed to have found the child was accused of being the father. A married great-grandfather in his 60s, he allegedly fathered the baby during an extramarital relationship with a 34-year-old woman. While not denying the relationship, which lasted many years, the man insisted that it ended more than a year ago and the child could not be his. So this precious baby enters the world already facing a two-strike count. At least this child is alive. A 3-year-old in Atlanta was not so lucky this past week, as her mother reported to a new job and left her strapped in her car seat in a parking garage for most of the summer-like day. The toddler's temperature reached 108 degrees before she was pronounced dead. The mother, now charged with murder and cruelty to children, apparently could not find child care because her daughter had Down's syndrome, and she was starting a new job that day and didn't want to lose it. The child's father is in prison in New Jersey. It would be pointless to speculate further about the personal situations of all four of these parents, except to say that whatever the circumstances, the child is innocent, and the child inevitably suffers the most when parents are irresponsible. In more and more cases, however, parental irresponsibility results in death and destruction. An 18-year-old in Pennsylvania reportedly wrecked his SUV one night in April of last year, driving 83 miles per hour with a blood alcohol level at twice the legal limit for an adult. The crash killed him and two 18-year-old passengers. The incident is relevant now because a 43-year-old woman was convicted last week of involuntary manslaughter, since the three victims, all underage, were allowed to drink alcohol in her home. According to trial reports, the woman let her daughters invite some friends over to discuss the impending prom. That led to widespread drinking throughout the house, and the defendant and her live-in boyfriend were apparently too busy doing their own drinking and watching TV to watch what the kids in their own house were doing. She claimed she didn't know, but some two dozen teens (all of whose parents need a good, hard slap to wake them up) testified that everyone knew they didn't have to hide the beer while she was around. While we await the results of an almost-certain appeal of her guilty verdict, there is a case from Milwaukee that is only a few days old. The youth mob that beat a man to death in that city is taking shape, as most of the 12 youngsters accused of the crime have confessed. The beating reportedly took place after a 10-year-old was encouraged by friends to throw an egg at the victim, who was just walking by minding his own business. The man then punched a 14-year-old accomplice, according to reports, and someone else hit the man before the group began chasing him. According to the police report, the 10-year-old claimed to have hit the victim four times with a two-foot tree limb, twice in the back and twice on the legs. Other children struck the man with the metal end of a shovel and stomped on his head. All of this happened after 11 p.m. on a Sunday night. That says it all as far as parental involvement in the lives of these thugs is concerned. Children don't turn into teen drunks and vicious killers overnight. It takes a lot of time and effort. If the people who are supposed to care for them don't give them the time of day, then someone else will. And if they are ignored in the earliest stages of life, well, you don't have to worry about what happens to them as teenagers, because they'll never get that far. If these stories are depressing, just turn off the news and go do something fun with your kids. Stay involved in their lives; remember, neglect comes in many forms. When they're grown, healthy and making you proud, you'll be glad you did. [Monroe Roark's Web address is www.mroark.com.]
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