Baby Dies From Being Left In Hot MiniVan - Father Wants Warning Systems

[matcom]

<snip>

An Anaheim man whose infant daughter died earlier this month after he left her in a hot minivan said Friday that vehicles should have warning systems to remind parents that a child is inside. Flanked by his wife, Jennie, and attorney R. Dennis Rentzer, John Michael Dunton spoke for a few minutes at his attorney's Encino office, a day after the Orange County district attorney announced he would not pursue charges against the 42-year-old.

"Whatever happened was an accident," Dunton said. "If the case had gone forward, I know I would have been vindicated by a jury." Red-eyed but composed, Dunton, a paralegal for a law firm, said he would like to see a formal effort by industry officials to have alarm systems installed in vehicles. "I hope that the auto industry or the car seat manufacturers will have some kind of alarm or bell so won't forget their kid in a car," he said. Such technology is already being explored by carmakers.

Five-month-old Jasmine died Sept. 9 of heatstroke after Dunton left her in his vehicle when he arrived at work in Santa Ana. Four hours after parking the van, he came outside and suddenly realized he had not dropped her off at the baby-sitter's.

Rentzer said Friday that Dunton may never be able to answer why he forgot about her.

http://www.latimes.com/news/custom/showcase/la-me-hotcar25sep25.story

[Maddy McCall]

1. What about the alarm that one already owns? That inner voice that says...

"Gee, little Tommy is in the back seat."

What a doofus--does he also need an alarm that tells him to feed his child, or to change the diaper?

Note to self: never hire a law firm with a paralegal so stupid that he forgets that his child is in the car.

[trotsky]

2. Let the attacks on this father begin...

These news incidents always bring them out.

[Misinformed01]

3. I feel extremely sorry for the father

and even sorrier for a society that needs an electronic alarm system to remind us that we have children.

Stephanie

[DS1]

14. no, society doesn't need alarms for this, dumbshits do

No mercy for this idiot scumfuck ESPECIALLY now since he's suing.

[matcom]

4. um.... why shouldn't there be attacks?

the dumbass FORGOT HIS BABY???

[Wat_Tyler]

5. I wouldn't call it an attack, but why instantly call for warning alarms

why not take responsibility for your own negligence? Why not be responsible?

[Maddy McCall]

8. Attacks on fathers? Give me a break.

What about "attacks on stupid parents?" Stupidity is NOT the fodder for gender wars, not in this case.

[NashVegas]

30. Not Here, BUT

The first time I'd ever heard of this (in the last decade or so) the poor schmuck was someone who'd been getting way shorted on sleep and was having some other problems.

I have nothing but sympathy for these people whose own non-malicious neglect causes one of the greatest losses they will ever suffer.

I just don't believe they should be allowed / encouraged to drive legislation as means of penance for their own sense of guilt.

[mrbassman03]

72. I left my baby in the pool!

I thought he was in the crib! Jeez, I feel bad at the death of any child, but maybe this father should not bring so much attention to himself.

[TexasBushwhacker]

74. There have been mother that did equally stupid things

They just didn't expect baby seat manufacturers to be held responsible.

At least this was truly an "accident". There have been parents that purposely left their children locked up inside hot cars to go grocery shopping, go "partying", there was even a case where a father in Arkansas left his children in a hot car while he and his buddy went and hunted for mushrooms.

http://www.amarillonet.com/stories/042898/new_die.shtml

[Lydia Leftcoast]

6. He was drunk or high or had something "important" to do?

How could someone "forget" that they had a baby in the car?

I once saw an unforgettable demonstration on Japanese TV about why you shouldn't leave a child or pet in a car in the summer. The station assigned one of their reporters to sit in an unshaded car in a parking lot. In a few minutes, he was sweating so profusely that he literally could wring the sweat out of a handkerchief. Within fifteen minutes, he announced that he was about to pass out, threw the door open, and fell onto the asphalt surface.

[calico1]

7. Anyone who needs a warning system to

remind them they have a baby in the car should not be having children. Once again another innocent child dies and the parents get off the hook.

[underpants]

9. WARNING! You are an IDIOT!

Please stop breeding.

[demnan]

10. Beat me to it!

n/t

[Ready4Change]

11. Warning system should be t-shirts for his kids:

The t-shirts should be "Warning: My Father is a Moron."

I don't feel sorry for this dad. I feel sorry for his remaining kids.

[DS1]

12. Here's a warning sign for this guy

[calico1]

16. I wouldn't be surprised if he tried to sue

the maker of the van for the death of this child. I'm sorry but forgetting you have a baby in the car is not an accident.

[politicat]

40. Really?? What is it? There are so many factors to this....

My mother left me in the car when I was 3 months old. Fortunately, it was April in Indiana during a rainy spring. She also locked the keys in the car with me.

She was sleep-deprived, thanks to going to school, working part time and trying to be a parent. She was month short of her 20th birthday. That was almost 30 years ago.

I got lucky. Nothing happened except the friends she'd had in highschool who were now on the rescue squad who came and opened the car for her gave her a ribbing. She realized what COULD have happened and was ever vigilant after that.

There's no blame to give here, or there's so much that it's impossible to point a finger. There's the company that he worked for: they may have a draconian "late" policy when the fact is that 15 minutes one way or the other isn't going to kill anyone. Except that this time, it did. There's the State of California, who can't or won't build an effective and comprehensive public transit system so that people can get off the freeways where they end up stressed and anxious before they even set foot in the office. There's the "air conditioning" culture... if he'd had to roll up the windows, he might not have forgotten the baby. There's the fact that yes, we put babies in the back seat. In most cases, it's safer for them.

We can't punish him any more than his own system can... if he's lashing out in anger and looking to sue someone else, it's a normal part of grieving. But he has to live with himself for the rest of his life. We can't do worse.

Pcat

[radwriter0555]

13. Poor guy... It's easy to attempt to be a crusader when you've caused a

terrible accident.

He feels guilty and somehow wants to make amends.

Some friends of mine went visiting, and en route their 9 month old fell asleep. So, still asleep they laid him in a bed in a dark room, surrounded by pillows, and unknowingly, a dry-cleaning bag.

He was in a coma for 6 weeks before they had to decide to pull the plug. That was 10 years ago. It was an accident. And sometimes, accidents happen.

It took 9 years for them to work up the courage to have their 2nd child, who is doing fine and never out of their sight for a single second.

[trotsky]

18. Exactly, radwriter0555.

Accidents happen.

It's not necessarily due to stupidity, which is why I hate when people launch all these attacks on a parent in one of these sad stories.

I consider myself a responsible parent. I don't think I am too forgetful. And granted, I have never forgotten my child in the car.

BUT there have been a few mornings, generally after one of those up-every-2-hours-for-a-feeding nights, where I was almost in a trancelike state going through the morning routine and it wasn't until I had been at work for an hour or two when I suddenly got startled by my brain wondering, "DID I TAKE THE BABY TO DAYCARE?!?"

Once I actually ran out to my vehicle because I honestly could not remember if I had. I was scared shitless.

Thankfully I've never made such a tragic mistake. But I'm not going to attack a parent who has, because I understand the duress one can be under, and because they've already suffered the worst punishment anyone could dispense.

[CornField]

15. As someone who has lost a child, I'd like to point out

that each and every parent in such a situation goes through all the events leading up to the death and searches relentlessly for a "reason" and a "cause."

There is also a time during the grief process where people, if tested, could be considered mentally incompetent (crazy). That's one of the reasons that Bush*'s exective order for mental health screenings bothers me so much -- it doesn't take into account the current circumstance of the individual... but that belongs in another thread.

What it seems to me is that this father hit that time in his grief and didn't have adquate legal counsel willing to limit his public exposure. The father has been playing the "what if" games and no one is challenging him on his assertions. When the realization comes (and it will come) that he and he alone is responsible for the death of his child, it will hit him like a brick. I hope he has a large support system because he's going to need it.

[Wat_Tyler]

17. It is tragic.

What he is doing sounds very much like the denial stage of grief. The rest will be unimaginably painful. I felt bad enough when I dropped my daughter a couple of months back, I can't begin to imagine anything worse.

[politicat]

56. Very, very necessary point. Thank you.

EOM

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

19. This fuck is a CRIMINAl. He should be locked under the jail with heaters

blasting him fro the rest of his life

[bleedingheart]

20. I have known of many people who have done this without having a child die

but they were "lucky" because they remembered that their kid was in the car and were able to correct the problem.

I have never done this but then again my kids were screamers...they screamed constantly...there was no way I wouldn't know they were in the car....however I can see how it could happen...

1. baby sleeping quietly..
2. parent listening to radio, drinking coffee, preoccupied with work stuff...

[calico1]

22. Its scary to me that a baby could be

forgotten that easily! Very scary. Because you are having coffee or listening to the radio you can forget your child?

The problem I have with the tendency of many people to excuse this as an "oops" on the part of the parent is these babies who die like this have no voice, they can't defend themselves. You can bet if this had been an adult who for whatever reason (some disability) could not get out of the car these charges would not have been dropped so easily. But since its a baby the mentality tends to be it was just a little accident and maybe he'll do better next with the next baby. And because babies sleep, etc. and we lead such busy lives, maybe we need warning systems so we don't forget our babies!

Sorry but I just don't buy any of this.

[bleedingheart]

34. I don't excuse the behavior

it is wrong altogether but you have to wonder about a society in which people are so hurried that they forget their child...

I don't know how long he had been taking his baby to daycare but I know that every day we would set out for the daycare center first. There was no alternative.

However people do make horrifying mistakes and unfortunately there are really good people who do really dumb things with babies.

[Krupskaya]

50. "It's so easy to forget the kid is back there!"

Yeah, these people never forget to go to work, though, do they?

[BootinUp]

21. Ridiculous

He needs to straighten out his life, not increase the price of vehicles.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

23. How the fuck do you forget your child in the backseat, you dumb shit?!

Good god...that father, if you can call him that, is an idiot and needs to be deleted. It angers me so that every one blames their own stupidity on EVERYONE ELSE. You stupid fucker, YOU forgot YOUR baby in YOUR backseat. Wasn't your little baby laughing or babbling in the back seat, and if not, why was your kid unhappy? God, I hate people like this dumb shit. :grr:
Duckie

[gollygee]

25. Babies fall asleep in cars

well a lot do. Mine falls asleep in the car if she isn't even tired.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

26. Do you ever forget she's back there like this dumb shit?

Don't you look back ever little bit to make sure she's ok, sleeping like a little angel?
Duckie

[gollygee]

29. Yeah but it's part of my normal routine

Once my husband had to drop her off somewhere on the way to work and I called him on his cell-phone on his way to work to make sure he'd remembered. He had. But I certainly can see if it isn't part of someone's normal routine how they could forget. The fact that a baby is extememly important doesn't make it less likely that he/she would be forgotten - forgetting isn't a choice, it's an accident.

[amazona]

24. is he a white guy?

I hate to make the death of a child about race/gender but black women are in jail all over the south for doing exactly what he did. So I feel a bit cynical. Why is it only a tragedy if the dad does it but a crime if mom does it?

I'm feeling suddenly very, very cynical.

If your eyesight is good enough to permit you to drive, you already have an alarm system that you've left something in your car -- your damn eyesight. Take two seconds to glance around the car. Don't make it where MY car and every other car is going to be going off with another expensive, noisy alarm every time I leave a load of laundry in the backseat while I make another stop. Sheesh.

[July]

35. I don't really get how you miss the kid when you get out of the car.

Even though you can now lock your car without facing it (with a remote opener/lock), it's hard to be faced away from the car from the second you open the door. He didn't have a briefcase or jacket to pull out of the car? He didn't have to face the car or at least turn a little toward it to close the door? He didn't look at the inside of his car for (as you suggest) TWO SECONDS, even? And although the baby is small, the carseat isn't. I really don't get it.

And if black women in the south are being jailed for the same thing, I'm cynical with you.

[Uzybone]

67. Yes they are

black and brown women are in jail here in texas for this same CRIME. That asshole is a criminal.

[Pithlet]

42. Some daycare workers here in Memphis

are up for 1st degree murder charges for leaving a little girl in a van. I'm not against the fact that they're being charged, but I think 1st degree is excessive because that is usually reserved for people who actually have intent. And, yes, all three are black.

As far as the original topic; I don't know. I used to be one of those who would rave "String 'em up!" when this happened, until I actually saw one of these parents interviewed. It broke my heart. It's so easy to say I would never be capable of being so stupid. But, I'm a stay at home mom, so should I judge a working parent who's trying to juggle both? I don't think there is a single parent out there who has never make a mistake, even if not always quite on this level, and were just very lucky that nothing permanent resulted. I've never left my children in the car, even for a second, and I can't even imagine making such a mistake. But, this guy will pay for this for the rest of his life. There is nothing that you or I, or anyone, could say or do that would make it any worse for him.

[ulysses]

68. on some level, I know that you're right,

but given what we've been through with the adoption stuff (and the things you and Kevin went through) it's hard to read about this and not come to the conclusion that, for some people, it's simply too easy to have kids.

[Pithlet]

70. I know

It's hard to read about, and there's still that part of me that agrees with most everyone else in this thread.

[gollygee]

27. I think it's just a terrible, tragic accident

I'm a stay-at-home mom so my regular routine includes having my daughter with me. On one of the few occasions where she isn't with me, if I glance into the back seat and *don't* see her, I panic for a second until I remember why she isn't there. I can understand how it could happen, especially if taking the baby to daycare wasn't part of his normal routine. People don't choose what to forget and what not to forget. It isn't like the fact that something is very important means that the person can just choose not to forget that particular thing.

[gpandas]

32. freud says

there are no accidents.

[gollygee]

33. I disagree with that

Most people must have done something in their lives that was entirely by accident.

But then I think Freud was a bit of a nut.

[yellowcanine]

37. He also said "sometimes a cigar is just a cigar". Besides, even if he did

say it, it doesn't make it so.

[yellowcanine]

38. I actually think it is a good idea. And to ask "how could he forget" kind

of misses the point and doesn't help prevent it from happening again. The fact is he forgot. Anyone who says otherwise forgets what it is like (or never had to do it) to juggle two careers and getting a baby to daycare. If a routine is broken it is not that hard to imagine someone forgetting a sleeping baby in the back of a car.

[Cheswick2.0]

69. Freud say I have penis envy

Freud was a nut.

[bratcatinok]

28. I'm torn on this one

A lot of the reason I'm torn is because the story doesn't give me one key piece of information.

Human's get used to a set schedule. I was a single mom who worked and I knew I had to drop my son off everyday and pick him up every day. I knew he had to go to the grocery store with me and I knew he had to go in to the store (especially since we lived in Houston). I knew all of this because I had a schedule and it was habit to take care of my son. No one else was there to do it for me on occasion. My routine was centered around being a Mom.

My question is was the father the one who normally took the baby to the nursery? I might (with a strong emphasis on might) understand if it wasn't his schedule or habit to take the baby. I might be able to understand forgetting your child is with you if it's not part of your routine. Even as I type this I still don't know if I could ever have forgotten my child was in the car with me.

My son wasn't a screamer when he was in the car. The motion of the car would put him to sleep. There were many nights when I'd drive him around in the car to get him to sleep because it was the only way I was ever going to get any sleep myself.

[gollygee]

31. This is what I wonder too

if he was out of his routine, I can see how it could happen.

[Kadie]

36. I think that this is a much deeper problem than is usually talked about

Is it that we as a society are so busy and stressed that we forget that our children are in a vehicle, not just for a moment, but for hours?

I understand that accidents happen. But, I know where my child is every minute of the day. I do not know the stress level or what this man was going through at the time. Maybe we do need a warning system of some kind. We need to find out why parents "forget" their child is in the car for hours at a time.

I can not imagine the pain this family is going though.

[Lerkfish]

39. As a father, there is NO WAY I would have forgotten my child...

under ANY circumstances.....I see no reason to be lenient. Its neglect, pure and simple, involuntary manslaughter.

to then act like a victim and claim the car should have an alarm is the height of inability to take responsibility. I'm sorry the child died, I'm even sorrier that jerk was its father.

But even putting all that aside, how the heck could the auto industry make such an alarm? I mean, logistically, how could the car know a child is left in it. If it were after a certain LONG period of time (some unexplained way) be able to tell a child was left behind, and the alarm went off, the guy was in the office, so wouldn't have heard it.

sheesh.

[skygazer]

41. Once again

we have an idiot who refuses to take responsibility for his own actions. Everything is always somebody else's fault.

I would have a lot more sympathy if he could just suck it up and say, "I screwed up and a terrible tragedy resulted." Instead, he's passing the buck and abdicating responsibility.

[Pithlet]

45. He may not want any more children to die

Most people think "I could never do this", which is why it sometimes happens. I bet every single person who has ever made this mistake, whether or not their child died, said to themselves "That could never be me". A lot of people would probably never install a safety device after the fact because it would never occur to them that they could screw up. I think if such a thing were placed on all cars, and it saved even one child, it is worth it.

I've heard of parents who place a teddy bear in the passenger seat to remind them that their child is in the car. I think this is a great idea, particularly if a parent is going outside of their routine and taking the child when the other parent normally does.

[Phillycat]

43. I agree he was irresponsible but I am surprised

at how mean people are being on this thread. Yes, it was a stupid mistake, but this man lost his child! The worst loss any human being can experience. That poor child and that poor father, my heart aches for them both.

Think of the stupidest thing you've ever done in your life. Imagine that it cost you the life of your child. Then tell me you might not do something dumb like try to sue like this guy is doing.

I don't know, I just think some sympathy is in order. :shrug:

[matcom]

44. when my sympathy bone hits i tend to think of the baby

who basically BAKED to death in the back seat because this asswipe was too involved in everthing BUT being a father to remember his own baby.

sorry. i hope to hell he never procreates again. it is inexcusable.

[Phillycat]

47. I know, it is horrible about the baby.

But maybe Dad was just having the worst day you can have. You know, a million things go wrong. I've had days like that and I don't have kids yet, but when I do, I hope to God I don't have one of those days and forget my child.

I do understand where you're coming from, I guess I'm just a softy.

[tjdee]

51. Wait until you have kids.

This guy didn't forget for a few minutes. He forgot for four HOURS.
This was his own child, not someone else's. I think about my kid numerous times throughout the day, wonder how she is, if things are going okay for her... It was a mistake, sure. But he shouldn't have any more kids if that's how he relates to them.

Absolutely inexcusable. I can't believe his wife is standing there next to him trying to blame the friggin car manufacturer for not forseeing the problem of moron parents.

[Phillycat]

54. Maybe you're right.

maybe I will understand once I have children of my own, but just because he was wholly stupid still does not prevent him from having feelings, and I imagine living with himself for the rest of his life is worse than any names we can call him.

Just my opinion, of course.

[tjdee]

57. I am sure he is remorseful.

I don't even necessarily think he should be in jail.
But--IMO it goes beyond simple forgetfulness and speaks to a deeper disturbance there. What kind of life does this guy have if he forgets he has his little baby in the car for hours?

You're just a good hearted person, and that's cool.

[Phillycat]

58. It's true.

I think our society has gotten so over-fast and over-stressed and people have to work so much just to make ends meet--that it could contribute to something unthinkable like this happening.

Thanks for the nice words. :hug:

[TX-RAT]

46. but this man lost his child! ?

No, this man through his own carelessness, is totally responsible for the death of his child.
I live in west TX, the heat here can kill a child in a matter of minutes, if left unattended in a vehicle.
No sympathy for the father, here.

[Phillycat]

49. I guess I am just saying

that maybe this was completely out of character for this man. Maybe every other day, he was a model father and this one day, he just got overwhelmed and his child died as a result. We just don't know.

[Jeff in Cincinnati]

48. Clever Lawyer...

In almost any jursidiction I can think or, the father would be facing a child endangerment charge. Trying to make it sound like an innocent mistake -- or possibly the fault of the auto manufacturer -- is an attempt to poison the jury pool in advance.

...and it just might work.

[MikeG]

52. This is the kind of shit that gives lawyers a bad name.

[imax2268]

53. this kind of thing happens in Phoenix quite a bit...

and the excuse is..."I forgot the child was in the car"...

Excuse me dumbshit...but I don't need an alarm to let me know that my kid is in the vehicle...I put the child there dipshit...use your brain idiot...it's a child...not a sweater or a coat just thrown in the back...idiot...

some people should not be allowed to have children...

[nini]

55. reminds me of the kids suffocating in refrigerators back in the old days

People would put old refrigerators out in the yard/garages etc.. and kids would get in them, shut the door and suffocate because of the handle - they weren't the magnetic type doors now and didn't have a release inside. The door design was changed and this solved the problem for the most part.

As with the car death the parents are ultimately responsible for making sure their children are safe. The refrigerators should have been stored with the door to the wall or the door removed, etc. The kids should be monitored at ALL times etc.. I know it's not easy to do but it's your job as a parent and it's a tough job.

I'm sure he did not mean for this to happen and he's going to suffer the regret for the rest of his life. I have heard him say many things and his lack of accepting blame at this point bugs me but I can understand his state of mind is a bit less than rational right now. God help him when it really sinks in. My only hope is others learn from this and maybe the detection thing will help if implemented.

[Mr.Green93]

59. The auto companies know this is a problem

shouldn't they fix it?

[Missy Vixen]

61. Why?

>shouldn't they fix it?<

Am I the only one reading this thread that also reads about a rash of these "accidents" every summertime?

Here's another question: How safe is a driver operating a motor vehicle that is so forgetful/tired/chemically impaired that he or she has the capacity to leave another defenseless human in what is essentially an oven on a hot day with the windows rolled up? Why do we need yet another "safety net" for what I (and most jurisdictions,) would consider an impaired driver?

Just asking.

Julie

[Phillycat]

62. Well I think my answer would be

to try to save the children. Believe me, I see your point, but if such a device saves the child's life, then at least the child is alive. Someone else said above, if it saves even one defenseless child's life, isn't it worth it?

[Missy Vixen]

64. That wasn't my point

>Someone else said above, if it saves even one defenseless child's life, isn't it worth it?<

Why is someone impaired to the point of forgetting a child in the backseat operating a motor vehicle in the first place? Would you not agree that they are not just a danger to the child in that car, but to every other motorist on the road?

I'm sorry, but I don't believe that all of these incidents are accidents. I also believe that any device could be disconnected. Will the parents in question then sue the auto manufacturer for defective devices?

Julie

[Phillycat]

65. There are examples on this thread

of parents who have just had a horrible day and did something like this, or did this exactly, and luckily nothing terrible happened. I don't believe that you would have to be "impaired" to make an unthinkable mistake like this, I think you would just have to be having one of the worst days of your life and be horribly unlucky. As I said above, think of the worst mistake you ever made. Then imagine it cost you the life of your child. Where is the sympathy for this poor man, who will certainly punish himself for the rest of his life worse than any names we can ever call him?

Of course devices could be disconnected, just like seat belts. And yet car manufacturers still put seat belts into cars.

[blondeatlast]

77. THINK WHAT THE KID WENT THROUGH. nt

[Phillycat]

90. I am.

And so is he. :(

[ChoralScholar]

86. Uhh...

>>Am I the only one reading this thread that also reads about a rash of these "accidents" every summertime?

Maybe it's because people tend not to die of heatstroke in cars during the winter?

[Missy Vixen]

87. Obviously not

>Maybe it's because people tend not to die of heatstroke in cars during the winter?<

How many of these stories do we have to read each summertime before parents make checking the back seat or carseat part of their "getting out of the car" ritual upon arriving at their destination?

Julie

[Xithras]

63. How exactly do you fix it?

Serious question. Are you going to beep at everybody? If so, people will tune it out or disconnect the beeper the same way we did seatbelt warning buzzers in the early '80's before weight and buckle sensors were added to shut them up for people who used them properly. Are you going to beep only when there are carseats in the car? How are you going to detect the presence of car seats without requiring people to plug the car seat in (which nobody would ever do, because nobody thinks they would ever leave a baby in the car). Put an RFID transmitter on the car seats so the car will beep whenever the carseat is present? In addition to the absolute riot the privacy activists would throw, you'd have the problem that many people (like me) leave their carseats in the car all the time...even without the baby present...and would either tune the beeping out after a while or discard the RFID transmitter to shut the damned thing off (my youngest is in my car MAYBE once every other week, and yet his carseat is always in the back).

To really fix this, you'd need a foolproof way to determine whether there was actually a baby in the carseat, and you would need to do it in a way that wouldn't increase the price or durability of the carseat. As far as I'm aware, no such technology exists.

[democracy eh]

60. time to hit the talk shows...

Ricki, Maury, and friends

15 minutes of fame here he comes

an innocent victim of the auto industry

:crazy:

[Uzybone]

66. why the hell isnt he being persecuted

Sure it was an accident...so are most drunk driving fatalities.

[SoCalDem]

71. WARNING: STUPID PEOPLE SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED TO HAVE KIDS

:cry: for the poor little baby:cry:

[carpetbagger]

73. Here's your warning device buddy....

Make sure it's in your car at all times.

[BlueJazz]

75. I DO feel for the Father.

I don't believe in my heart that the Man decided to leave his child in a van to be tortured and die by the amount of heat in the vehicle.

I do fault a system that can stress a parent out so much that they/he/she can totally "Blank Out" and allow something like this to happen.

I'd like to also add that by some of the cold-hearted responses here, I feel disappointed in a few of my fellow/sister DU'ers.

[Phillycat]

91. I agree.

I don't understand how people here can't see that, as badly as we're feeling for that poor child and as angry as we are at the father, he is twice as anguished and twice as angry with himself.

I sure hope that the stupidest mistake these people ever make doesn't result in the death of their loved one.

[blondeatlast]

76. Poor, poor parent--THINK ABOUT WHAT THE CHILD ENDURED

before dying. This happens 2-3 times a year, or more, here in Phoenix.

I'm not exaggerating, either.

It happens even more to pets.

I'm sorry, but there is NO excuse for it. While you are are pitying the poor, pitiful parents, THINK ABOUT WHAT THE CHILD OR PET WENT THROUGH BEFORE THEIR DEATHS.

It is legal here to break into a car if you see a child or animal in danger, even if a window is partially open (woefully inadequate).

And yes, indeed, I've done it, and the animals had obviously been in terrible heat for a while.

[BlueJazz]

79. What you say is true but......

...leaving a pet or human being in a car on purpose... and forgetting
about a child or pet is 2 different scenarios.

I suppose I find it hard to be angry at someone because their brain failed to function the correct way at a certain point in time.

I've forgotten things that while not as serious, could have led to a disaster if I had not remembered them in time.
I was just lucky.

Also, I'd be surprised to NOT hear of things such as that happening given the fact that millions and millions of babies/children are dropped off at caregivers every day. It's horrible but bound to happen.

[blondeatlast]

84. They are always accidents here, too. ALWAYS, and I have no doubts

about that.

My heart truly bleeds, yes, but my MOTHER'S brain says :wtf:

[blondeatlast]

78. Daddy should not be prosecuted, I agree, Lord knows he's suffered enough.

But he shouldn't be excused, either.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

80. The father was negligent but if they can make TV's for cars and every

other high tech accessory for vehicles, then certainly some censor when one installs a child seat should be easy to make...it doesn't absolve the parent of the responsibility, but it certainly aids the next forgetful parent.

[carpetbagger]

81. I'll take a car with decent mileage, thanks.

I can protect my children from broiling to death in my car. I can't protect them as easily from the draft that will come down the road when we're embroiled in a global war to corner the last cheap oil fields.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

82. I'm sure it can be an optional feature

and I'm not defending nor attacking the father...I simply think this occurs often enough to warrant the best technology to preclude it from happening

[Mrs_Beastman]

83. What's next?

Next people are going to need global positioning systems to find their head is stuck in their ass.


Imagine the call to On Star ..."Onstar, help me! it's very warm and brown in here and I don't know where I am!":eyes:

[carpetbagger]

85. "The nearest commode is 2.3 miles ahead on your right".

LOL.

[Mrs_Beastman]

88. "Don't panic ,sir, you will be alright!"

[Pert_UK]

89. WARNING - You are not responsible enough to be a parent.....

WARNING - WARNING - WARNING - WARNING....

You are NOT responsible enough to be a parent........

Does he want a warning in his house that reminds him that he's left the kid unattended when he goes out? Or at the checkout counter in the supermarket that he's left the kid wandering around the candy section?

For FUCK'S sake......don't try blaming someone else for this.

P.