My 13 year old son wants to visit his prison penpal?

Question

I have a wonderful 13 year old son named Steven, who is just the joy of my life. For the past few months, he's been a penpal with an older 49 year-old gentleman named Walter who's currently encarcerated in the Alabama State Prison. I think my son got Walter's address off of one of those prison penpal websites.

He and Walter have become fast and dear friends, they write to each other all the time. In fact, the other day Steven told me that Walter wants him to visit him at the prison. I think this would be a great opportunity to meet his friend.

The only problem is that I can't drive Steven 60 miles to the prison. I have a demanding career at the Piggly-Wiggly and can't take the time off (I'm a single-mom). Steven told me that he could take the bus, but I'm just afraid that he's too young to ride all that time by himself on a bus.

I'm afraid he'll get lost. Do y'all think that a 13 year old is old enough to ride the bus alone for 2+ hours

Answer 1

Um, and WHY do you think that your son needs to be communicating with a convict? Is this the kind of person that you want your son to be influenced by? Think about this, what in the world would a 49 yr old man, in prison no less, want with a 13 year old boy? Do I even need to state the ovbious? I dont think you should let your son continue speaking with this man, let alone going to visit him.

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

I would be more concerned with why the 49 year old inmate wants to see a 13 year old boy. Do you know what the man is incarcerated for? I hope he's not a pedophile.

Riding the bus is not the problem. The problem will be how will he get from the bus stop to the prison and will the prison even let him visit the inmate. I would hope that the answer is no.

Your son is too young to be doing this at all, never mind doing it alone.

Answer 4

Mom! Pay attention! If your 13 year old is old enough in your mind to write to a 49 year old felon and most likely give away where he lives, etc. why would you be concerned with a 2 hour bus ride? Gee whiz, wake up! Do you have any idea of how easy it is for this 49 year old to pass all the info your son has given him to someone else that may not be as nice as this guy? This kind of info is worth money on the inside. I communicate with many prisoners on a regular basis, but I use an address in a town 2 hours away from where I live. I never give more than my first name and never say what I do for a living. Still, it wouldn't be hard for someone with enough time on their hands to track me down if they wanted to. But at my age I'm not exactly the kind of mark they would want to look for anyway and I'm willing to take the risk.

Answer 5

Um...News Flash...A prison will not let a 13 year old boy into a jail without adult parental supervision. For good reason. If your only concern is the bus ride, you should be a little more concerned about the fact your son is communicating wtih an inmate who is in jail for a reason, and it could be child assault, or even murder. I cant believe you would let your son be exposed to a prison unsupervised at the age of 13 so he can meet a 49 year old male who could have lied about every detail of his life to your son, including reasons he was jailed Wow......

Answer 6

I don't think a 13 year old is old enough to ride on a bus alone for 2+ hours, nor do I think it would be safe for him to visit some random 49 year old man in a prison. Prison Penpal? Sounds like a good way to expose pedophiles to children. You don't know this man he's going to visit. In this day and age, it's not safe to just let your children go off like that and meet strangers.

Answer 7

I cannot believe you are asking if a 13 year old is old enough to ride the bus alone!!!!!
You should not even be thinking about having your child visit a convict!!!!!!!!!
The best thing for you to do is to stop these letters. You never know what kind of person this man is, the fact that he is in prison is your first WARNING! You are putting your self and especially your child at a huge risk. I do not know any mother that would allow that to happen or even debate on seeing this man.
During these times people are afraid of strangers on an elevator and you want your child to correspond with a felon.
If your response to this is that he doesn't have many friends or he is lonely (or you are lonely) that is a bunch of BS (excuse my language) !!!
STOP this now, I don't want to turn on the TV in a month and hear that something happened to a 13 year old boy because he was writing letters to a convicted felon.
If you really want your child to talk to someone, talk to a teacher so your son can have a pen pal that is a peer, or to a soldier in Iraq or someone that is worth it.
Of course this man wants to talk to your boy, he has nothing else to do. Why doesn't he have his own family to write to or visit him? Maybe they don't want to because of what he did.
stop stop stop stop NOW !!!!!!!!!
Protect your children!!!!!!

Answer 8

Well, uh....hmmmm.....
Far be it for me to judge, but why are you encouraging a relationship between your 13 yr old son and a 49 yr old convicted prisoner...to the point of actually ENTERTAINING the idea of putting him on a bus ALONE and sending him off on a 60 mile/2+hour trip to MEET this man for the FIRST TIME ---WITHOUT your supervision?

You CAN'T be THAT desperate for him to have a male role model in his life to the extent that this is ACCEPTABLE to you?
Better start putting a little more concern on other things more than the PIGGLY-WIGGLY

Answer 9

Hello!! Are you freaking serious?? No parent in their right mind would ever send their 13yr old CHILD on a bus alone for 2+ hours to meet a 50yr old man who is in prison!!! What is wrong with you? Why is your son even writing inmates? Does he not have any friends his own age? You seriously need some help. Where is the boy's father? I think he would be better off living with someone who is responsible enough to protect them and raise them right. You my dear, are failing parenting 101.

Answer 10

actually I think it a little peculiar that he have a 49 yr old pen pal in prison. Are you reading the letters? This does not sound right at all. DO NOT let him go there alone. He is way too young. Please, I think it important that inmates have friends but not 13 year old little boys. This sounds very wrong to me.