should i do something or stay out of it...?

Question

ok a couple friends of mine (who are together) have a son about 9 months old, the father is one of those people who will do what he wants when he wants and the mother lets him, which is fine she is his girlfriend not his mother, anyway he owns (for whatever reason) three guns. i have been over there quite a few times and these guns are NEVER put away, they just let them lay on the floor, i have personally witnessed the baby go after one and they just laugh!!!!! i really think DHS needs to be involved but with them being my friends it is wrong of me to want to call them?? what would you do if you knew that a child was living in a home with guns that are always just on the floor?? any suggestions would be great!!!

Answer 1

Well first of all they are endangering their child's life. I would feel that besides having a legal obligation, I would at the very least say you have a moral obligation to protect that child. I seriously doubt talking to them would do much good, but I guess it would be worth a try. In my opinion this would warrant more serious action on your part, since this child could be seriously injured or killed. Allowing a 9 month old to be around guns and laughing when he goes after one is incredibly reckless and irresponsible.
How good of friends are these people? I personally would call Child protection Services and most likely police would be involved for unsafe storage. You have to weigh what is more important....your friendship or this childs life.

Answer 2

First, have you mentioned to them the danger here? That is the first step. Likely, they will laugh at you, but you should definitely take that route before calling a government agency on them. The child's safety is also the mother's, so she needs to be taking steps to make sure these weapons are safely out of reach of the child, too. If the father won't do it, she should, and she hasn't, which is disturbing. I would talk to your friend earnestly about the seriousness of the situation. Let her know that you will get the authorities involved, if necessary. In the future, she will need to get these guns locked up and make sure they are never loaded in the house.

While it's difficult to transition to being a parent, there comes a time when you have to take responsibility and be an adult. If your friends cannot do that, this child needs to be placed in a home where someone IS capable of properly caring for him. The problem with DFS is that the foster care system is not a great place for a child. The foster parents can be just as bad or worse. So start with a stern talking to with your friend.

Answer 3

Do something now, call the police and make them aware of the situation. When my father was a cop, he put his revolver on the dresser, way up high. We were all little kids and wouldn't you know it, my 3 year old brother crawled up there, got the gun and proceeded to play with it, my two year old sister and 1 year old brother. They were going to shoot a can of pepper off of a bottle and he ended up shooting himself in the thumb and my sister in the knee. My father could never live with the fact that he was irresponsible. He felt so bad that he was not more careful. Thankfully, my sister still has the use of her leg but carries around a very large scar. This is dangerous. As you can tell, babies are curious and something may well happen to them. We have so many programs and ads out there to be careful of the firearms we own unlike in the 70's when my sister was shot. This is the exact type of person who should not own a gun, because his baby could easily be hurt. I don't know what he is thinking. Maybe he just doesn't understand the danger they may impose upon their child. Turn them in.

Answer 4

That is horrible. Have you ever said anything to them about it? I can't believe that they would put their child in this kind of danger. I had a friend who when he was a toddler got into his mom's purse and got a hold of her loaded gun and shot himself in the waist. Before this happened he was a perfectly healthy little boy now his legs are crippled. Can you imagine having to watch your child deal with something like that knowing that if you had only practiced basic safety he would be fine. You need to talk to them and if they won't listen then you need to call someone. If you don't and something happens to the baby then you will feel the guilt for the rest of your life. I know it's hard to make a call like this about your friends but someone has to watch out for their baby and obviously it isn't going to be them. Good luck with this and God bless!!

Answer 5

I'd call DHS. Unless you want to see the kid's brains splattered on the wall someday. They are both very irresponsible, even if the guns are unloaded. Guns are NOT toys and a baby shouldn't even know they exist! You may lose a friend, but you'll save the baby's life.

Answer 6

OMG YOU NEED TO CALL DCFS IMMEDITALY AND EVEN THE POLICE! those guns could be stolen or illegal. Make a annoymos 911 call to the police saying that theres 3 possiably loaded guns in a house with a baby that are not properly being put away. make sure you mention to the police they do have guns and if your positive they always leave them loaded or unloaded tell them that too.

Answer 7

If you are so concerned, then you should say something to the parents.

As crazy as this may sound, it seems to me as though you are insinuating that these parents are putting loaded guns in their child's hands on purpose, just waiting for him to shoot himself or someone else!

I am most assured that this is not the case, while I do believe it is wise to respect all fire arms, and to teach your children the same respect, I do not believe that these parents are endangering the baby with loaded guns. Really... do you?

A gun is no more dangerous than a hammer, or a blow dryer, or a stove, or a curling iron.

It is when the hammer is swung, or when the gun is loaded, or the blow dryer is plugged in near a water source, or the stove is turned on, or the curling iron is hot, when the problem of safety comes into effect.

Be reasonable, check to see if the gun is loaded, and if it is then ask your question again, for a more reasonable response.

Answer 8

I would probably call. That is an amazingly dangerous situation and I highly doubt that those "parents" (not that they seem to deserve the title) would still be laughing if that baby hurt himself or someone else with those guns.

Answer 9

If these, really are you friends then you need to talk to them. Try first to discuss your feelings before taking this step. If talking doesn't work maybe when their child gets taken away from them they will!!

The childs safety is most important but if you can't talk to them and share your concerns, are you really their friend???

Answer 10

Anonymously get your local authorities involved. What they are doing is considered child endangerment and risk of injury to a minor. Do it NOW before something tragic occurs.