Should parents be prosecuted?

Question

In my opinion ANY parents who leave children unattended for any length of time should experience the wrath of the legal system. Am I wrong in attempting to safeguard children? I know this will not be a popular question, but when you consider everything it is the clear that some parents have been negligent.

Answer 1

Certainly so.maddys parents are in good jobs and middle class.what would of happened if maddys mum was a single parent from a council estate?I think the british press would of torn her apart.

Answer 2

If only everything was that black and white! In this case what would be the point in prosecuting them? Nothing worse can really befall them for the rest of their lives. They know and wish they had not done it, they are not neglectful people in general, they made a decision that turned into a nightmare. Ok, most of us would not have left our kids alone but what good would it do to prosecute? I feel this is all about pointing the finger, putting the blame on someone and getting retribution which really would make no difference whatsoever as the most important thing is to find Madeleine. They have 2 other children to care for and I am sure they will never be able to enjoy the rest of their lived without missing Madeleine, feeling guilty and horribly sad. So give them a break!

Answer 3

If you were at home in the UK and left your child/children alone for any length of time you would be breaking the law and would be deemed to be negligent. Why should a holiday be an excuse to do it. I totally agree although i think what the Mcanns are going through is far worse than any legal punishment although it amazes me that these things happen time and again at home and abroad and people still take the risks!

Answer 4

I agree with you 100% on this one.

I am so fed up seeing people being told off for criticising the parents (for example, the Maddy case) - yes, they are inconsolable for the consequence of their mistake, and yes, parenting does not come with a rule book - but come on, their mistake is very basic common logic......................

'We want to go out for dinner - do we have dinner early with the children or later by ourselves? If it is the latter, contact the hotel reception, and arrange child minding facilities while we are out. We are not at home and do not know enough of this place to leave them alone in the room'.

They put their needs before the care of their children. You need the most basic common sense not a medical degree.

People make mistakes but you would have to be an absolute idiot to have made this judgement call.

The world is praying for this little girl to be returned - and please let her be. When she does, her parents should face the consequences of neglect - being doctors should not exempt you.

Answer 5

I don't think they need to suffer any more, they are not the ones that should be prosecuted, but the abductor's of Madelaine, i don't believe they are neglecting parents, they are just guilty of over trusting their holiday situation. My question would be why didn't the complex have security guards and CCTV ? I'm not blaming the holiday company either, but there should be some form of security on all these complexes. leave the parents alone they have enough guilt to contend with.

Answer 6

You are not wrong in wanting to protect children, but the circumstances should be taken into account. For example, one woman leaves her kids alone to go drinking and drugging it up. Another woman, a single mom, daddy dearest fails to show up to pick up the kids like he said he would, he isn't giving her any money, she is working to keep a roof over her kids head, will be fired if she calls out.....do you think they should both face the same consequences?

Answer 7

Based on the strict definition (ANY length!?) you provide here, this would pretty much mean ALL parents would eventually be prosecuted. Great idea... if YOU are paying all the taxes for it. You are right to want to safeguard children, but you need to reconsider your approach to it. Yes, it is clear that some parents have been negligent, but your outburst is not very productive or reasonable.

Answer 8

You have no children?

What age group of children are you talking about and, what are the circumstances you are talking about. All I see here is yet another person wanting the government to interfere with the home more and more.

With governments and business interfering with the family, society has fallen apart and continues to do so. With politicians and do gooders so keen to take away parenting rights, they should be the people who go to prison since they took away the parents ability to control and discipline.

Answer 9

Does this include letting a 10 year old off at the park for his little league game, or letting an 8 year old play outside in a fenced in back yard, or leaving a 13 year old at home while you run to the store for milk?
There are no absolutes in life, just shades of gray. I agree anyone under 7 needs supervised at all times. But as I child I walked to school with other kids and I wouldn't have wanted my mother to hold my hand and walk me the 4 blocks to school when I was 11 or 12. I mean, there has to be some time for a kid to play and learn some independence. I had a paper route when I was 12 and I earned my own money. If I had never been allowed out of the house to ride my bike til I was 12, I would have been too scared to do that. You can cripple a child be being too hovering/afraid for him/ emotionally suffocating.
At some point they learn to walk while you hold onto their hands. THen they graduate to walking without you. Not long after, they try to walk away. Growing up is a constant state of increasing independence. When a child is ready for a new responsibility or freedom really depends on the child. I know 8 year olds who are mature enough to play on the sidewalk without running into the road, and I know 8 year olds who absolutely have no sense at all and would chase a ball right into traffic.
Nobody knows a child and their maturity and developmental level better than his or her own parents, since each child has a different temperment, different intelligence, different abilities and maturity, when a child is ready for a little more independence varies widely.
I babysat a 13 year old boy once who was so emotionally immature and such a problem child he still needed watched. And yet I know other 13 year olds who are mature enough to do brief baby sitting themselves (brief as in watching grade schoolers while their mom goes to the store for an hour).

Growing up is a process. You would cripple the process by being overly afraid to let them learn independence. Teaching a child to fend for themselves and be independent and able to take care of themselves is your job as a parent. You can sit on a kid til he is 18 then kick him out of the house but he won't be a productive person ready to get along in the world.

Answer 10

No the person that steals a child for evil they are the ones that are guilty.I think the parents will be punished enough by their own guilt as the years go by but never forget that could be any-ones child.
We had incident over were I live a little 8yr girl went to a toilet by herself in shopping centre within 20 minutes she had been raped and murdered there is only one person responsible and that is scum that perpetrated it.
Unfortunately there are people out there that do these things and they are predators always looking for an opportunity if not this little girl it might of been someone elses child.