Mom arrested, charged with felony for letting son walk to park alone.

Source .

(WPTV) - It all began last Saturday afternoon, Nicole Gainey gave her son, Dominic, permission to walk from their house to Sportsman Park. "I honestly didn't think I was doing anything wrong, I was letting him go play," she explained.

It's a half-mile from their Port St. Lucie home.

Along the way, the 7-year-old passed a public pool. That is where someone asked him where his mom was. "They asked me a couple questions and I got scared so I ran off to the park and then they called the cops," Dominic said.

Dominic was playing when Port St. Lucie Police pulled up. Police took him home and arrested his mom charging her with child neglect. Gainey says she was shocked.

"My own bondsman said my parents would have been in jail every day," she said.

I dont know what to make of this.

I'm kind of surprised that the State didnt just take her son and claim him as their property.

Reminds me of this story:

Houston woman sues after being arrested for allowing her kids to play outside.

a reply to: gladtobehereIMHO...7 is too young to walk that far.No way I would allow my daughter to do that...she is 8.

7 does seem a bit young, but she's right. I wandered in the woods, all around our house, alone, or with friends, all summer.

I think this is definitely too extreme. But the norm nowdays.

Ok, after reading all of it, WTH?

"numerous sex offenders reside in the vicinity."

Of the park! Ummm, isn't that illegal?

He has a cell phone.

There is no law regarding the age.

There is a fine line between showing concern and butting in where you don't belong. The people at the pool brought this down. Seven is not a toddler. That's second grade. A kid should be able to play outside unattended at that age.
Yesterday I saw a tiny little girl outside and I didn't see an adult in sight. She was beside the road not in a yard. I even thought GOSH someone could just grab her. I'd say she was four or a bit younger. That is child neglect.
I raised three boys. The middle one was what I call a wanderer. He would take off if I turned my back on him. He scared me and his dad a few times when he was six and first learned to ride a bike. The cops brought him home once after we'd looked for him for half an hour. He was given boundaries but to him they were just suggestions. He's 32 now and still colors outside the lines.

a reply to: crazyeddie68

I can understand your perspective.

Just think its weird how something that was once very common in the US (letting your kinds play all over town), is now a crime.

Statistically America has never been more safe.

The kid was approached by strangers and did the right thing.

Then the cops came to scold the mother.

I hope she wins enough to put her kid through college and then some.

I think the police are now just going for the easy arrests. Why chase real bad guys when moms can be charged.

Kids use to be able to do these things. How about getting the real sickos so kids can have a life again.

a reply to: gladtobehere I see your point.Felony is a bit harsh.I'm just saying from my opinion as a parent in this day and age,7 is too young.

I lived in queens NYC as a child
I rode by bike all over the city at nine and ten years old.
There were in fact a few incidents that would probably make the news today had I told my parents about them. Twice men exposed themselves to me and once one tried to get on my bike with me. He held my arms and was swinging his leg over to sit on the seat behind me. I twisted away and took off as fast as my little legs could peddle. That was in a wooded area and could have turned out quite different but I was savvy by then and wasn't swayed by his telling me my parents wouldn't mind if I gave him a ride. Scary now scary then too. But not at any point did I blame my parents for not looking after me. I would have hated it if they restricted me.



reply to: chiefsmom

a reply to: roadgravel

Totally agree with you!!!

It takes a village. . . . to arrest a parent.

Nanny-state, Police-state. . . take your pick.

A half a mile is just a few blocks. Something that could be walked in ten minutes or less. Not far at all. I would let an eight year old walk that but perhaps a girl I'd want to have her in a group. I'm thinking the 7-11 down the street is about that but it's a busy street and that might make a difference. d reply to: [post=18214922]crazycrazyeddie6t]

More idiocy in action .. what a waste of police time and resources.
With thinking like that they may as well take children at birth and raise them in state run creches ..

Still in some cases interference could make a difference between a dead child and a live one. It's a fine line like I said. a reply to: beezzer

this is moronic. i used to walk/play/ride my bike unattended at that age too.

so the kid is being "neglected" because his mom let him go for a walk. and the state solves that problem by arresting the mother and taking her away for however long away from the kid until she's bailed out? ummm what? so that's how the police solve this. so what's worse for the kid. for him to be at the park down the street or for him to be in police custody while his mother sits in a cell waiting to get bailed out?

the arrest should have never been made! the officer should have followed up with the call, saw that everything was normal. perhaps speak with the mother and let her know what went down and fuc*ing walk away leaving the kid back at home with his mother.

makes me want to kick that f*cking nosey busy body assh*le in the crotch who called the police because a little kid didn't want to talk to them, a stranger....

incredible...

a reply to: gladtobehere

I was a latch-key kid and walked or rode my bike everywhere. I walked close to a mile to school and back every day (even when I was 7). I remember learning the phrase "neigh, neigh, stranger stay away" from a movie at school, and singing it. But our neighborhood was chock full of kids, so I was never really by myself. It is a wonder that any of us survived to grow up! It was definitely a different age ( the 70's, LOL). When my daughter was 7, we would let her ride her bike to the neighborhood pool to meet friends but that's it. I can't say I'd let her do that in the year 2014. It is sad, really. The freedom I had was wonderful, but my grandkids won't have that.

a reply to: AutumnWitch657 I guess I am a bit paranoid when it comes to my daughter.My ultimate fear is to have her disappear and not be able to help her.


But,I think the police went too far in arresting her.

This is just insane

We are going to have to put a stop to all this soon

What would have happened 100years ago in inarguablya much more violent and dangerous time,?

This


www.abovetopsecret.com...

at 7 or so we were going over a river, a dual carriage way and a canal to get to where we wanted to go (used to play on an old coal spoil heap) probably a mile or so away so it doesn't seem that dangerous compared to that and especially the slip pond where broken pottery was dumped to return back into some sort of clay we had to go past that wasn't even fenced off

Just another instance of the nanny state running amok.

Or maybe it's just a Florida thing, they seem particularly crackers down there. In my neighbourhood, they'd have to pretty much arrest everyone, because there are kids of all ages running around unsupervised (generally) all day long. But I live in a small town in Minnesota where we just, I don't know, let kids be kids.