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Mom handcuffed, jailed for 8-year-old son walking half a mile

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Re: Mom handcuffed, jailed for 8-year-old son walking half a mile

#251
post #211

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> A blunt response like, "Fuck off. Don't talk to my son.", followed by walking away from her, may have been harsher and not particularly polite, but perhaps it'd cause a person like her to avoid such meddling in the future. Or it means she's definitely calling CPS next time.

Or calling them this time, immediately, and mentioning "belligerent parents" who "may be intoxicated". CPS starts up a file on you and now you have a lot of people looking into your house, kids, and family. Maybe the police see an easy arrest, or easy fines. Is it worth it to make a point here? Even at the potential cost of your or your family's freedom?

Play the same game. "I was concerned this woman was talking to my son, I couldn't hear her but the conversation seemed to be something about how she wanted him to come over to her house and how handsome he is, and then when I came into her eyeline she suddenly started ranting about helmets and CPS. I'm really confused about the whole thing officer, I assume she is just elderly but can you ask her to not talk to my son further?"

Re: Mom handcuffed, jailed for 8-year-old son walking half a mile

#252
post #198

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Let's quickly drop the idea that this is the fault of nosey neighbors No, let's not. According to the article, the neighbor who called the cops asked the boy where he lived, "verified that it was just down the street, and proceeded to call nonetheless". Excuse me? What decent neighbor calls the cops on a neighbor's kid walking just down the street from his own house? I agree the law in question shouldn't even be on…

It isn't the neighbors job to be mentally functional. It is, however, the police's, DA, and CPS's job.

It's also suburban Waco, Texas. That's not exactly the epicenter of education in the US, much less even in Texas.

Ironically, more rural Texas regions tend to ha√e more independent kids; after all, you'll see 10 year old kids driving the family truck on farms and ranches.

Re: Mom handcuffed, jailed for 8-year-old son walking half a mile

#253

I'm not sure (correct me if I'm wrong) but doesn't the district attorney have the ability to drop the charges or not pursue the case? If CPS dropped the case, why didn't the DA?

The DA's role to win as many cases as they can. They only drop cases they don't think they can win. Threatening people with charges if they don't take plea deals is an easy way for them to win. That's what led to a news item last year of some immigrant truck driver getting over 100 years in prison (plus mandatory minimums) because he didn't take a plea deal after his breaks failed and he hit a car and killed some peo…

"The DA's role to win as many cases as they can."

When the San Francisco DA's office was run by Chesa Boudin, I spoke with an attorney there. That attorney told me that the role of the DA's office was to 'deliver justice', and he was explicit about that meaning they wouldn't pursue all cases they thought they could win, and wouldn't seek maximum sentences they thought they could achieve.

Prior to working for the DA's office, he was a public defender, so perhaps this attitude isn't universal...

Re: Mom handcuffed, jailed for 8-year-old son walking half a mile

#254
post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nobody wants to be the one parent out of a thousand who has their kid scooped up off the street because they were letting their kid explore and be free. Edit: Not sure why I'm being downvoted, this comment isn't a judgment on anyone or promoting any type of child-rearing philosophy. It's just an obvious truth. Nobody wants to be that parent, and that obviously influences behavior.

Your kid is 3x more likely to be struck by lightning than kidnapped. Literally.

>According to statistics cited by the NCMEC, most missing children are abducted by relatives or parents

It's safer to be around strangers than relatives, when it comes to kidnapping.

Re: Mom handcuffed, jailed for 8-year-old son walking half a mile

#255

> As they stood on her porch, the officers told Wallace that her son could have been kidnapped and sex trafficked. "'You don't see much sex trafficking where you are, but where I patrol in downtown Waco, we do,'" said one of the cops, according to Wallace > "I still didn't know it was illegal and I said, 'I don't know,'" says Wallace. "That's when the cop replied, 'Okay, I'm going to have to arrest you.'" Let's quick…

Youtube keeps suggesting https://www.youtube.com/@AuditTheAudit to me. In many of the videos the officers just make up what they think the law is.

Just a warning, more than a few of the videos on AuditTheAudit are infuriating due to the level of arrogance, incompetence, negligence, and abuse of authority displayed. But, it is nice that there is a way to air this dirty laundry in public. As GI Joe says, "Knowing is half the battle".

Re: Mom handcuffed, jailed for 8-year-old son walking half a mile

#256

Earlier quoted context omitted.

CPS investigated and cleared them and then dropped the case. It's the cops and DA who kept going.

...and really, CPS does need to investigate. Yes, most often it's just a nosey neighbour, but every now and then those nosey neighbours are on to something, and while unpleasant for the families, missing that one case is the horror story they want to avoid.

You can't just say the ends justify the means, without actually working out the price you're paying. Otherwise, we should be OK with the government monitoring us 24/7 so that they don't miss any terrorists or child molesters. What proper Good Thinking citizen would possibly object to Big Brother watching them, after all?

When an organization has the power to destroy families, I think we might want to require a standard of evidence above one nosy neighbor - or at least evaluate how many kids are protected VS how many suffer in Foster care VS how many had their lives ruined because their parents had a marijuana joint.

Re: Mom handcuffed, jailed for 8-year-old son walking half a mile

#257
What in the hell has changed in the last few years that suddenly there’s this moral panic over “sex trafficking”? Like somehow it’s become this massive concern recently with no obvious cause - there hasn’t been any indication there’s an increase of it, or that it’s gone unreported or unrecognized before. It stinks massively of satanic panic.

Re: Mom handcuffed, jailed for 8-year-old son walking half a mile

#258

> As they stood on her porch, the officers told Wallace that her son could have been kidnapped and sex trafficked. "'You don't see much sex trafficking where you are, but where I patrol in downtown Waco, we do,'" said one of the cops, according to Wallace > "I still didn't know it was illegal and I said, 'I don't know,'" says Wallace. "That's when the cop replied, 'Okay, I'm going to have to arrest you.'" Let's quick…

No post body was provided.

Re: Mom handcuffed, jailed for 8-year-old son walking half a mile

#259
post #25

In my twice-the-size European city, kids walk twice that distance to school and back home again, alone. Every. Single. Day. If this place isn't safe enough for kids to walk by themselves, maybe the question should be raised whether the police and municipal government really is doing their job the way they're supposed to.

The thing is that the US has much greater freedoms than Europe, after all, we did fight for them. It's every US citizens understanding that with greater freedoms come greater responsibilities to raise children to be future leaders. This can't happen if a child is mowed down in a driveby or if they accidentally trip over while walking.

You almost got me there.
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