Single mother faces prison for letting her 14 year old babysit

[Demovictory9]

Melissa Henderson, a single mother-of-five, is charged with criminal reckless conduct after she let her children under the care of her eldest child, 14-year-old Linley, in May 2020 when COVID shut down their daycare center.

Linley was reportedly engaging in online learning and did not notice that her four-year-old brother, Thaddeus, had slipped out of the house when he saw his friend outside and went to play with him in Blairsville, Georgia.

Within about 10 to 15 minutes, Linley noticed he was gone and found him at his friend's house down the street.

But in the meantime the friend's mom called the police, and about two weeks later, Henderson was arrested in front of her children, according to Reason Magazine.

----------

Immediately following the incident, FOX News reports, police took down her information, but returned nearly two weeks later with five fleet cars after the arresting officer, Deputy Sheriff Marc Pilote, discovered that Thaddeus had previously wandered outside.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/single-mother-faces-prison-for-letting-her-14-year-old-babysit/ar-AATD5sN

[secondwind]

1. This is very unfortunate but a bit harsh, IMHO.

[Skittles]

2. huh?

I babysat when I was 13 but I can honestly say I watched the kids like a hawk (of course back then there were not near as many distractions)......but still, this is over-the-top nonsense.

[fierywoman]

10. I babysat for my three younger brothers when I was 12.

[Tickle]

16. I was thinking the

same. I started babysitting around 12

[leftyladyfrommo]

24. Me. Too. I was taking care of small kids and babies

and I was 12.

I was really responsible even at that age.

[Doodley]

3. Five cars of cops for letting a 14-year-old babysit? OMG! Those police are scum of the Earth.

[lagomorph777]

26. That many cops have nothing better to do?

Sounds like downsizing would be appropriate.

[Hortensis]

33. :) Blairsville's in beautiful rural mountain Union County, and

it wouldn't be surprising if that was the big event that shift, a couple of weeks later when they got around to it.

[Celerity]

4. Criminal proceedings have now been ongoing for two years, as her attorney, David DeLugas, argues the

charge is unconstitutional and seeks to get it dismissed. He cites a Georgia Supreme Court ruling in 1997 that ruled that charging a mom for a normal parenting decision is unconstitutional. In that case, Hall v. State, a mom left her 11-year-old babysitting her younger sibling who died in a tragic accident.

The court ruled at the time that the state's reckless conduct statute is susceptible to 'arbitrary enforcement,' with the majority ruling that the state failed to 'contend that the [reckless conduct statute] is violated by the many parents who on a daily basis, often due to necessity, leave an older child to care for their younger siblings while the parents work or attend to other business.'

Moreover, DeLugas - who is working pro-bono for the Henderson family - argues that Georgia's own child protective guidelines say children can babysit at the age of 13 with a parent's permission.

'They claim that the same thing happened a year earlier,' DeLugas told FOX News. 'So you're saying a year earlier, she left her children in charge of her then 13-year-old, almost 14-year-old, and somehow two rights make a wrong. 'It wasn't wrong then, and it's not wrong now.' He has now filed a motion to dismiss the case, Reason reports.

what a waste of taxpayer money

Henderson said her son, Thaddeus, left the house when he saw a friend outside. The friend lived in the house at the right

(why aren't the parents of THAT child also charged, IF he/she (I assume the friend was close in age) was out alone too? I would think they were alone, as if a teen or up was there, they would have not let the child leave his house without checking to see if it was ok.

[secondwind]

19. Beautiful family......

I hope she wins in Court.

[Haggard Celine]

5. Poor woman. I'm glad she seems to have a competent attorney,

and he's working pro bono. Sounds like she doesn't have any resources. I think it's shameful they felt the need to arrest her in front of her kids like that. My grandma used to tell me stories about watching all her siblings when she was much younger than that! No daycare back in those days, and we don't have it nowadays, either, unless you can afford their prices. That county and state 'justice' system ought to be ashamed!

[wnylib]

12. Could the mother counter sue

for child abuse due to the trauma inflicted on her children by the way the arrest was handled?

[Haggard Celine]

29. She ought to be able to, but I doubt she can.

Police departments do worse things every day and no one holds them to account. They should be held accountable, though, especially when they harm children while doing their duties. They had to serve the warrant, but not like that.

[Hortensis]

6. Always need more info. I'm wondering about the reasons for

the neighbor's decision to call the sheriff's department. Child protective services had investigated when Thaddeus had gone outside alone a year earlier when he was 3. At 4 I and my friends were sent out to play with or without each other, but everyone did in those days.

"A Union County Sheriff’s Office report said Henderson’s 14-year-old daughter noticed her 4-year-old brother was missing and found him at the neighbor’s house within 10 to 15 minutes."

That said, this happened. I'd expert the authorities to have reason for concern that's not reported here. But actually hope not.

[NanananaFatman]

8. You would expect?

Why would you expect that?

Because until anyone sees evidence to
support their claim, why would anyone believe that claim? Until evidence is in place, the only reasonable position is “I don’t know.”

[Hortensis]

17. Yes, I WOULD expect, Nanana. Because authorities are not just

supposed to have appropriate and lawful reasons for taking actions but because they DO a large percentage of the time.

"Would," rather than "do" expect, because of that remaining percent.

[usaf-vet]

15. The story said the 14 year old was at the computer in a learning session. I would assume a school...

.... class or assignment in this Covid world we are all trying to survive in.

If and when they sue the authorities, I hope they get a big enough settlement to send all of the kids to college.

[EndlessWire]

7. Just stupid

How can the cop arrest her if she is clearly within the rules? Can she sue them for unlawful arrest? I'd give her enough money to hire a babysitter. Put me on the jury, and she'd be rich for her trouble. Stupid cops, just trying to destroy that family.

They sure look well cared for. I also babysat at 13. Hope that cop got his jollies, cause he looks really stupid now.

I'm so sick of authoritative assholes. I've really overdosed on stupid people this week. Please excuse me.

[usaf-vet]

11. It's these kinds of stupid things that make me want to scream. Enough already.

Every day! Every day I get 15-20 sob stories about why I need to send money to some democratic group. Or sign a petition, then give money. Or help someone I've never heard of in some state I've never been able to afford to visit. I've got emails from every recognizable Democratic leader asking for money.

It's not that I won't donate, but here is the line they MUST CROSS before I open my wallet.

THEY MUST PROSECUTE AND JAIL ANYONE OF THE TREASONOUS INSURECTIONOUS THAT TOOK PART on 1/6 for a minimum of five years behind bars—no early release. No excuses.

Three years for a mother who let her 14-year-old daughter babysit. NUTS!

The state and areas I live in have classes for 14+ kids who want to babysit and have a diploma to prove they have taken the courses. We have hired 14-year-olds to babysit.

This country appears to have lost its sense of reality.

Every day I read stories about congress members that have broken laws—ignored congressional policies. Threaten the health and safety of others. Apparently, you can take underage children across state lines for illicit purposes and still hold your seat.

[Emile]

9. Some neighbor to call the cops on a single mother!

Why would she do that?

[wnylib]

13. And why was her own kid out by himself

to cause Thaddeus to come out to see him?

[Emile]

18. Good point!

[Celerity]

20. this! I said the same in my first reply

[TheBlackAdder]

23. Perhaps a paranoid insecure wife is worried that a single mother is a threat to her marriage.

.

I've seen all types.

.

[Roy Rolling]

14. Misplaced money

With all the money spent on prosecutors, cops, and judges couldn’t they just pay a babysitter for her.

We pay thousands of dollars to put poor people in jail instead of preventing them from going to jail in the first place.

[alphafemale]

21. Probably more to the story

Such as a pattern of the kids leaving the house unsupervised.

[hippywife]

22. I used to babysit

when I was only 12. This is such bullshit.

[msfiddlestix]

25. this was wildly unjustified

I was made responsible for the care of my 5 year old sister at the age of 10. I had paid babysitting jobs starting at 12.

This reaction is effin crazy.

[Midnight Writer]

27. I was a "latchkey kid" from the age of 6, as were most of my friends.

I'm not claiming it is optimal, but it is a reality if parents work and can't afford childcare.

Personally, I think the responsibility of taking care of myself helped my confidence, my judgement, and my sense of independence. I was drilled on responsibility and behaving like an adult very early on. On the other hand, maybe I missed out on the guidance and security of having an adult at hand.

[LizBeth]

28. I started babysitting at 11. This is stupid.

[maxsolomon]

32. Always thought you could leave kids alone as long as one was at least 12.

Maybe not in GA?

[LiberalFighter]

34. County dep. sheriff mentally unbalanced. Should be fired.

[Hortensis]

35. All I saw was a "guideline" of at least 8 to babysit in GA.

I noticed that her daycare shut down in May 2020, which is just about the time the death toll was heading for 100,000 and people were realizing it hadn't gone away by Easter after all and wouldn't by Memorial Day either. Even tRump realized by mid-May that 200,000 deaths by election day might be a problem for him and announced the government would fast track vaccine development (instead of ignoring and impeding it).

Public schools in GA were about to end for the year also, some closing early. She was really fortunate to have a 14-year-old daughter to babysit. This arrest took place when many parents were suddenly finding themselves without childcare.

Her attorney's trying to get this dismissed, and I saw no interesting revelations online in the nearly two years since to suggest there could be reason why it shouldn't be. But it can be pretty authoritarian here, and in spite of all the negative attention it's possible she could get a slap of some kind to make the point that law and order rule and the DA's never wrong.

[GoCubsGo]

36. Why didn't the neighbor just call the kid's house, like normal neighbors do?

They boys are supposed to be friends, right? What the hell? This whole thing is lunacy.