Kid gets ARRESTED for opening Christmas present early!

[Archae]

I mean, I can understand taking the gift away from the kid, but having him arrested??!!?? :wtf:

Child Arrested After Opening Holiday Gift Early

What is the penalty for opening your Christmas presents too early?

For one South Carolina 12-year-old, the penalty was arrest.

A Rock Hill, S.C., woman called police and asked them to arrest her son who opened a Christmas present early after being told not to, the Rock Hill Herald reported. Police went to the house and arrested the boy and charged him with petty larceny.

http://www.themilwaukeechannel.com/holidays/10467838/detail.html

[rosesaylavee]

1. Is this part of the RW war on Christmas?

Wow. That's just not right. That kid's on the road to hating Christmas and his mom. WTF is right.

[soothsayer]

2. There's the ol' Christmas spirit!

[Redstone]

3. What? There's no fucking CRIME in that town? Are the cops BORED?

Could there be a WORSE waste of tax dollars?

Redstone

[Broken_Hero]

9. My thoughts exactly...

at first I thought this was satire, but the link looked real to me...what a world we live in...

[CrispyQ]

4. 52% of the people agree that she should have called the police.

GASP!!

The kid sounds like a terror, but calling the police?

[Fridays Child]

That's nuckin' futs!

She needs help with her son but causing him to have a criminal record--especially, for something like this--isn't the way to get it.

[Redstone]

48. 52% of WHAT people? Assholes?

Redstone

[dysfunctional press]

57. i agree that she should have called police...

going into the article, i thoughti t seemed excessive- but after reading it- i say more power to that mother- we need more like her.

[muriel_volestrangler]

104. Can you give your reasoning for that?

Because I can't see any reason at all. As others have said, this sounds more like a story from The Onion.

He's a boy with real behavioural problems - shoplifting, punching a police officer, etc. But putting out presents in front of him and telling him he's got to wait another 3 weeks seems a dumb thing to do in that situation - unless you're running a weird experiment on him. When he does then open the present, are you really surprised? Wasting police and court time with it seems outrageous too. From my knowledge of (admittedly British) law, he didn't commit an offence anyway - theft must involve "intent to permanently deprive". Since the present was intended for him, you cannot prove that. Indeed, he didn't deprive anyone of anything. But the mother is wasting public money with a stupid way of trying to fix her relationship with her son.

[dysfunctional press]

112. she's not trying to "fix her relationship" with her son-

the kid is an out of control punk, and needs to be "scared straight" at the very least.

[muriel_volestrangler]

113. So she brings in the state to fix a family squabble?

If she wants him scared, he should be arrested for a crime, like shoplifting, or assault, that he has committed. To waste police and court time with something that isn't a crime is stupid, and sends exactly the wrong message - that stupid arguments will be used to find a way to punish him, rather than real wrongdoing.

If she wants to scare him, perhaps she should tell him he'll never be a better parent than she is. That would scare the living crap out of me.

[dysfunctional press]

115. if she's a taxpayer, isn't that her right...?

if it's not the cops' jobs- they could have told her that they COULDN'T arrest her son.

obviously that's not the case.

[muriel_volestrangler]

116. Some dumb cops, I'd say

I can't see how opening a present early fits the definition of larceny. I also can't see how arresting him will do anything except screw his life up further. He'll rightly assume that the state and his mother hate him.

[KurtNYC]

117. I don't think 'scared straight' works

and I don't think it worked here. I note this line from the article:

She said her son still showed no remorse when the police came.

It is often said that "Love is the greatest discipline" and I take that to mean that if you deny your child love for a significant period of time, then you will lose control of them. People will do anything for love. And, conversely, without the hope of love, they may become suicidal or at least self-destructive. My suspicion is that this kid lives a world that is full of threats and put downs; a world with entirely too many "sticks" and not enough "carrots."

I also note that the mother is 27YO and her son is 12 -- maybe it just isn't in their genes to wait for anyting that might approximate love; be it intercourse or material possessions.

I hope they both find a happier path.

[bumblebee1]

120. Putting the presents in front of him and telling him to wait to open them?

That's like putting beer in front of an alcoholic and telling him not to drink it.

[zreosumgame]

5. I guess his new X-Mas song would be...

"All I want for Christmas is all my teeth back that were knocked out so I could be gang-raped by permission of Mom"...

[Phredicles]

6. Slow day for the Rock Hill police force?

Seriously, they have nothing better to do than take up a lousy parent on her request to come over and intimidate her son?

Don Knotts may have left us, but Barney Fife clearly lives.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

8. I'm going to have to assume they didn't have a lot of choice.

Sounds like this nut mother demanded they arrest the kid. Cops probably tried to talk her out of it.

[Hav]

24. .

Maybe, it must have been really strange for them to do so and a waste of time. But doesn't their actually have to be a legal basis to arrest someone besides someone asking for it? They could have said that they just can't do it because of the laws.
I just don't get it if this story is no joke.

However, the equally important story is how a mother can do it to her 12 year old kid. Simply crazy.


edit: Ok, I read the whole article. The subject line and the few paragraphs don't tell the whole sad story of that family.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

70. Do the cops have a choice?

I mean, if a crime's been committed, and the "victim" wants to press charges, do the cops have any options?

I mean, thirty years ago, sure. But do to domestic violence reforms I don't think the police have much choice.

[Sequoia]

14. Oh no, Barney Fife would never do anything like that.

Maybe he'd bust up a still but beyond that, no way.

[hang a left]

7. Do you get it. The kid is 12.

The parent told him not to open the present. The little brat opened up anyway in direct defiance. What do you do? You have other options. You could take the present back. You could ground the kid. But if the kid openly defies you like that how can you keep him grounded. You could beat the living shit out of him (Not an option I would chose). Or you could teach him a lesson about what happens when you steal. Technically the present was not his yet. He sounds like he is loads of fun to parent.

[OwnedByFerrets]

11. You forgot your sarcasm emoticon.......

:sarcasm: or, at least I hope you did.

[hang a left]

15. Did you read the frickin article????

The kid is out of control, he has shoplifted, stolen money from his mother, punched a police officer in the face, and is about to be expelled from school, amongst other things. The single mother is struggling with raising the tyrant and is trying to get some help. She is afraid he is going to end up dead. Do you get it now????????

[Kingshakabobo]

36. If the kid is so naughty why did he get a present in the first place?

Shame on Santa for not checking the no-gift list.

[China_cat]

89. I don't know about that.

One of the exercises given to us by the family therapist we saw was to do just that as a 'trust building' scenario. We were to either wrap a gift or leave one in a public place, tell my son that it was for him but he could only have it if he left it alone for x number of days. If he did that then we were to give it to him with high praise for being trustworthy. A way of reinforcing the idea that you don't really have to have everything right now...that it's ok, and even fun, to wait for something.

Of course, with my son it never worked. He was oblivious to consequences. He still is at the age of 35. What he wants, he wants now and nobody and nothing is going to stand in his way. Doesn't matter what it is, from a cd to sex...he takes what he wants because he 'deserves' it.

[qanda]

44. Which begs the question

WHY is he getting any gifts?

[Arkansas Granny]

49. There is no doubt that this family needs help. However, getting

a 12 year old involved with police and the legal system doesn't sound like the best solution to me. A much better solution would be some kind of counseling for the entire family. This type of behavior indicates that there are bigger problems here, and not just with the boy.

[Redstone]

51. Maybe she should have thought of that when she got knocked up at 15.

Redstone

[dysfunctional press]

69. well that's intelligent...

of course all 15 year-olds, when their hormones get racing,naturally start to ponder the prospect of having to call the police on an out of control child in another 12 years and 9 months from now...

:eyes: sheesh...

[Redstone]

82. After she saw the consequences of two prior generations getting pregnant young,

maybe THAT should have lit a dim, small bulb in her brain?

Redstone

[Name removed]

85. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Rhythm]

100. GREAT-grandma is 63?!

i see you spotted that too, Red...

[theHandpuppet]

101. Hopefully one of his gifts will be a case of condoms

Sheesh, has that family ever heard of birth control? And to those of you offended by that statement -- tough!

[JVS]

96. ZING!

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

72. Hey.

If I had a mom like that I'd probably act out too.

[EFerrari]

16. He sounds like a young teen to me. n/t

[Huskerchub]

32. excuse me...

but all of us on this board were once "young teens" and I can assure you I did not have a recored like this "little tyke" and I'm pretty sure that 99.9% of the rest of this broad did not either. This is not a young teen issue, this is a child from he!! issue. Who's fault that is is debatable but be sure this is NOT normal 12yo behavior!!

[EFerrari]

39. There's normal 12 year old behavior?!

It does sound like this kid has something going on. And it's too bad that the police are being dragged into it instead of a doctor or a learning specialist.

I had one of these kids. Mine had two undiagnosed learning differences and immature parents. When we took care of those items, he settled down. Similarly, one of my nieces was acting out all over the place. Her mom got herself some therapy. The kid settled down.

Families. Can't live with them.

[China_cat]

43. You can get the police easier

than you can get a doctor or learning specialist here in SC.

[EFerrari]

47. In Berkeley, too. It's really hard to deal with a kid in that situation

and that family is going to need all the help they can get. :(

[China_cat]

54. I remember my youngest with behavior

like that. He was later diagnosed with 'personality disorder'...a sociopath. We dropped over $50,000 just in our share of psychiatric bills that the insurance didn't cover and another $30,000 in legal fees for the shit he pulled. And yes, a couple times I called the cops on him. I had no choice when I did. Other times the cops brought him home and wanted to know why I didn't beat the shit out of him for what he was doing (peeping in windows) and I'd allow them to take him to the detention center only to get a call an hour later to come and get him because they couldn't keep him (and that -I'd- be the one behind bars if I didn't).

But even if that family is on state aid, they can't get psychiatric help for the kid. That was dropped from Medicaid here almost 10 years ago and it's been at least 25 since there's been any counselors other than occasional career counselors in the school system. The only way they have any chance at all for mental health help for him IS if they can get him convicted of something. Anything. Then they can petition the court for a psychiatric evaluation and treatment.

[Archae]

61. No wonder the kid is going psycho.

Even money it was your "pro-life" politicians who cut all these programs. :grr:

[China_cat]

62. You win.

[moc]

66. Not in all states. My husband is a behavioral health provider for Medicaid.

This is in TX. I know they have behavioral health in medicaid in Md too. Can't say anything about SC (where the boy is).

[China_cat]

86. I AM in SC and very familiar with what isn't available.

The only schools here now with full time nurses are private schools. The public schools get a nurse one day a month (if they're lucky) and must make do mainly with parents who have first aid and cpr certification.

And our dear governor Sanford just made sure that the public schools will never have a chance to have those services back. Our property taxes were lowered...by eliminating any money that went to the schools. The school BOARD still gets a nice chunk but the schools get nothing. Yes, we have an 'education' lottery. The money is earmarked for technical school and college, other schools can go piss up a rope.

[moc]

91. That's fine; I just wanted to make sure that no one generalized your

statement that Medicaid doesn't cover behavioral health to all states. It may not be covered in SC; it is in other states. Medicaid may be federally funded but its implementation is state specific.

[EFerrari]

71. What a sad state of affairs, isn't it? I don't even know how much

I spent. I do remember waiting and waiting for slots to come open -- it doesn't even matter if you can afford care, you can't get it for kids that age. And the insurance games. Omigod, it was horrendous.

And I don't imagine things have improved much in the last fifteen years.

[China_cat]

88. The one hospital here in Charleston that provided

decent inpatient care for kids and teens (if you could afford it) closed years ago. The medical university still has a psych ward for kids but it's lockdown and what you get are med students on rotation. The only other facility IN THE STATE is the state mental hospital in Columbia.

[proud2BlibKansan]

94. Medicaid pays for psych care where I live

[moc]

65. Very very true. It's the sad situation of behavioral health in this

country. Dh is a child therapist. For 3 years he drove 270 miles round trip once a week to see 14 kids who needed therapy in a small town east of there. There were no other therapists available.

It can even be hard to get into see someone in a major city. There are not enough providers.

[zreosumgame]

26. the kid must have answered the door fast enough

at least they didn't break it down and come in shooting...this time

[Sequoia]

28. THEN DON'T PUT IT UNDER THE TREE SO EARLY!

Having him arrested is way over the top. Just keep the gift until Christmas and give it to him. I went to a party as a kid and got lots of gifts and felt pressured to open them. They were taken away from me until Christmas Day. On Christmas day while all the other kids were happily opening their presents I could only look on. All I got under the tree was a pair of gloves from a boy I didn't know.

[John Q. Citizen]

33. Yeah, the mom was 15 when she had him, just three years older than the

boy is now.

So I guess she must have been a handful too?

[uppityperson]

41. first snarky answer held 'til read article. Seems kid needs help, problem NOT just this incident

sounds like this boy has been in other trouble with the law already.

If my 12 yr old opened a present after I told him not to I wouldn't call the police, but that is my kid and me, not this family or situation. No passing judgement since all I know is what I read.

[proud2BlibKansan]

93. There are these people called counselors

Just sayin . . .

[IdaBriggs]

110. There is a book called "Parenting Your Out of Control Child"

that she should read. It would have been cheaper than wasting the taxpayer's dollar.

She might have started as the "true tragedy" here -- she gave birth to him at 15, which means she was probably pregnant at 14, and plans to surrender custody to the state NOW that she has completely messed up his life -- but the twelve year old is pretty much screwed.

:cry:

[SammyWinstonJack]

10. !!

:wow:

[Howardx]

12. i hope he gets a huge fine

which the parents will be responsible for

[Missy M]

13. Sounds like the mother is having a real hard time with the boy...

and is at the point of not knowing what to do anymore. Although calling the police was harsh she is probably at her wits end and I have sympathy for the mother. I hope the boy can get some help to solve his behavior problems. She had the child at the very young age of 15. The great-grandmother is only 63.

[hang a left]

21. Not under the circustances.

Read the entire article. The kid needs some help.

[Missy M]

27. I did read the article and I agree the kid needs some help...

and so does the mother.

[Archae]

23. There ARE alternatives.

Far more than having the kid arrested.

[hang a left]

29. Name a few if you don't mind.

What do you do with a child that is completely out of control?

[Missy M]

30. Where did I say I agree with having the kid arrested?

I said it was harsh but the mother sounds like she doesn't know what to do anymore.

[AlamoDemoc]

50. I think the police might of used "Protective Custody" provisions on the child

protective custody by the police provisions isn't considered as arrest or to have been charged with any crime in many states.

[Huskerchub]

17. How sad...

Reading the entire story it gets even more sad. This child is 12 and his mother is 27, great grandmother is 63. Looks like a continual cycle of children having children and then not having the skills and/or education and/or income to raise them. If the grandmother had her child (the grandparent) at 21, he/she was on 15 when the mother was born and the boy was born to a 15yo mother as well. Don't get me wrong, there are a few teens that successfully raise their children but they almost always have the support of a family that has developed child rearing skills. It appears in this case that maybe some of those skills are lacking over many generations. Do NOT misunderstand me, I am certain that everyone involved loves and cares for this child and all of the children but history has a very sad was of repeating itself. It makes me glad that I do not have children...sometimes.

[Redstone]

53. I'll say it, since you're too polite to: How about a rubber or two? Just now and then?

Redstone

[Mind_your_head]

18. Mom & grandmom sound like psychos who have

absolutely 'no idea how to raise a child'. Heck, the mom was a child herself when she gave birth to this kid.

The mom is now 27 the kid is 12....so she was 15 when she had this boy. I'm sure it's difficult to have been a "teenage mom", but 'wow'! Does this family ever need a "friend" to help out.....the mom & grandmom are totally at wits end and the poor boy is just "being a boy" and they have him arrested!?!?!

Sad story.

[last1standing]

19. In 3 years that kid will be as old as his mother was when he was born - 15yo.

In 2 years he'll be as old as she was when she got pregnant at 14. Maybe, just maybe, there's a bigger problem here than a simple overreaction to opening a gift too early. Children tend to have a hard time raising children.

[Mend]

20. they must have known this child has impulse-control problems....

what a set-up....buy a gift too early, let the kid know you bought him something, dangle it, and then, surprise, he falls into the trap and fails. Put the parents in jail instead. My folks really hid our gifts at their office where we couldn't sneak a peek.

[moc]

63. Best reply in this thread.

You hit the nail squarely on the head. They set this boy up to fail. This boy didn't end up out of control for no reason. They need to get to some therapy but quick.

[UTUSN]

22. It's O'LOOFAH's kid violating the RULES of Xmas, potential WARRIOR n/t

[cali]

25. And I think it's time Social Services took a look at nutty mom.

Frankly, I think calling the cops and insisting they arrest your 12 year old for opening Christmas presents early, is deranged and yes, abusive.

[LeftyMom]

31. Why was the little brat getting a present? Mom screwed up in getting the little shit a video game at

all.

Presents are for people who deserve them. Kids who choose not to behave should get their needs met and no extras.

[Archae]

35. Agreed.

Last Christmas I remember reading about a family, that had 3 teenage boys, they were told flat out, "Knock off the fighting or you don't get your Christmas presents."

They stopped fighting for a grand total of 3 days.

So the Dad sold their Christmas presents. (I think they were video games.)

This entire family of the kid arrested is completely messed up, and where the (bleep) is any of the Fathers?

[dogday]

You got to love South Carolina, they come up

with some whoppers....

[ninkasi]

34. I could never have had my child arrested, but

the kid is 12, and the mother is 27. She had him when she was 15. If the great-grandmother is 63, my age, that means that the mother had to have been born to a young mother, herself, especially if the 63 year old great-grandmother is the mother's own grandmother. I was 18 when I had my first, and even though my ex-husband was much older, and had a stable job, becoming a mom at that age was hard enough. At 15, it must really be hard. The whole thing just seems sad to me, and I wonder if some of the kid's problems are the result of being born to a young woman not old or mature enough to know how to raise a child.

Having said that, though, I believe that having him arrested was the worst thing to do, since he's already shown some indication of behavior problems. The whole episode is a shame. Nobody wins.

[MrSlayer]

37. On it's face it seems ridiculously extreme.

However, considering this kid is a real problem child it might have been the best thing to do. The cops should have taken him in for a little "Scared Straight" treatment. The way he's going, he's going to end up in jail for doing something serious really soon.

[Tiggeroshii]

56. Yeah that's what it seems like

A lot of family's have this problem. It's hard when a child grew up without any real father figure in his life, me thinks.

[Art_from_Ark]

76. I disagree

How can you arrest someone-- especially a pre-teen-- for larceny when they are merely "taking" something that is clearly meant for them?

[MrSlayer]

92. Because if a gift isn't given yet, it isn't yours to take.

While it may have been intended for him, it wasn't his yet. I can't go raid my parents' bank accounts tomorrow because they clearly intend to give me everything eventually. Considering the kid's past behavior, this might do him some good and it might have done him better to have to go through or see some of the real humiliations prisoners deal with.

[muriel_volestrangler]

105. Is that a legal opinion?

That's a serious question - in British law, theft involves "intent to permanently deprive" - and I suspect that would apply to American law too. Since the present was clearly meant for him (unlike your bank account example, because the money is still under their control - but the present has been handed over to the son's household, and marked for him), I can't see opening your presents early as 'theft'.

Given his past behaviour, if you want action taken, then take it for a real crime, such as punching someone, or genuine theft, like shoplifting. Prosecute him for this, and he'll decide, with justification, that his family and the system are out to get him any way they can. This would be the worst possible thing to do.

[Duer 157099]

38. Good thing it wasn't a PS3 or he might've been shot n/t

[U4ikLefty]

84. Also a good thing he didn't refuse to show ID or he couldda been TAZED! n/t

[VOX]

40. Win the war on Christmas with Red-State Christian family values !!!

Yessir, nothing helps a 12-year-old boy with problems like tightening the screws some more. The kid sounds like a holy terror, if he indeed has shoplifted, punched a cop and is flunking in school.

But I'm willing to bet the farm that it just isn't the kid who's got problems -- sounds like his family plays a **big** role in his dysfunctionality.

[AlamoDemoc]

42. My thinking of the incident is that the mother felt threatened, so the police intervened

to keep the peace.

[seabeyond]

45. THERE IS A POLL. check it out 52% support this woman calling cops

i showed this thread to my 9 yr old so he would see it isn't wise to open a present early, or poke a "ooops" hole in it. lol lol. he was amazed some mama would do that and my almost 12 yr old thought that pretty bad too. my youngest went into the link to read more of the story for us to only see the poll. we of course put no because after all, as a parent i dont need the cops to do my job. and lo and behold, when we got the results of the poll, so strong in support of woman, my oldest and i both let out a a holler in surprise. color me surprised. hm....




Do you support this woman's decision to call police on her son who opened his Christmas gift early?
Choice Votes Percentage of 38388 Votes
Yes 19978 52%
No 18410 48%

[Berry Cool]

46. This is obviously a family with some problems and a kid with some problems

but if that's the case, why tell him what he's getting for Christmas, wrap it and put it under the tree so early? What, was the mother afraid that if she didn't tell him in advance what she was getting him, that he'd steal more money from her, or shoplift the game?

Scary.

[951-Riverside]

52. You can contact Cheif John H. Gregory @ [phone] or email them....

using this form: http://www.ci.rock-hill.sc.us/rhpd/contactus.asp .

[dysfunctional press]

59. thanks- i want to send a message of support for the mom and the police-

more power to her!

[karlrschneider]

68. Same here!

...

[Tiggeroshii]

55. That's really sad

I'm not sure what else to say.

[Limelight]

58. Worst Person in the World!!!

If that doesn't make Keith's list I'll be shocked.

[cynatnite]

60. You let one do it, then more will follow...

nip it in the bud now before other kids do it.

:sarcasm:

[Archae]

64. And where is this brat's Father?

Probably serving time for having a roach... :grr:

[fleabert]

67. the tag line hides a lot- what a sad story.

a mother who doesn't feel she has any support or any options beyond turning her kid over- that sucks. That kid has bigger problems that getting arrested for this. He's clearly on a fast track to a life of crime and needs help, the mother is practically begging for help.

[in_cog_ni_to]

73. Wow. Is that what they call "tough love" or what?

How mean can you be? I must be a softy of a mom because doing something like that would never even enter my mind. Poor kid. :(

[bullwinkle428]

74. Entire family - "WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD!" according to KO!

:applause:

[LoZoccolo]

75. I think this part is proof that people respond without reading the articles.

She said he has shoplifted, stolen money from her, punched a police officer and is nearing expulsion from school. She told the paper that she hopes this arrest will be a wake-up call for her son, because she worries about getting a call someday telling her he's been killed.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

77. I think that's just further evidence...

of what a horrible parent she is.

[moc]

81. yep

[moc]

78. I read the article and I still think calling the cops for opening

a present early is so inappropriate it's ludicrous.

[moc]

79. self delete

dupe

[majorjohn]

80. All I can say is - WTF?! n/t

[HCE SuiGeneris]

83. Kid is 12. Mom is 27. You do the math...

Single working mother. How is she supposed to raise a child and pay for living expenses? It's a fucked situation.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

87. The biggest mistake immature parents make

is wanting to be "friends" with the child, so they don't impose any rules. They don't want to be "mean" in the way that children and teens think of conscientious parents as being "mean" for having rules. However, eventually, the noise and disorder get to them, and they explode, usually over something minor.

How can a child grow up with any standards in such an environment? Imagine a situation where your parent just takes it passively or makes half-hearted protests if you throw your breakfast on the floor and call the parent a filthy name and run screaming aimlessly through the house but goes ballistic when your shoe comes untied. You don't learn table manners or respect for parents or the difference between inside and outside voices. All you learn is that the parent will suddenly explode for no discernible reason.

Your approach to life, therefore, becomes doing whatever the hell you want to do and doing as much of it as possible before your parent reaches the boiling point.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

90. Very well said Lydia. My post was a touch

more reactive. :blush:

[sakabatou]

95. What. the. Fuck?!

[JVS]

97. Why couldn't she just taser him?

[Canuckistanian]

98. Looks like a "tough love" scenario here

This kid was trouble. The mother seemed distraught, she just wanted to get through to the kid somehow.
Looks like it didn't work, though.

The cops really didn't have to arrest him, though. A wee bit excessive, there.

[Initech]

99. This cant be real, can it?

I mean say it's from the Onion... something. Honestly, what parent is that fucking stupid?! And are the cops that bored?

[timtom]

102. After reading many of the responses here

I went and read the article. It's not about opening the stupid present early. It's about a single mom trying to gain some control over her rogue son.

[China_cat]

107. Everybody seems to be looking down their noses

and blaming the mom, especially for getting pregnant in the first place. According to the majority of posts this makes her the worst person in the world, the author of all her son's behavior, etc, and it's making me sick.

Nobody seems to be looking at the fact that although she had a child at 15, she's now 27 and DOESN'T have 4 or 5 more all by different fathers. Nobody seems to want to give her credit for the fact that she DID go on to finish high school (a real rarity for girls that age who have babies) and is even working toward a degree. As well as working and trying to raise her kid.

And, having been where she is, I can tell you what she hasn't mentioned (mainly because she knows it makes her look even worse)...the bedwetting that's still going on at age 12, the fascination with fire, the constant stealing both at home and at school, the threats from the child about what he's going to do if you try to discipline him, the sexual predation, the cruelty to animals. You have absolutely no idea of what it's like to live with a child for whom consequences mean absolutely NOTHING, that the moment means everything. Maybe you might...after all, this is what * was as a kid.

The majority of those blaming the mother have no clue as to the toll it takes when you know you need help and it isn't available. When you see that what you are raising could turn out to be the next Charles Manson...or a corpse...and you are the ONLY one trying to stop it.

[jelly]

103. Your link contains an error

I believe you meant to link us to http://www.theonion.com.

I mean, right??

[johnnie]

106. I guess I am part of the minority here

This kid is a little punk with no respect for his elders and he has to learn to be responsible for his actions. I just saw his cousin on the news and he seemed to even agree with what they did.

[Connie_Corleone]

108. I agree too.

But also, why is the mother giving him anything if he's so much trouble? Why not punish him by not giving him what he wants for Christmas?

Take his games, tv and phone away instead.

[BoneDaddy]

109. KO had this as

the Worst of "Worse, Worser and Worst" yesterday. Apparently the family has a history of dysfunction as this example shows quite clearly.

[raccoon]

111. This woman should be charged with wasting police time.

Can that happen in the US? I've read about it in British mystery novels.

[jsamuel]

114. this hits home

my cousin had the police called on him by his parents repeatedly. Eventually, the police shot him in the head when he tried to run one time.

Don't call armed people to your house or to your child without good reason.

[AIJ Alom]

118. Clearly a causalty of the war on Christmas. Oh those darn liberals

diminishing the value of Christmas by referring to it as a holiday, everyday confusing the child and thus forcing him to play everday with his holiday gift.

[KansDem]

119. Perhaps a lump of coal in the stocking this year?