A Georgia mother, Brittany Patterson, was arrested after her 10-year-old son was found walking into town alone. Patterson is facing a misdemeanor charge of reckless conduct following the incident.
The young boy was spotted by concerned citizens as he made his way through town alone, prompting authorities to intervene and locate his mother. It is unclear why the child was allowed to wander off without supervision, but the situation has raised questions about parental responsibility and child safety.
Cases like these serve as a reminder of the importance of ensuring children are properly supervised and cared for at all times. The well-being and safety of children should be a top priority for parents, and incidents like this highlight the potential consequences of neglecting this duty.
Patterson’s arrest serves as a cautionary tale for parents everywhere, emphasizing the need to prioritize the safety and well-being of their children. Authorities are likely to continue monitoring the situation to ensure that proper measures are taken to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.
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Kinda stupid.
If they need a financial boost, they could have asked for donations, why are there targeting this woman?
Don't take the plea, a jury will see right through this.
They are treating the kid like a fetus.
Since when do Republicans care about the wellbeing of children that have actually been born?
You asked for this America. Bye freedom.
All of our parents would be locked up if you born before 1990. Not that it’s ok. That’s just how it was…
Good charge her and jail!!
Most public school districts in the US allow children in 3rd Grade, and above, to be “walkers”, and go home alone if they opt not to take the school bus, unless there are “hazardous” conditions of either weather or road; additionally, the family may be “turned in” to the Department of Children Services, although in no jurisdiction in the US that I am aware of, the Department explicitly states an age when a minor under the age of 18, may be left alone, leaving the Department to make its own determination.
Getting fined for literally the same thing every parent in the history of ever did in the 60s, 70s and 80s? Insane. Free-Range parenting it was called. Get into it.
Today a different world even in small town US .
Sounds very odd. I know that today it is normal to report to the police if one sees a 4 year old walking around alone, it was probably not normal to do this 80 years ago.
As a kid in the 80's, I would jog for a mile and a half at 4am everyday. I loved it. Just waiting for the sun to rise and be home when the sun was up. Mom would be asleep as she comes home late after midnight. At lunchtime we would happily talk about my jog and sunrise. I am now a successful professional and independent adult. Life has productive rewards when you grow up normally.
The police there have nothing to do and need to find an easy target to generate revenue.
And then they complain kids are too obese. I wonder why.🤪
Name of the officer?
A paedophile gets a lit sentence,..but a child walking to town,is a crime against the mom????😂American law ….is a joke
Tyrannical nonsense.
Wats her @ tho
I don't think she intended to neglect the child. That's a big difference. 2nd, If the govt system always does this, I don't think you can expect any parent to do other things besides to look for their own child. So in the end, It's till best I guess for you to not have children
Wow
This is so
Messed up .
She is no criminal the county needs to drop the charges, today!
Absolutely nuts.
wow, i lived in ecorse, mi
at that age, and just had to be home when the street lights came on.
even rode my bike to the tigers stadium once.. i did get in trouble for that one.
Her nonchalant attitude is as disturbing as her not knowing where he was.
The thing is if I remember correctly, at least in Massachusetts you cannot legally leave a child on his or her own without supervision somewhere nearby until 12 years of age. Believe me back home in my country I was already babysitting at eight. I was responsible and I was a good sitter. But that’s not how this established in this country and there is a reason why. in case any eventuality young kids do not have the same experience as older ones. Also, they do not have the same physical power as somebody older. Small town got it but plenty could have gone wrong. Even when my son wanted me to leave him alone at home, not before legal age. But maybe I’m overprotective who knows.
I can’t believe you first several commenters, thinking it’s ok to leave this ten-year-old home alone. Maybe during dire circumstances, or where there’s some sort of socioeconomic struggle occurring. But this family obviously has the resources to provide emergency care for their young son. This is not the culture our great grandparents grew up in. There’s real danger out there. C’ mon people!
Police need to use better judgement!! Don’t tell parents how to raise their kids!!!
When I was 7 walked to elementary school and it was a couple miles each way.And oh yeah, it was winter with biting cold. All the kids did that back in the 60's.
I can understand both sides of this story, all though we didn't hear from the Law Enforcement officer, or department.
The officer probably knows about crimes against children.
The mother said it was a small town, and felt it was safe for the boy to be alone while she was away.
We also don't know how far away she was.
We also don't know the menatl state of the child. Some children are very intuitive to dangers, other not so.
Please be aware of predators (human and animal) in your area. There are apps available that alert you to registered offenders in your area.
ACAB!!!
Where’s the dad?
I grew up in Georgia. We used to play outside and walk and ride our bikes everywhere. This Is crazy!
According to some people biological mothers can't do anything right. If a biological mom used only the level of force necessary to prevent their 10 year old child from disobeying them by walking to town alone then they are at fault. If a biological mom did not use force to prevent a rebelious 10 year old from walking alone to town while his mother's back was turned not long before she then began to look for him then she is at fault according to the same crowd too.
My goodness this is world we live in is absolutely ridiculous. This is the woke snowflake effect slipping into every fiber of society.
isn’t that called abandonment of a minor?
Absurd and disturbing. The goal is to raise children to be independent and responsible, not perpetual children.
I see kids even younger than that walking around town all of the time. What about trick or treaters? Are parents supposed to accompany them down the street? How about the millions of kids who walk to school? Are ten year olds not supposed to be let out? Unbelievable! Unless something is missing in the story, this is appalling!
OHMYGAWD! I WAS A LATCHKEY KID AT AGE 5. I WALKED TO AND FROM SCHOOL EVERY DAY, ABOUT A HALF MILE. I WAS RIDING MASS TRANSIT BY AGE 12. WE USED TO RIDE AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD TILL THE LIGHTS CAME ON. I WAS COOKING FOR MYSELF AT AGE 5.
Traumatic experience for her son. Disgraceful.
Those laws are draconian. As a tween I regularly walked across state lines, sometimes taking hours. Kids want to explore their worlds. Caging a kid's mother for something like this is the absolute worst idea they could come up with.