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I do nothing everyday. I always see young children outside by themselves. They may or may not be within visual distance from their homes. I have no idea because I don't know where they all live. It's not my business unless they are visibly distressed. If they are happily playing or contently sitting somewhere, there's no reason to intervene. I have intervened in the past when a child was in distress. Simply seeing a child sitting on a bench doesn't even warrant having a conversation. There's no reason to investigate if a child isn't upset.
Yeah, I've been trying to think about this more. There are not many kids running around in my neighborhood. In fact there are very few. Thinking back I recall seeing a couple of boys playing at the park without any adults before. The only thing I said to them is, "cool bike" because one of them had a really unique bike. It never occurred to me to call the police or bring them home. If they were crying or something, I would ask them if they were ok and help them if they needed help but it would never cross my mind to call the cops or to bring them home just because they were outside without an adult present.
If the neighbor had simply been concerned (and not wanting to stir something up) she could have asked which house the child lived in and then gone to the door and said "I don't mean to butt into your day, but it worried me seeing your son out here alone and I wanted to make sure he has your permission to be there. I worry about it when I see children that young by themselves."
She didn't need to even escort the child home. And she sure as heck didn't need to call the police!
Once police are involved, they have to report the complaint to CPS.
I would be upset that my kids were thinking they had to have done something wrong to be taken aside and asked those questions. Plus, they may be getting snips of things and be wondering if someone thinks their mommy isn't a good mom or that she has make some kind of mistake. Any of those scenarios was unnecessary and now has put questions in those kids' minds.
Again, if the neighbor were concerned, there were ways to handle it other than calling the police.
I went for miles-long walks alone in the woods starting at age 6. Before that at age 3-5 I clearly remember playing in our backyard alone. We definitely live in a different world (and I'm not that old!). It's a shame when CPS is used punitively to one-up a parent.
If the neighbor had simply been concerned (and not wanting to stir something up) she could have asked which house the child lived in and then gone to the door and said "I don't mean to butt into your day, but it worried me seeing your son out here alone and I wanted to make sure he has your permission to be there. I worry about it when I see children that young by themselves."
She didn't need to even escort the child home. And she sure as heck didn't need to call the police!
Once police are involved, they have to report the complaint to CPS.
I would be upset that my kids were thinking they had to have done something wrong to be taken aside and asked those questions. Plus, they may be getting snips of things and be wondering if someone thinks their mommy isn't a good mom or that she has make some kind of mistake. Any of those scenarios was unnecessary and now has put questions in those kids' minds.
Again, if the neighbor were concerned, there were ways to handle it other than calling the police.
According to the OP, the neighbor did take the child home and called the police afterwards. I'll bet the mother gave her a piece of her mind when she showed up with her child and lectured her about her child being outside. That probably made the neighbor mad and decided to call the police to "show her!" People can be vindictive idiots.
What I find interesting is that if the child had been abducted or hit by a car, everyone who is currently supporting the mom would have been saying "Where were the parents? Who was watching that kid?"
A mother in Texas allowed her six year old son to play outside. A neighbor saw the boy sitting on a bench, 150 yards away from his house and returned him to his mother, letting the mom know that he should be inside with an adult. The police knocked on mom's door a few minutes later and CPS followed up shortly thereafter. CPS advised the mother to not let the boy play outside alone again, not for safety reasons but rather due to the possibility that someone might call the police again. Texan mother's anger after neighbor calls Child Protection Services because she let son play outside | Daily Mail Online
Is it just me or are these types of stories becoming more common? I think that parents have the right to decide if their child is mature enough to handle playing outside alone. The mother in this case decided that he was. Now, due to a neighbor complaint, she is no longer able to allow him to do something that he surely enjoys and one that she feels is safe. I also wonder what kind of neighbor calls the police for something like this.
"I also wonder what kind of neighbor calls the police for something like this."
I miss the old days of when I was a kid... Or when my kids were kids.. We and they played outside, rode bikes, walked to school and elsewhere.. Had a really fun time..
Nowadays you do not see kids outside because there are too many evil people in the world, too many NOSY people in the world and everyone trying to be the hero by calling, police, CPS, Social Services, etc....
We are or have become a nation of stay inside kids who develop things like diabetes, obesity, or other chronic things cause they do not go outside in the fresh air and have fun, work their muscles and minds and enjoy life.. It's really really sad......
I miss the old days of when I was a kid... Or when my kids were kids.. We and they played outside, rode bikes, walked to school and elsewhere.. Had a really fun time..
Nowadays you do not see kids outside because there are too many evil people in the world, too many NOSY people in the world and everyone trying to be the hero by calling, police, CPS, Social Services, etc....
We are or have become a nation of stay inside kids who develop things like diabetes, obesity, or other chronic things cause they do not go outside in the fresh air and have fun, work their muscles and minds and enjoy life.. It's really really sad......
It is sad. My fondest memories of childhood all involve being out and about all over my neighborhood with friends. Riding bikes, climbing trees, wading in the river, catching frogs, fishing, playing all kinds of games. Good times. Some of the best.
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