Community Chat

[Tootie15]

Absolutely no excuse, whatsoever, to "forget" a child in a car. period.

[Cakers3]

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@Peaches McPhee wrote:

Blaming the parents will not bring the child back, but it will make the blamer feel better.

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@Peaches McPhee   Feel better about what?

When a child dies in a hot car it is only natural to wonder how this can happen.

I think you would be hard pressed to find anybody who doesn't feel sad for the parents when this happens as a true accident.

[Spurt]

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@esmerelda wrote:

A child will die in a hot car much sooner than in a cold car. It’s the heat. That’s why it happens in hot weather. 

I’m in favor of whatever prevents it. However, IMO all that is needed is mindfulness, paying attention. That...and put your cell phone or bag or briefcase where the baby is and/or put the diaper bag or one of the child’s toys in the front seat as a reminder. 

I really don’t think ALL of them are unfortunate accidents. I think for some parents it’s a solution to something. 

I don’t know what the charge is, but IMO it’s close to murder and needs a severe punishment. 

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@esmerelda @elated 

We had a sad case in our area.....a woman left her kids in the car and went to a friend's house to party...."forgot" about the kids ...."mother of the year" (ultimate sarcasm)......

A Kerr County woman was charged with child endangerment after her two daughters, ages 1 and 2, were apparently left inside a car for a period of about 15 hours, according to a statement from Kerr County Sheriff Rusty Hierholzer.

The two girls passed away on Thursday at University Hospital. They were identified as Brynn Hawkins, 1, and Addyson Overgard-Eddy, 2.   He said the children were without food, water or restroom visits during their 15 hours in the car.

According to Hierholzer, the children's mother, Amanda Hawkins, 19, showed up at Peterson Regional Medical Center with the victims, claiming they had collapsed while running around and smelling flowers at Flat Rock Lake and may have gotten into something poisonous.

But investigators said they later determined the children were intentionally left in their mother's car overnight, until about noon on June 7, while Hawkins and a 16-year-old male friend were inside another friend's home.

Sheriff Hierholzer said that at some point the 16-year-old went out to the car and slept for a while but then went back inside the house. Hierholzer told us he also understood someone inside the house could even hear the children crying and told her to bring them inside the house but she didn't. 

[Cakers3]

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@Spurt wrote:

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@esmerelda wrote:

A child will die in a hot car much sooner than in a cold car. It’s the heat. That’s why it happens in hot weather. 

I’m in favor of whatever prevents it. However, IMO all that is needed is mindfulness, paying attention. That...and put your cell phone or bag or briefcase where the baby is and/or put the diaper bag or one of the child’s toys in the front seat as a reminder. 

I really don’t think ALL of them are unfortunate accidents. I think for some parents it’s a solution to something. 

I don’t know what the charge is, but IMO it’s close to murder and needs a severe punishment. 

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@esmerelda 

We had a sad case here.....a woman left her kids in the car and went to a friend's house ....forgot about the kids ...."mother of the year" (ultimate sarcasm)......

A Kerr County woman was charged with child endangerment after her two daughters, ages 1 and 2, were apparently left inside a car for a period of about 15 hours, according to a statement from Kerr County Sheriff Rusty Hierholzer.

The two girls passed away on Thursday at University Hospital. They were identified as Brynn Hawkins, 1, and Addyson Overgard-Eddy, 2.   He said the children were without food, water or restroom visits during their 15 hours in the car.

According to Hierholzer, the children's mother, Amanda Hawkins, 19, showed up at Peterson Regional Medical Center with the victims, claiming they had collapsed while running around and smelling flowers at Flat Rock Lake and may have gotten into something poisonous.

But investigators said they later determined the children were intentionally left in their mother's car overnight, until about noon on June 7, while Hawkins and a 16-year-old male friend were inside another friend's home.

Sheriff Hierholzer said that at some point the 16-year-old went out to the car and slept for a while but then went back inside the house. Hierholzer told us he also understood someone inside the house could even hear the children crying and told her to bring them inside the house but she didn't. 

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@SpurtDidn't she receive 40 years in prison?

The teen is also up on 1st degree murder charges, but I haven't kept up with this case.

What bothers me is that people heard the children crying and bought her story that they would eventually  fall asleep.

She wrote letters in prison to 3(?) men saying she was a sex addict.  Seems she wanted somebody without the children in the way.

Shades of Susan Smith.

[Spurt]

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@Cakers3 wrote:

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@Spurt wrote:

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@esmerelda wrote:

A child will die in a hot car much sooner than in a cold car. It’s the heat. That’s why it happens in hot weather. 

I’m in favor of whatever prevents it. However, IMO all that is needed is mindfulness, paying attention. That...and put your cell phone or bag or briefcase where the baby is and/or put the diaper bag or one of the child’s toys in the front seat as a reminder. 

I really don’t think ALL of them are unfortunate accidents. I think for some parents it’s a solution to something. 

I don’t know what the charge is, but IMO it’s close to murder and needs a severe punishment. 

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@esmerelda 

We had a sad case here.....a woman left her kids in the car and went to a friend's house ....forgot about the kids ...."mother of the year" (ultimate sarcasm)......

A Kerr County woman was charged with child endangerment after her two daughters, ages 1 and 2, were apparently left inside a car for a period of about 15 hours, according to a statement from Kerr County Sheriff Rusty Hierholzer.

The two girls passed away on Thursday at University Hospital. They were identified as Brynn Hawkins, 1, and Addyson Overgard-Eddy, 2.   He said the children were without food, water or restroom visits during their 15 hours in the car.

According to Hierholzer, the children's mother, Amanda Hawkins, 19, showed up at Peterson Regional Medical Center with the victims, claiming they had collapsed while running around and smelling flowers at Flat Rock Lake and may have gotten into something poisonous.

But investigators said they later determined the children were intentionally left in their mother's car overnight, until about noon on June 7, while Hawkins and a 16-year-old male friend were inside another friend's home.

Sheriff Hierholzer said that at some point the 16-year-old went out to the car and slept for a while but then went back inside the house. Hierholzer told us he also understood someone inside the house could even hear the children crying and told her to bring them inside the house but she didn't. 

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@SpurtDidn't she receive 40 years in prison?

The teen is also up on 1st degree murder charges, but I haven't kept up with this case.

What bothers me is that people heard the children crying and bought her story that they would eventually  fall asleep.

She wrote letters in prison to 3(?) men saying she was a sex addict.  Seems she wanted somebody without the children in the way.

Shades of Susan Smith.

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@Cakers3 

Yep she ended up getting 40 yrs...so sad...she didnt want the burden of kids around...guess it would spoil her fun...😠

“Those precious little girls would still be here today if this had not happened,” Judge Keith Williams told Hawkins during the trial. “People in our community take better care of their pets than you took care of your kids.”

Williams imposed four sentences of 20 years each, with two sets running concurrently, bringing her total sentence to 40 years.

[Spurt]

Many states have laws giving people permission to break windows and get kids out without penalties if they see this ...And some states have same law for pets too....

[dex]

@Spurt @If I saw a child in a hot car or an animal I would break the window even when f it was against the law.I don’t think I would go to prison for trying to save a life.

[CAMOGIRL]

OK then ...

these people are losers.

They obviously left their brain somewhere along the way too.

[beckyb1012]

We had one here in our Texas county back in August 2006 (triple digit heat that day) and the five month old was left in the car by her law enforcement Dad.  He did not usually take the child to daycare but told his wife he would and went straight to work got in his police car and went to another town for a special class.  I recently looked to see how their life went on and he is still in law enforcement and they had another daughter a couple of years later.  There was a photo of him and his wife a while back burying his police dog who passed.  It hurts to think of all those children crying for help and trapped.

[Spurt]

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@dex wrote:

@Spurt @If I saw a child in a hot car or an animal I would break the window even when f it was against the law.I don’t think I would go to prison for trying to save a life.

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@dex 

yep, you just cant ignore saving a life of a child or animal......

It depends on how the state law is written, but even if it's not a crime, in some states people can still take you to civil court for damages to their window (the deed would still be worth it to save a life)....

Now you would think one would look foolish taking someone to civil court in this situation and so they wouldn't pursue a court case, but never under estimate the stupidity of people....There was a court case for this very situation on Judge Judy....A woman left her dog in the car on a hot day and a Good Samaritan broke the window to save the dog, and the dog owner took her to court for her damaged window......Judge Judy called her out and ruled in favor of the Good Samaritan stating the dog was left in a dangerous and irresponsible situation and the passerby acted prudently.....