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Reminder: Don't leave your kids in the car!

I know we all see stories like this in the news all of the time. This shouldn't happen at all.

Always get your kids out of the car FIRST after arriving at your destination. I know the typical TFP user probably knows this, so if you see someone not heeding this advice, educate them!

Also, while walking back to the car in hot parking lots this summer, take a look around during your walk. You might be the lucky break some kid needs.

http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/West/07/0....ap/index.html

Quote:

Young boys die in sweltering SUV

LANCASTER, California (AP) -- The foster mother of two young boys who died after being left five hours in a sweltering sport utility vehicle was arrested for investigation of child endangerment.

Leslie Sue Smoot, 48, was booked late Tuesday night and held on $100,000 bail. No court date was scheduled.

Sheriff Lee Baca said earlier Tuesday that those responsible for leaving the children in the car would be charged with child endangerment and possibly manslaughter.

"Vehicles are not playpens," he said. "Vehicles are not baby sitters. And vehicles, when they are not properly ventilated, are death traps."

Smoot told authorities she left the boys, ages 3 and 5, in the car around 9 a.m. outside A Child's Place Daycare, which she ran.

"She indicated she thought someone else was going to get the children out of the car, possibly her husband," Los Angeles County sheriff's Lt. Al Grotefend said. "There was some miscommunication."

Smoot told investigators she discovered the boys in their car seats when she returned in the afternoon and pulled them from the vehicle.

The 5-year-old was dead. His brother, who was severely dehydrated, died a short time later at a hospital, sheriff's Sgt. Paul Patterson said.

Afternoon temperatures hovered around 100 degrees in the high desert town about 70 miles northeast of Los Angeles.

Officials from the Department of Children and Family Services said they will investigate.

A woman who answered the phone at A Child's Place Daycare declined to comment. Friends and parents gathered Tuesday at the 24-hour day care center.

Naeemah Edwards, whose daughter attended the center, told KABC-TV she was shocked.

"They come in with my daughter, and they play together," she said, adding that she would not let her child to return to the center.

I leave my baby in the car all the time... you just need to leave the windows open a crack and give them a bottle of water to keep hydrated. She is always sleeping peacefully when I come back.

yikes...

you think that parents would learn by now........how many babies have died cuz of this.

Two incidents with kids locked in cars both end well

BY JASON KUIPER

WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Two separate instances involving kids and keys locked in vehicles Tuesday were solved quickly by law enforcement as temperatures reached into the 90s.

The first incident was at a Cox Communications payment center on 76th Street when a parent accidentally locked a 5-year-old in the car. The parent called a locksmith, then called 911 for an officer. The child was not responding and the officer broke a window to the car. The child was sleeping and was unharmed.

The second incident happened just before 6 p.m. in the parking lot of Albertsons at 2011 N. 156th St., when a mother accidentally locked her infant and dog in her sport utility vehicle. The back window was open a few inches, allowing some ventilation in the vehicle. It was accidental and no charges will be filed, said a Douglas County sheriff's official.

"If she would have locked the child and dog in the car and shopped it would been totally different," said Sgt. Matt Martin.

Martin said the woman contacted the Sheriff's Office and a deputy escorted her to her house less than a mile away to get a spare set of keys. Another deputy stayed with the vehicle, which was still cool inside when they opened it, Martin said.

Charges can vary when children or pets are left in vehicles. Martin said it depends on how long they were locked in the vehicle and whether the child or pet is harmed. Felony charges could be filed if the child or pet is hurt and the person was being neglectful, Martin said.

"You want to be careful of locking your kids in the car any day but especially on cold or hot days," he said.

People should try to carry a spare set of keys just in case they accidentally lock themselves out and a loved one in. Martin said the office's K9 units leave the vehicles locked and the air conditioning on whenever they exit the car, even for a short time. They also carry spare keys.

Accidents can happen. People just need to learn to be more carefull. As for those that intentionaly leave their kids in the car while running "a quick" errand...just shoot 'em. These people really need to be put out of my misery.

i remember being like 7-10 and not wanting to go in the store with my mom... if it wasnt extremely hot she would let me stay in the car... i would always open all the windows and just sit there reading my book...

but when its babies and its 100 degrees outside thats just not cool...

GRR that mother in the first article makes me mad! How do you leave your kids out in the car for 5 hours. Even if she really was telling the truth about her husband picking them up, don't you think she would bring them in the day care with her, or at least CHECK ON THEM? Something really doesn't sound right about that story.WTF! Dumbass people should not be breeding, thank god she was only a foster parent and hopefully has no kids of her own... I hope they lock her up for a long time!

I believe we all know where I stand on this issue. Guess I will skip the rabble rousing this round.

Still good info boner.

How does someone ever justify leaving a child/children that young alone in a vehicle?
Hell, I even make the 10yr/old drag her butt along after me.

This is just a very sad situation for everyone involved. How could the mom not have seen the kids for five hours and not be worried or wonder where they are? I feel sorry for everyone involved.

Ok, she was a DAYCARE OWNER. I mean, she was PAID to keep children safe.

Sad, sad, sad. They were being very, very good little ones and didn't leave the car. I'm sure they were told not to by the adult, who must know what's best. Eventually the heat made them very, very sleepy and they went to sleep. At least there was no pain or suffering. Sad, sad, sad. It makes me weep.

Geez, it can get scorching hot in Lancaster this time of year, a locked up car is not the place to be.

What a stupid bitch. This really torques me. A waste of a human being lives while her young kids die. What a cruel, cruel world. Unfortuately, we get a few of these incidents every summer here in Cali.

The stupidity of people today is astounding. Hi I'm Mr. Dumbass I am going to roll up my windows so my Escalde doesn't get stolen. And I while I am gone I will have my babies stay in the car to protect it while it reaches temps up to 150. WOW....I think we should leave parents locked in a car like that to see how if feels. It's just horrible, no living thing should have to go through that type of pain.