JUST IN: Police were called to a home a short time ago to find four children home alone-with the oldest among them eleven years old and the youngest just six months old. Apparently, the mother had stepped out for a few minutes leaving the oldest to babysit. However, upon hearing a knock at the door, one of the children got frightened and called the police. Police arrived moments before the mother-to find the children unattended. Although a neighbor was left monitoring the children, apparently this did not suffice, and upon his arrival, the officer contacted DYFS (Division of Youth and Family Services) to deal with the situation. Several Askonim are working with the authorities on the case at this time.U/D 12:11 a.m. DYFS just left the home and Baruch Hashem they were pleased with what they heard and saw. The parents are not facing any charges.
30 comments:
is there a lawer on this Blog that could clarify to the chosheve oilem, what is the minimum leagle age required for a child to be left alone?, and what is the minimum leagle age for a child to be a babysiter for his or her siblings?
Thank you
It doesn't matter to the government how leagle or illeagle you are. The main thing in the leagaleity of things is that everything is LEGAL!
The child should have ignored the knock and called a trusted neighbor, friend or relative instead.I don't consider the mother negligent. I used to babysit when I was 12 years old back in the good old days before DYFS and all those other reshaim.
call the buff unit, they will protect them against a burglar instead of calling 911 and when they get shot. Who will you blame now.. Come on - the kids did what was learned about needing help (911) They should not be punished for doing the right thing. Maybe the parents should stand up and take blame for leaving them home and not having an emergency contact. A monitor obviously did not work, since police arrived before the neighbor
I don't get it. If the mother thinks that her 11-year-old is old enough to babysit, why leave a monitor with a neighbor? Obviously she doesn't trust the 11-year-old enough. If you don't trust your kid, DON'T let him/her babysit! Drop the kid by a neighbor for the "few minutes" that you're stepping out, or bring them with you. Yes, it's inconvenient, but it's better than the alternative, many times. I am so against leaving kids with monitors. If a kid passes out from carbon monoxide poisoning, if a fire breaks out, the neighbor WILL NOT hear it. And monitors DO NOT ALWAYS WORK!!! Don't compromise your kids' safety for your convenience. It's not worth it.
LEGAL, people! Learn how to spell!
I know this is old but the age to babysit is 16 even siblings
I went to look this up and could not find that nj had an age law
How about some rachmonis. Think about the tzaar of the parents and the potential sholom bayis blow up.
To anonymous at 8:48, you really know how to spell out doomsday!!! Why not write also that the roof can cave in, a massive flood will overcome the house or that a kid will drown?!!!!!
what did the rosh hashiva have to say
Ouch, what a mess, we all leave our kids with "older" siblings for a few min.
please check your information. The legal age is 13 or 12 if the child is certified. All of my kids were certified. there are courses all over town.
It's spelled LEGAL people, learn to spell !!!!!
to anon 1130 y don't YOU check your facts. there is no legal age. its a matter of maturity.
Instead of commenting say a Kapital Tehillim for this poor family who may have months or years of tzoros and who knows wat else
I spoke to a neighbor and he clarified that the whole story was blown way out of proportion. All though I don’t commend the mother for doing so, the story went as follows; the mother went out to drop a child of a few blocks away and told the neighbor to look out for the kids for a few. Either a gardener or deliver guy came up to the door and was ringing and banging on the door quite excessively which frightened the kids so they called the police. 3 patrolmen showed up, the neighbor came by and informed them that he’s in charge. They were satisfied and 2 of them left. The 3rd, Patrolman Hunter wasn’t satisfied and decided it was necessary to call DYFS. The neighbor tried to have some sort of intelligent conversation but no matter he said he stuck to his guns and said he was calling DYFS. He then proceeded to call in front of all and he played this up so huge that one would think this was the worst mother in the world. It was quite obvious that there was some hidden agenda here and he wasn’t so extremely concerned with the welfare of the children who were just fine and under the neighbors watch
If a child takes the safety course by a certified provider, the LEGAL age is 11yrs. old. My wife was sick a couple of years ago & was away from the house for a few months. I did the research and yes NJ does have laws, it's not just based on maturity. (An immature s'vorah)
To anon 1:26 A:M
Please don't make this into a whole issue with "agendas"...Not everything the cops do has an agenda. Quit it already!
call obama !! maybe he can create a babysitting czar. i am sure someone has his number
yes, i would think an 11 yr old is definitely old enough to be left babysitting for a short period of time especially during the daylight hours. im curious though, do ppl never take a shower unless their spouse is home babysitting?? its almost the same as running out for a few minutes.
now the cop has an agenda....you know you are so dim 1:26 and whoever attacked 8:48 needs a reality check also, you know about a year or 2 frum parents left their children home alone with their eldest and went out of town for a week and their home caught fire and destroyed the home, some of those children had to be rescued from the burning home, so don't act like it can't happen, just thank G-d none the children were hurt, i'm sure this mother cares for her children as she did ask the neighbor to keep an eye on them but someone of greater age and maturity should have been supervising them directly, the officer was reasonable in calling DYFS, i myself have called them after repeatedly watching a mother leave her 2 year old unattended while she was down the street talking to a friend, my wife and i spoke with her and her husband and they showed a complete lack of concern, finally my wife witnessed the child almost get run over when it ran out into the street, that was when i called.
The issue is not whether or not a Cop has an agenda . The system needs to be changed . patreolman do a generally great job of preventing crimes . when it comes to decisions similar to calling DYFS or other matters like that ,not every regular policeman ,necessaeily has the correct judgement to make those decisions . Since these can have very serious consequences for the family involved ,it should be required that only a specially trained superior reporting directly to the Chief ,make those types of decisions . It is not necessary for every cop on the beat to automatically call DYFS without consulting his superiors and getting permission . The cop should be required to turn the matter over to a seasoned well trained superior . Once DYFS is called ,even erroneously ,a familiyes life can be irrevocably turned over .
You should never ever call DYFS. They are a bunch of mamzeirim who just want to take away people's children. I KNOW from experience.
10:23
you are actually boasting about being a mossar? WOW! Nothing left to say.
To Anonymous 10:23....
You should've called a Rav or someone that the family would listen to. You don't just call DYFS!
Hello-adults pass out from Carbon Monoxide too. You have to leave something up to Shamayim-after doing the utmost Hishtadlus yourself. An 11 year old is capable of watching her siblings for a few moments during the day. You see she did the right thing - when she was frightened, she called the cops instead of taking everyone and hiding under a bed or something... Get a life, everyone! The cop was being ridiculous (no agenda, maybe, just plain old dumb)
A parent who leaves the house with a child that age absolutely must leave a cell phone no. where they can be reached. It is also OK to instruct children not to answer the door for a stranger when they are alone at home. Often enough, you wold not want to answer the door even if the mother is home! Parents should also know their child. There are super responsible 11 year olds and deplorably irresponsible 16 year olds!
Whats the family name? Yoish!
I once called the police department to try and verify what age is legal to leave kids home babysitting. the officer was not sure- he said he thinks it depends on the maturity of the child and that he himself recalls being left home alone at quite a young age.
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