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scottgr
06-25-2007, 09:29 PM
Did you all see this ? What are these parents thinking ? (I don't think this was posted yet)

Parents of a 3-year-old were charged with child abuse after their daughter was left alone for 30 minutes outside of a Walt Disney World attraction in 90-degree heat, according to police.

Authorities said concerned guests moved a sleeping girl's stroller out of direct sunlight Monday and into some shade and called for help.

When investigators found the parents, they said there was confusion about who had the child


Its real

http://www.local6.com/news/13567345/detail.html

Dizneyfan
06-25-2007, 11:24 PM
This is absolutely horrible. Hopefully the little girl will be okay. I cannot believe that her parents would leave her by herself in the scorching heat!!!:confused:

mttafire
06-26-2007, 12:07 AM
Ive said it before that.."just because you have kids, that DOESNT make you a parent". These folks should get the FULL penalty of the law and as for the child..I feel sorry that her parents are obviously ignorant and mindless.

Sean Riley Taylor's Mom
06-26-2007, 12:13 AM
Ive said it before that.."just because you have kids, that DOESNT make you a parent". These folks should get the FULL penalty of the law and as for the child..I feel sorry that her parents are obviously ignorant and mindless.

I could not agree more. :(

I am the first to admit my husband and I might think the other threw the laundry in and it never got done, etc. BUT...confuse if one of us had the kids?? What the heck?!

Poor little girl.

chrisb26
06-26-2007, 12:36 AM
This is terrible some people are just not meant to have children. Unfortunantly part of going to WDW with children is the possiblity of not riding certain attractions. I don't know how they would just leave their kid sitting there in the sun.

DREAMADREAM93
06-26-2007, 12:41 AM
Wow, you have to be pretty ... flighty for lack of a better word... to have a mix up on which parent has the kid. That's just sad and these people should be punished. What kind of a parent even leaves room for that kind of a mix up!?

Poor kiddd...

JOrdan :]

mrsgaribaldi
06-26-2007, 12:58 AM
I know it's true but it's UNBELIEVABLE
The poor kid :shake:

Ian
06-26-2007, 10:50 AM
Whenever I read stories like this I always harken back to Keanu Reeves line from the film Parenthood.


You know Mrs. Buchman, you need a license to drive a car or to buy a dog. Heck, you even need a license to catch a fish! But they'll let any [idiot] be a father.

I understand things get crazy sometimes, but where your 3 year old is should be something you square away FIRST, before you do anything else.

TheRustyScupper
06-26-2007, 11:23 AM
1) The story makes me sick.
2) No, the story makes me mad.
3) The "I thought the other one had the kid" is lame.
4) Let's hope they get punished.
5) And, some parenting classes.

BriarRose
06-26-2007, 11:29 AM
Two Orange County parents were arrested on child-abuse charges after telling authorities they accidentally left their 3-year-old daughter in a stroller while they rode Pirates of the Caribbean at Walt Disney World.

A Magic Kingdom patron alerted park management about 4:45 p.m. Saturday after spotting the girl in a stroller parked in the sun, according to a report released Monday by the Orange County Sheriff's Office.

The girl was hot, turning red, covered in sweat and appeared to be "lifeless," the report states.

A paramedic touched and shook her, but she failed to respond.

Saturday's highs were in the low 90s with no rain, and deputies estimate the child was in the sun for 45 minutes to an hour.

Paramedics revived the girl by taking her indoors and giving her water.

Deputies said the heat might have become deadly.

"[A paramedic] advised that if medical intervention had not been administered the female child was nearing signs of heat exhaustion with unknown results up to and including death," the report states.

Parents Juan Carlos, 35, and Danette Rodriguez, 32, approached park workers, seeking their daughter, about 50 minutes later.

The couple said the girl was asleep inside a double stroller and got lost in the shuffle as their group of two adults and four children approached the ride, they told investigators.

When they entered the attraction, the father said he thought his wife had their daughter, while she thought her husband had her.

Shortly afterward, the father went back outside to move the stroller to a designated area but failed to see the little girl, he told deputies.

The parents realized their daughter was missing only after they left the ride.

The couple, of Cypress Trail Drive, were arrested on one count each of child abuse and released from the Orange County Jail on Sunday on $2,500 bail each.

They could not be reached for comment Monday night.

The children were turned over to relatives while the Department of Children & Families investigates.

ghost999
06-26-2007, 11:53 AM
just exactly HOW did this happen and Why did they do this:mickey:

mickey&missy
06-26-2007, 12:38 PM
OMG! I'm glad the little girl is ok! How terrible.

tracy65
06-26-2007, 12:44 PM
How can you not know for sure where your babies are? Riding a ride is not that important.

BashfulMom
06-26-2007, 12:47 PM
That is ridiculous! :ack: :-o

DisneyDreams09
06-26-2007, 12:53 PM
This sort of thing just floors me, I have a 4 year old that we took last year when he was three, and not two minutes went by when I wasn't doing a body count of our whole party, it wasn't some **** retentive thing I was doing, just out of instinct.
And also if they were in line together even if there were quite a few in their party wouldn't they still be close enough to see eachother?:confused: I would think so anyway...
And if it really was intentional then shame on them, they are darn lucky she was still there, there are alot of times it would have been extremely likely that she would have been snatched up and they would have never seen her again.

I am glad the cms found her in time, so glad shes ok.

Hope it doesn't sound like I am venting! :)

Have a great day everyone!


Rachael the Newbie:mickey:

USCTinkerbell
06-26-2007, 12:55 PM
That is absolutely unbeleivable!
Out of all of those in their party, you would think someone would have known where that baby was!:ack:

kathiep
06-26-2007, 01:05 PM
How terrible to think something this awful can happen in a place that is supposed to be so magical.

thrillme
06-26-2007, 01:40 PM
Come on...they were "together" obviously. They should have figured neither had the child. They KNEW they left her behind because she was "sleeping".

It's so sad people like that are allowed to breed.

DREAMADREAM93
06-26-2007, 01:46 PM
Oh my goodness. They ARE very lucky that the girl wasn't abducted. Florida is ranked number one in child abductions and that family - who in my opinion doesnt deserve children after a stupid mistake like this - is very lucky that the little girl is okay. Wow that is infuriating...

JOrdan :]

PawleyPlatoon
06-26-2007, 03:15 PM
Even if there were confusion over who was in charge of the baby and stroller, SOMEBODY had to park it and walk away from it.

mttafire
06-26-2007, 03:20 PM
The only good thing to come out of this story(other than the girl being ok) is that fellow vacationeers or Disney employees were attentive enough to notice and help this child. Kudos to whomever helped.:thumbsup:

RenDuran
06-26-2007, 03:30 PM
How sad for that kid. I don't understand people. I won't even leave my little boy out in our yard unattended and these people were leaving their child out in the sun and in the midst of thousands of strangers! They are truly fortunate nothing bad happened to her, beyond the fact that they're her parents.

tink'72
06-26-2007, 03:30 PM
When they entered the attraction, the father said he thought his wife had their daughter, while she thought her husband had her.

I don't know about anybody else but we usually ride as a family..our 4 year old included. If we can't all go on a particular ride one of us stays with the baby and goes on a ride with him that he can go on and the other goes with the older 2 kids. My husband and I never ASSUME one of us has our kids we KNOW who has the kids.:mad:

This is awful...thankfully some patrons stepped in or the ending could have been tragic!

Marilyn Michetti
06-26-2007, 06:36 PM
It's hard to believe, (but MAYBE possible), that it could happen the way the parents said. The crowds are so massive, and there are so many strollers...you could blink and lose sight of who is where. I would think that it would take less than 50 min. if it were my baby, but if they were in a line??????

Their parenting habits will improve dramatically if this is the way the incident really played out, but it sure warrents an investigation.

I'm glad the baby is O.K. We're in Az., and there are so many stories on the news about babies and pets being left in a car that's 150 degrees inside. Hard to believe, but some of the stories are truly accidents - fatal, life changing accidents.:shake:

January-2007
06-26-2007, 06:42 PM
This is incredibly sad. I can't believe parents could do this to their child.

snifflesmcg
06-26-2007, 06:52 PM
This irks me! They should never be allowed to be parents again. Somebody would be more than willing to give this little one a good home. It's a shame it's so hard to adopt........in THIS country.

PAYROLL PRINCESS
06-26-2007, 07:26 PM
I'm glad the little girl is going to be OK. It's not like the size of their party was so large they couldn't see who was where. They knew exactly what they were doing. They probably figured they were in Disney, what bad could happen? Time for a reality check!

playdead88
06-27-2007, 06:13 AM
i wonder which parent is taking the blame for parking the stroller with the girl in it! someone had to park the stroller with the child in it and walk away - which makes their lame excuse even more unbelievable!

hopefully that little girl will be able to come to disney one day with people who can show her disney world is magical and not a scarry place.

Goofster
06-27-2007, 02:07 PM
Their story doesn't add up, which is why they were arrested and their children taken under the eye of protective services.

Their story would be believable if one parent went to Pirates and the other went to the Tiki room thinking the other parent was going to remove the child from the stroller and take her on that respective attraction. BUT, they both went on the SAME ride. One of the parents had to park the stroller...and WALK AWAY!!!! We're not buying it, and the cops didn't buy it either.

What a shame...I would hope their story is true, but that's just me...I always hope bad parents aren't as bad as they seem...for the sake of their children.

LottaLubes
06-29-2007, 09:14 PM
Their story doesn't add up, which is why they were arrested and their children taken under the eye of protective services.

Their story would be believable if one parent went to Pirates and the other went to the Tiki room thinking the other parent was going to remove the child from the stroller and take her on that respective attraction. BUT, they both went on the SAME ride. One of the parents had to park the stroller...and WALK AWAY!!!! We're not buying it, and the cops didn't buy it either.

What a shame...I would hope their story is true, but that's just me...I always hope bad parents aren't as bad as they seem...for the sake of their children.

Exactly what I was thinking. They were in line for almost an hour...if their story were true, truly they would be talking to each other and realize they didn't have the baby with them.

Idiots.

Thank goodness the person who found the baby had the good sense to alert authorities.

Tekneek
06-30-2007, 05:54 AM
Yep, the story doesn't add up. They appear to be lying about it, which is when it really becomes criminal.

Why would they want to deny this little girl a trip on Pirates anyway? She should have been with them on the ride!

crazypoohbear
06-30-2007, 10:21 AM
Seriously do these parents think the authorities are as dumb as they are????:confused:
2 adults
4 kids 1 sleeping in a stroller
1 ride that is inside, cool and dark
They didn't want to wake the sleeping kid. so they just pushed her off to the side.
GEE, Guess who isn't mommy and daddy's favorite child:(
Even if the Parents weren't speaking to each other didn't they notice they only had 3 kids with them? PULEEASE
They fix animals don't they??!!:mad:
They said they noticed the missing kid when they got OFF the ride. Think this is when the noticed all the commotion about the kid left in the sun and they quickly concocted a story????
Did the police talk with the other kids??

crazypoohbear
07-01-2007, 09:43 AM
Oh yeah,
one more thing
IF they were all together in line why didn't anyone notice when the CM asked how many in your party and they said six and only five got on???
HMMMM?

DisneyOtaku
07-01-2007, 10:53 AM
Let's see...one of them parked the stroller, the rest of the family rode the ride together, and they claim that they "realized their daughter was missing only after they left the ride" according to the second article.

Why, look how large the child's parents noses have grown! Someone needs a visit from Jimminy Cricket to stop the lying otherwise the Blue Fairy will never turn them into REAL parents.

i'm grumpy
07-04-2007, 01:00 PM
Even if there were confusion over who was in charge of the baby and stroller, SOMEBODY had to park it and walk away from it.

Exactly!

psychotekkie
07-05-2007, 01:28 AM
I think we all feel sickened when we hear stories of child abuse. Partly because the particular incident we see or hear about seems so traumatizing, but also because we know that that innocent child has to go home with those abusive parents, and if they treat them this way in public, God only knows what they are doing to them behind closed doors.

Thankfully, the authorities have taken the girl out of the parents' care. Now I just hope and pray that the extended family has a better helping of good genes, common sense, and genuine care.

conorsmom2000
07-05-2007, 10:20 AM
Even if there were confusion over who was in charge of the baby and stroller, SOMEBODY had to park it and walk away from it.

Exactly what I was thinking! :mad: I don't even know what to say - stories like this leave me shocked, saddened and speechless. :(

CleveSJM
07-05-2007, 01:38 PM
I'm usually quick to cut people a break and not to judge them not knowing the whole situation but this one looks like real child abuse.

Accidents and mistakes happen all the time. Sometimes they are tragic. Especially if it's just one parent and they make a mistake, but these two were on the ride together... How can you think one has the toddler when you are standing right next to them...

Maybe started as a double bonehead move, but they should have noticed a bit quicker.

Still, I wouldn't suggest we sterilize them or take their kids away without more information...

castlelady36
07-05-2007, 02:17 PM
Even if there were confusion over who was in charge of the baby and stroller, SOMEBODY had to park it and walk away from it.

My thoughts exactly.....

LibertyTreeGal
07-06-2007, 08:40 PM
I keep thinking of adopting a little girl, wish I could take this one off their hands :(

Jodi
07-06-2007, 09:21 PM
Unbelievable !! Especially for such a young child. The parents are extremely lucky she is alright. How can you not realize that your child is not with you? Call me paranoid, but, still to this day, DD's, 15 and 12 know that I like to be able to SEE them, no matter where they are. I hope the parents get more than a slap on the hand.

vamaggie
07-07-2007, 02:07 PM
Come on...they were "together" obviously. They should have figured neither had the child. They KNEW they left her behind because she was "sleeping".

It's so sad people like that are allowed to breed.

My thoughts exactly.They were both on THE SAME RIDE!!! How could they not see someone had the child. If they would leave her asleep in a stroller in a public place it really worries me how much they supervise her at home?????

Makes me value and be thankful for my kids even more (and makes me be even more vigilent about their safety!)

mrsHerbie53
07-12-2007, 09:49 PM
You can be sure these stupid, numbskulls knew exactly where their cell phones were and their FastPasses. But their child....

Wolfbanesquest
07-13-2007, 01:39 PM
Those "parents" are morons!!! My wife and I have taken our 4 children to WDW and have NEVER been confused as to where the children are! If there are rides that we want to go on that one or more of the children couldn't ride, WE TOOK TURNS!!!!! I know that many of you have done the same exact thing. As a parent I would have never gotten into that line without knowing where EACH and EVERY one of my children were ACCOUNTED FOR!!!!! If and I mean IF this was an error on the part of the parents, at the very least they should lose their child and face serious penalties.

CleveSJM
07-13-2007, 02:15 PM
... If and I mean IF this was an error on the part of the parents, at the very least they should lose their child and face serious penalties.

Wow. That is harsh. Lose their child even if it was an error.?

Everyone seems to be very judgemental and extreme in this case. I don't know all the facts so I can't condemn them on a discussion board. Seems very bad because they were on the same ride but I can see a mistake happening.

If it really was a case of "I thought you had the kid" then I think it's forgiveable. Probably not the case here but I'm still amazed so many people are so brutal on a possible mistake.

Tekneek
07-14-2007, 10:21 AM
If it really was a case of "I thought you had the kid" then I think it's forgiveable. Probably not the case here but I'm still amazed so many people are so brutal on a possible mistake.

There are times in life where "mistakes" simply cannot be made. When somebody gets hurt because of your "mistake", I don't think it is very reasonable to look for quick and easy forgiveness.

luvdiznee
07-14-2007, 10:41 AM
I don't understand how there could be "confusion" as far as who is to be watching your child.

CleveSJM
07-14-2007, 02:10 PM
There are times in life where "mistakes" simply cannot be made. When somebody gets hurt because of your "mistake", I don't think it is very reasonable to look for quick and easy forgiveness.
I completely agree with you. I'm jsut trying to say if something is unintentional (a mistake or accident) it is more forgiveable and less condemnable. You shouldn't be sterilized or have your kids taken away for making a mistake. There are far more tragic mistakes made everyday that parents around the world make. If it truely is a mistake, the pain and/or suffering they cause is often punishment enough without peanut gallery comments made without all the facts.

CleveSJM
07-14-2007, 02:17 PM
I don't understand how there could be "confusion" as far as who is to be watching your child.

Maybe I'm in the minority here, but I can. Really, anytime I think my wife has a kid is an oppurtunity for it to happen. I don't know what she is thinking and I completely think she has the kid. I can't really think of a situation where we'd communicate that poorly, but I can see the possibility. The last one to walk away from the stroller had the real responsbility. The other can really be completely "innocent."

Polynesian Dweller
07-14-2007, 02:48 PM
I know I will be in the minority here but also one with experience (at a Fair not Disney). I was left behind accidentally in similar circumstances when I was young. My parents were absolutely horrified, me I was with the Fair's children's centre with dozens of other kids who were lost. I remember it very well. AND, it was truly accidental as hard as that may be for some to believe. As a phsychologist I can tell you that people's minds play tremendous tricks on them.

In this case I would want to wait for a full investigation to be completed before reaching conclusions. My professionaly training makes me do that.

What I find harder to understand, is that the Disney CMs didn't do more. A child left unattended for more than 5 minutes should have led to more than being pushed out of the sun. That child should have been taken to a child care center which I'm sure they must have because they must deal with lots of lost children.

mttafire
07-15-2007, 12:17 AM
These parents simply do not fall in the "mistake category" It is obvious to any common sense thinking person that this child was intentionally left by herself. In life some "mistakes" simply cannot and will not be made. This is neglect pure and simple. No excuses. I find it difficult to believe a child was "accidently" left behind when both parents were together.

DisneyLuver91
07-15-2007, 12:26 AM
I don't think they forgot. They were with eachother in line for however long the wait was and left the kid out for an hour. I say that's just irrisponsible. I understand that mistakes can be made, but they didn't even remember until after the ride was over. And the CM should have done more because after seeing a lone baby there they should have taken it. I guess I see all points of view on this one. Haha. I'm good. :judge:

Sean Riley Taylor's Mom
07-15-2007, 01:51 AM
My reason for feeling so strongly about this, is just say (And I don't believe it happened this way) it was a mistake and one parent thought the other had the child. They were on the same ride. They walked the queue, they told the CM how many in their party, they boarded the boat, rode the ride and then "realized" the child was not with them. You are not talking about a camera that you thought someone else had, you are talking about a young toddler that walks, talks and if she is anything like my toddler, is saying "Mom" 100 times. How do you not realize immediately when you are together that someone is missing.

My DH and I split up with the kids all the time. We literally verbalize who is taking who. "I am taking Taylor with me, you have the two boys". When it comes to my children there is never a time when I assume anything. If, and that is a huge if, we thought the other had one of the kids and didn't and we were together, you can be sure we would know it immediately.

I know we do not know all of the details. It is really horrifying to me that parents (and I use that title loosely in this situation) did not realize their child was not with them. It very well could have been a mistake that the child was left. The crime, if that was the case, is that no one realized the child was not with the group. Most importantly a very small child that should be accounted for at all times.

What we do know about this story leads me to believe the child was asleep and they went on the ride. If I am wrong then I apologize for thinking that but, no matter what happened they are both to blame for leaving that child alone and unsupervised. :(

I know I am not a perfect parent. But, I know where my kids are all the time on vacation, home and everywhere else. Do things go wrong, absolutely, but I do everything I can to hopefully make sure they won't.

TinkInTraining
07-19-2007, 11:15 AM
There are just points to this story that do not jive...having three kids and going to WDW is a chore and any vigilant parent can attest to what they do to be sure they are in the know of where their kids are but what really gets me on this one is....

POTC is an air conditioned slow ride...If my 3 year old was sleeping in 90 degree Florida weather she would be the first one that I'd take on the ride. She's sleeping, it's hot, it's a cool ride with no height restrictions...we'd be going on. Why would you leave her to sleep?

There are too many points that make this seem intentional.
* - They were on the ride together...where is the sleeping child? No one asks?
* - They have their 4 other kids....where is the littlest.
* - They're boarding the ride...if I'm not mistaken you can't fit 7 in one row on a boat (2 adults, 5 children - 4 they have and 1 left behind).
* - 50 minutes is a long time to wait in a line, if you're anything like my family you try to find things to do to keep everyone occupied...how do you not notice you do not have a –
1. sleeping baby on your shoulder or
2. an active 3 year old in line that you're trying to occupy???

Too many variables to be an accident.

I have "lost" a child at WDW, during a parade...let me tell you, it took all of 35 seconds for us to realize that she wasn't between me at the front of the conga line and dad at the end...she was 8 the time and we were with 2 parents, my mother and 5 kids...we figured it out REAL quick. Can't imagine not noticing I am missing a kid 50 minutes later.....

MinnieMommie
07-19-2007, 06:53 PM
These people can come up with reasons for what they did but there is no excuse for this! :(

Wolfbanesquest
07-26-2007, 01:48 PM
Wow. That is harsh. Lose their child even if it was an error.?

Everyone seems to be very judgemental and extreme in this case. I don't know all the facts so I can't condemn them on a discussion board. Seems very bad because they were on the same ride but I can see a mistake happening.

If it really was a case of "I thought you had the kid" then I think it's forgiveable. Probably not the case here but I'm still amazed so many people are so brutal on a possible mistake.

There are some "mistakes" that cannot be so lightly dismissed. As a parent, I cannot understand how they did this.

CuteAsMinnie
08-01-2007, 08:21 PM
Well, i just read this story to my 11yr DS. He very plainly said..... stupid people. I'd have to agree!:thedolls:

Tink#64
08-02-2007, 01:19 AM
I don't understand the confusion part? As many of you have said - it appears they were together on the ride, obviously standing in line together to ride the same ride - yet they were confused about who had the child? I don't know. I know my DH is really scattered about half the time,& I can imagine hearing this response from him, but if I am with him, yet my child is not and we haven't made arrangements with someone else to care for the child, I would definitely know where my child wasn't!

kim1st
08-15-2007, 09:09 PM
I was almost willing to give them the benefit of the doubt until I read this:

Two Orange County parents were arrested on child-abuse charges after telling authorities they accidentally left their 3-year-old daughter in a stroller while they rode Pirates of the Caribbean at Walt Disney World.

Clearly - someone parked the stroller. It's a lot harder not to notice that your spouse didn't start pushing the stroller than just the toddler wandering off or something. Plus - with the babyswap option - there is no reason that this should have been an issue. Even in crowds, the actual lines to ride rides are very orderly. I'm betting that you couldn't take the stroller up to the front of the line, and that they opted to park the stroller with the sleeping toddler instead of taking her out of the stroller and carrying her - which would have been fine if a parent had STAYED with her and kept her in the SHADE!

I try to be careful about passing judgment when it comes to stuff like this, because we're all human and we all make honest mistakes. I can't imagine the pain of a parent that makes an honest mistake that results in harm to their child.

My husband and I actually had a terrifying "I thought she was with you" experience when my oldest daughter was probably about 18 or 19 months old. Granted - I was in the back yard and he was in the front yard, so when she went to the front yard, I didn't worry. Then he came to the back yard with no DD and we both panicked. We found her happily playing on a swing set ACROSS THE STREET in our neighbor's backyard, and thank GOD no harm had come to her. (Even on our quiet cul de sac I get chills thinking that she could have so easily fallen, been taken, or been hit by a car!) I don't think we were stupid, careless, criminally abusive, neglectful or otherwise undeserving of being parents - but we sure were more careful from that day forward.

Anyway - this particular incident doesn't sound so innocent!!!!

lucymouse4
08-18-2007, 09:45 PM
Honestly, lots of parents are more scatter-brained than you'd think. I guess they decide that Disney never has any bad things happen in it.
I worked in the Strollers of MK this summer, and I'd see parents walk a pretty good distance away from their strollers to watch Wishes. Usually the kid would be asleep or something, and they'd leave the stroller by where'd I be standing to direct stroller traffic (in front of the train station). Then they'd just walk over to get something or watch the fireworks. It didn't happen often, and I'd make sure I didn't lose sight of the parents before they came back to get the kid, but seriously. Why would you even leave the stroller at all?
While working in strollers, I saw many really good parents, and many who didn't really deserve to have kids at all. It's sad, but many parents don't get what a Disney vacation is about when they bring their kids there.:(