I live in Kansas & left my kids in the car on a nice day with the ac on and a movie running for them and ran inside to exchange some items(my kids are 7,2,1) and when I came out there was a police officer standing by my car. He yelled at me and told me what a worthless mother I was and wrote me a ticket for unattended vehicle and said srs would be in contact with me.

THey CAN throw the book at you... in fact in VA they would... we've had too many cases of children that have died or been kidnapped in exactly that situation...

Someone else will have to comment how seriously they view it in Kansas.

I have no idea what 'how stood are my charged going to be?'
How serious?
You may get an unannounced visit from Children's Services, or they may visit the school where the 7 year old goes, you may get a fine, you may be called in to court, they may give you a lecture and just put it in a record in case you do it again. You are going to have to wait.

Since you chose to leave your children in harms way, there is a good possibility your children may be taken from you.

Yes meant serious. I'm not a bad mother and this isn't something I do all the time. I understand that bad things could happen but I live in such a smal safe community I never think that something bad could happen. Lesson learned!

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Originally Posted by J_9

Since you chose to leave your children in harms way, there is a good possibility your children may be taken from you.

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I don't think they should do any thing to you if you get called in to court tell them you left the ac running and a movie in and pray they don't do anything really you can't don anything else that I know of srry

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I don't think they should do any thing to you if you get called in to court tell them you left the ac running and a movie in and pray they don't do anything really you can't don anything else that I know of srry

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So, she left the AC running. That's cool... literally, she left a movie running so they could stay entertained. Did you consider carjacking? How about kidnapping? Shall I go on with all the bad things that COULD have happened in just a few minutes?

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Originally Posted by eman134

i dont think they should do any thing to you if you get called in to court tell them u left the ac running and a movie in and pray they dont do anything really u can't don anything else that i know of srry

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I can't count the number of people that actually made the news in my area... that tried that excuse... it didn't work for any of them... in fact leaving a vehicle with the keys in it much less running is actually a crime you can be charged with. At least around here. I'm not kidding.

Its because of the high numbers of auto thefts, and carjackings... Again, I can't speak for Kansas.. but I doubt they are much different than the DC metropolitan area where I reside is.

I posted on this site for helpful info not to be criticized. I got that enough from the officer. Thanks though! And no where I live we don't have to worry about car jackings.

We aren't here to tell you what you want to hear. We are here to tell the truth. If you want warm and fuzzies, talk to your friends. If you want to know legally what can happen, you came to the right place.

The truth of the matter is that you left your children unattended in a car. Whether you don't have carjackings in your area today doesn't mean there won't be one tomorrow.

This is the legal forum, we aren't here to coddle you, we are here to tell you the legal ramifications of your actions.

Neither CPS nor the police care that there are not carjackings in your area, or kidnappings, but there is always the risk and you placed your children in that risk zone.

Legally you left your children unattended by an adult, no matter how short of time it was. You risked the health and safety of your children and CPS doesn't take that lightly.

What can they do. That is what you asked. This is a serious crime, and the courts and the DA, and esp CPS just look for people who do this to make an example out of. The only good thing is they did not take the kids out of the home the very same day. That normally happens everywhere.

We don't care here how good you are, or what you want to hear, you want to hear " I am sorry this happened" go to the parenting board, this is the legal section, we will tell you what the law says, and how the court will view this. You can say all day, "I am a good mother' but this actions shows us, and will show the court, no, you are not. This happens often and in most cases, the parent loses at least temp, the custody of the kids.

Child protective services can very well take the kids out of the home. It happens every day. I am surprised they have not already been to your home doing an investigation.

They can put you in prison and have a very large fine.

I would say expect at least a 4 or 5 year probation time, where they will inspect the home on a regular basis and talk with the kids. Also order you to take a parenting class.

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Originally Posted by smaybrier03

I posted on this site for helpful info not to be criticized. I got that enough from the officer. Thanks though! And no where i live we don't have to worry about car jackings.

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You were quoted FACTS... you just don't want to hear them.

Fact is worst case... you can go to jail and your kids taken into custody... all that matters is the police found the kids alone in a running car without an adult, that's ALL the evidence they need to act against you.

What they do next is up to them. Likely it will be something less than the worst case.

I live in a small town too, but crimes do happen. You should be ashamed of yourself for leaving your children. Why couldn't you have taken them into the store with you? One stroller=two babies. No excuses. Children take time and energy. If you aren't willing to take the extra effort for their safety, then your children may be better off living elsewhere. Parenting classes are a must!

I just want to warn you against using any excuses with the court or CPS, such as the AC was running or you ran inside just to exchange some things. Just for starters, any of the kids could have turned the car off. Or put it into drive while on. What you need to do is apologize profusely and say it will never happen again, and you have been chastised by everyone in town, family, friends, and strangers online. Hopefully your small town will take pity.

When I was small (in the late 40s) my mother left my brother and me in her car while she went to the doctor, and it rolled back down a driveway and into the street. In those days, no one even called the cops. But it's one of my earliest memories!