Children Dumped in Nebraska
I was quite shocked after reading a news item tonight on BBC News :
A mother has driven for 12 hours across the US to abandon her teenage son in Nebraska, under a law allowing adults to leave children at state hospitals, and the state's safe-haven law prevents prosecution for abandonment.
I have a 13-year-old son and know the trials that raising teenagers can bring. Carly is nearly 16 and we've had our share of clashes and screaming matches. Alex is just now trying to assert himself with lots of arguing and refusals. True, I don't know the circumstances surrounding this mother's abandonment of her son, but surely things couldn't have been that bad.
The boy was left in Omaha in an emergency shelter, and I can't even begin to understand how he might be feeling. It's a really sad reminder of how lucky we are to have strong family ties. Mine is not a perfect family by a long shot, and I have my moments when I wish the kids were old enough to be out on their own, but I quickly think how lonely it'll be when that time comes.
So sad, I hope they can work it out and there's a happy ending here.
The law had previously allowed parents and carers to abandon children as old as 18 without being prosecuted, but the state's governor and a majority of the legislature have agreed to change the policy so it applies only to babies up to three days old.