Baby thrown from car during crash

cartersma said on December 18, 2009 at 7:08 PM

oh one more thing My son who is Two is frequently out late at night because I work till 11pm! As long as they are getting their sleep and have a schedule who are we to say when a child should or schould not be out.. ok thats just my two cents

cartersma said on December 18, 2009 at 7:05 PM

jetcitywoman~ Thank you for that Number I have seen so many parents with kids on their lap in the front seat feeding them. or the kids in the back seat bouncing arround! it makes me soooooo ANGRY! If you Must feed your baby sit next to them Buckled in their seat in the back and feed them its not that hard! I know that the drunk driver has some fault here. But ultamitly I believe the reason this little one is even hurt is because of the actions of their parents! Praying for this little angle!

dede1978 said on December 18, 2009 at 4:22 PM

Also, I'm not taking any of the blame for the driver who rearended their car, and I'm not questioning why they were out at that hour. From the comment made earlier, the driver at fault should be prosecuted for her part. But I can't help but believe that this baby would be fine had the parents left it in the car seat.

dede1978 said on December 18, 2009 at 4:19 PM

I can't imagine that there is a parent that does not know that a baby/child that "MUST" be in a car seat at all times while in a car. And how many times do we have to hear about this kind of thing happening before they "get it". I have to admit, I honestly feel that the parents will be punished enough with what happens to that baby. But there is also a part of me that thinks it's time for the legal system to make a statement to all parents out there. The police can not be everywhere all the time, so yes, people will continue to break the laws/rules and some will continue to get away with it. Only are we reminded in situations like this. As I said yesterday, both my children were in car seats until they were old enough to be with out, no exceptions. If there was a need, they waited until we got to where we were going, PERIOD! So for those of you who think we are heartless for how we feel, let's not forget that "accidents" do happen at anytime, anywhere.

irritated said on December 18, 2009 at 1:30 PM

Who in their right mind does this with an infant in the front seat?? they should be charged with child neglect!! And out at midnight!!! Idiots...

ksquared said on December 18, 2009 at 10:58 AM

Dasindog, trezoe - I so agree with you. Mongo8989, you need to send your email to the police along with a copy of the email she sent to you! I don't care if this is her first offence - she is a danger to society and needs to be in jail!!

dasindog said on December 18, 2009 at 9:55 AM

There seems to be a serious lack of compassion and empathy in our society today. Too much apathy and misanthropy. We're all human, to err is human. The drunk driver is 99% at fault, the parents have already received their sentence for any wrong doing. I see a lot of negativity towards the parents, being a young parent myself, I can see how you may feel that taking a baby out to feed is the best solution for the situation. Do I condone their decision? no. do I condem them, absolutely not.

trezoe said on December 18, 2009 at 8:22 AM

the level of contempt and lack of empathy in many of these posts is simply astounding. the decision to remove baby from the carseat has consequences that are already much harsher than any judge could impose. My heart goes out to them - they made a mistake. What's with the concern about being out after midnight? I don't get the relationship to the event...other than the when of the story. As for the 22 year old woman - I don't know all the details...she's at fault in this accident regardless of her level of sobriety...she's a child as well - I hope she gets what she deserves for this and can come back from this to be a better person

starstruck said on December 18, 2009 at 7:41 AM

Mongo, are you saying that she intentinally hit this family to wreck your truck? If so, she needs to be arrested and locked up....if your going to try and do harm to yourself (suicide attempt) or someones vehicle in this case, DONT INVOLVE INNOCENT people in your stupidity.

mongo8989 said on December 18, 2009 at 4:22 AM

The girl I know her name is Tempest Harris. The truck is under my name Justin Pettigrew. I let her borrow my truck when i left for Iraq. Im sorry all this happened. I feel really bad for the family and the kid. She does drugs and she has two kids. This is her first offense. She laughed when she sent an email to me over myspace of what happened. She did it on purpose cause i cheated on her. Want to talk to me email me dougyfresh8898@yahoo.com thanks

blankingout said on December 18, 2009 at 1:46 AM

Alcohol is usually a contributing factor in abortions..

emmapeel said on December 17, 2009 at 10:22 PM

oh for pete's sake....you know for decades people did not have seat belts nor car seats for children.... we lived....we thrived....sure, there were accidents, but no more per capita than now and no more injuries than now....IMO of course... we also drank from the hose,swam in dirty "cricks" near the dump, climbed trees all day, and rode bicycles without helmets....... hope and pray this child is okay.....horrible accident no matter what time of year....

msnews said on December 17, 2009 at 10:16 PM

honestly, who takes a child out of their carseat while driving... we were stuck in traffic once when my daughter needed to be fed. it was tricky, but I managed to breast feed her while she was still strapped in. some people.

bigdogrunswild said on December 17, 2009 at 9:19 PM

All 3 should be thrown in jail. The parents of this child should be tried for attempted murder.

heyler7 said on December 17, 2009 at 8:57 PM

What is going on with all of these woman driving drunk lately? Recently there was a woman that crashed (drunk) and it wasn't even noon yet! Whatever happened to the M.A.D.D. campaigns>?

leelo said on December 17, 2009 at 7:29 PM

Those parents- what were they thinking? Oh, thats right- they weren't. I hope they are charged and I hope the baby survives her parents stupidity. Maybe Darwin was right.

whatsyurbeef said on December 17, 2009 at 6:21 PM

Hey don't drink and drive got it hard heads, don't drink and drive. And you've got to have a little problem with the way your brain works to take a child out of a car seat while moving. In my opinion of course. So Whats your Beef ? v

livinglife said on December 17, 2009 at 5:26 PM

Very poor discussion on the parents side. The child should always remain in a secured car seat while in a moving or running vehicle for that matter. Although it is the persons fault for rear ending the car I still feel the parents made a very poor choice as to feeding the baby while moving. they should have pulled over.

yogibear said on December 17, 2009 at 3:59 PM

The stupid parents should be charged with neglect

koolkidkim said on December 17, 2009 at 3:58 PM

This just proves any idiot can be a parent. Funny thing is we need a license to drive,to fish etc....you have to be approved to own a gun. But idiots give birth all over the place.

tacwilster said on December 17, 2009 at 3:47 PM

Here is an instance when you are guilty and must proof yourself innocent, why are we assuming she was drunk? They always say alcohol was involved! the parents should be fined for not having their child in a car seat, PERIOD.

snobunny said on December 17, 2009 at 2:53 PM

With my first kid, I NEVER took her out of the car seat to feed her, I just gave her the bottle while in the car seat. The safest place for the baby is in the carseat. Hope the baby recovers.

lewmorello said on December 17, 2009 at 2:33 PM

Another drunk driver. They just keep killing and maiming people with little or no penalties. TAKE THEIR CAR AWAY AND CRUSH IT INTO JUNK, otherwise, they just keep on driving with or without a license. If my child or grandchild was killed by a drunk driver, I cannot say what I would do.

mirisj said on December 17, 2009 at 2:24 PM

Why were they out at midnight? What difference does it make? Maybe one of them works 2nd shift and they only have one car. Maybe they're on vacation and were visiting family or friends. Babies can sleep virtually anywhere. They don't have to be at home. The only two things that matter here are that the baby wasn't properly strapped in and that the other driver *may* have been drunk. That's it.

kenpomaster said on December 17, 2009 at 1:09 PM

They were all made for each other. A drunk driver and stupid parents.

agirlinseattle said on December 17, 2009 at 1:04 PM

How do you get drunk driving out of this story? I've rear ended somebody before, when they suddenly stoppped dead in traffic - happens all the time - very common accidents. THE PARENTS ARE STOOPID AND AT FAULT FOR HAVING THEIR CHILD OUT OF THE BABY SEAT - DUH!

justcommenting said on December 17, 2009 at 1:02 PM

the dui driver will be jailed then charged for vehicular homicide as the child died. why was the family out at midnight?

snohomish22 said on December 17, 2009 at 1:01 PM

You all might want to back off the parents, I am sure they feel bad enough as is .And until you have a child die or get hurt real bad you have no understanding what these parents are going through right now, they need suport right not ridicule.

dede1978 said on December 17, 2009 at 12:57 PM

nrenner08, I have to disagree with your comment. I will be the first to admit to making mistakes. But I managed to raise two daughters to adults. As babies up to the time they were about 7 years old, they were in car seats/booster seats at all times in the car, PERIOD!!! And I never drink and drive, in fact, I make it a point to only drink when I don't have to go anywhere afterwards. There is no excuse for removing a baby from the car seat. The baby can wait unitl you get somewhere safe.

that_ray_guy said on December 17, 2009 at 12:49 PM

ALL pregnancies should be licensed. ALL drunks should have THEIR license revoked - PERIOD. We, the people have let this happen under the guise of HUMAN RIGHTS. Anti-Abortionists never protest for the babies they "save". Hey, it's called follow through folks - you want them to be born YOU protect them - mostly from their parents ! ! This may sound heartless, but isn't mindless blabbering for the rights of drunks and incompetents the real act of a thoughtless person? (I can almost hear the clamor of protest over screams of liberty) That Ray Guy

koolkidkim said on December 17, 2009 at 12:46 PM

Arrest the parents for child endangerment! That baby should have never been out of the car seat while the car was in motion.

lindenposterbud said on December 17, 2009 at 12:31 PM

So, " nrenner08" you think it is alright to have a child unsecured in a moving car, and drink and drive. You must be guilty of that yourself. Don't call others hipocrites unless you are one of them.

tovarogers said on December 17, 2009 at 12:18 PM

I pray for the baby but the parents need to help accountable, how STUPID can one be. If anything awful happens to this precious baby the parent needs to face charges. IMO

toilet said on December 17, 2009 at 12:02 PM

This is a very very sad event to happen to a baby...I will pray for the baby ....

intrestgal said on December 17, 2009 at 11:57 AM

For all the comments on pulling over to take care of the baby... we have all seen the police car cameras showing a pull over on the side of the road and some stupid drunk smacks into the cars on the side of the road. If the baby needs attention (which after midnight should be at home and safe) then pulling OFF the roadway into a lot would be the safest bet. I am sure that all three adults involved are beating themselves up today... bot parents for the part they played as they wait to see if their baby lives AND the **suspected** DUI who hit them for not being in control... ouch, what a bad hangover with that hanging over your head... get some help! My hopes and prayers go out for the innocent baby... may you heal and live a long healthy and happy life!

nrenner08 said on December 17, 2009 at 11:29 AM

everybody is so quick to judge. nobody who posts comments on here ever makes mistakes. youre all a bunch of hipocrites.

miner555 said on December 17, 2009 at 10:42 AM

I can understand the drunk driver being out and about but why was baby going anywhere after midnight? Safest place for baby is home and in bed! Where parents going someplace important and required to take baby. I doubt it. I feel doublely sorry for the baby.

santastinker said on December 17, 2009 at 10:33 AM

Just because you pull over to feed the baby, or whatever, is NO guarantee that you won't be hit by a drunk driver. "&^#$ happens"

gloscot said on December 17, 2009 at 10:17 AM

I agree, maninblack. Then again, in our classes we don't use the word "accident." They are crashes. Someone is at fault, and in this case it was the stupid drunk driver, and the parents, too.

jetcitywoman said on December 17, 2009 at 10:15 AM

So sad yet SO PREVENTABLE on both sides!! However, it is situations like this that you DO buckle your kids in for... you can report neglectful parents that don't have their kids strapped in to 1-800-BUCKL-UP and there is a system that keeps track of info reported and will mail a letter to the owner of the vehicle giving them information about child safety. All you need to provide is the license plate, make of vehicle, what you saw, and when/where you saw the vehicle traveling illegally. We do this on a consistant basis - it is truly amazing how many people don't strap their kids in! I hope that parents who think they don't need to protect their kids will learn something from this preventable, tragic situation. Our prayers to the family and for the baby to have a successful recovery.

themaninblack said on December 17, 2009 at 10:04 AM

I've been an EMT for more than ten years now and have never seen an accident where a child was not strapped in turn out good. No one plans on being involved in an accident(thats why its called an accident) Kids are in car seats while the car is in motion PERIOD! If you drink DON'T drive PERIOD.

gloscot said on December 17, 2009 at 9:53 AM

The drunk driver notwithstanding, I don't get it how parents continue to put their children at risk. I am a child passenger safety technician who tells parents to keep their kids in car seats. Lots of folks roll their eyes, tell me "when I was a kid...", or, "It will never happen to me." And then another story like this. Sometimes I feel I'm wasting my time. Let's pray this baby survives.

jeepfreak said on December 17, 2009 at 9:47 AM

stupidity on both sides of this thing.I hope the baby will be ok!

dasindog said on December 17, 2009 at 9:35 AM

This is sad, very bad timing. I hope the baby will be ok, same with the parents. I also hope people learn from the mistakes from others, I know I will.

sumithryo said on December 17, 2009 at 9:29 AM

I am upilifted by the other comments here placing blame where it belongs. We all the know the drunk was wrong and should face jail time, but too many let negligent parents like these off the hook. Poor poor baby.

sumithryo said on December 17, 2009 at 9:26 AM

Another idiot endangers the life of her child. Oh - and another drunk idiot endangers the life of everyone on the road. The mother of the injured baby was sober, so that makes her TWICE AS STUPID.

davidadams said on December 17, 2009 at 9:26 AM

DUI driver will be out driving by Monday.. baby might die. massive failure on all players in this incident. DUI driver should have to pay all medical expenses.

3beans said on December 17, 2009 at 9:00 AM

If this child had been correctly strapped into her infant seat, in the back seat, where she belonged, she would not have been injured. The act of removing her showed extreme negligence and carelessness on the part of the parents. The drunk driver should also, of course, face the penalties due her, but ultimately it is up to parents to protect their children. They failed in their duty and need to be held criminally accountable. For their sake, and the child's sake, I hope she makes a full recovery, but I also hope the parents understand that they failed their child in their own laziness and selfishness.

seattlite31766 said on December 17, 2009 at 8:56 AM

That poor baby :( it's so important to simply pull over if the baby needs your attention. Don't trust anyone when it comes to your child! it can happen in a split second.

saera said on December 17, 2009 at 8:54 AM

if the car is moving, the baby should be strapped up in the car seat. if you need to feed/change/etc the baby, pull over and stop the car. prayers are with this child that all turns out well for it.

shattah206 said on December 17, 2009 at 8:33 AM

If your child needs to be fed while you're out, PULL OVER. It doesn't excuse the person who hit them, but it would have kept this child safer.

pattycasa said on December 17, 2009 at 8:11 AM

Hope and pray baby is not scared for life because of the young ladies decision to drive drunk (if tests prove positive). If she is a habitual drinker (sad) then a court order for treatment should be next.