Reported by: Laure Quinlivan
(Anchor)
Clermont County Prosecutor Don White's decision not to charge Brenda Slaby in connection with her daughter's death is still the subject of hot debate around the tristate.
Slaby forgot to drop off the child at daycare a couple weeks ago and left her inside a hot car, where she died.
The I-Team's Laure Quinlivan finds leaving kids in cars is a national problem that kills about 30 children each year. A local attorney says parents face charges in only about half the cases nationwide, for good reason. Laure?
(Laure Quinlivan, I-Team Reporter)
This attorney says there has to be room in the law for accidents, like forgotting your child in the car. Could it happen to you? This case has many parents a little sheepish as they come clean and swap car seat confessions.
(Bill Gallagher) "Accidents really shouldn't be criminal."
Bill Gallagher is a criminal defense attorney with three children. One day he forgot his son in the back seat.
(Bill Gallagher) "My oldest came al the way downtown with me, i thought i dropped him off at daycare till we got in the parking lot. Thank God I left my briefcase in the back sesat, so then i got to the briefcase, there's him and i have to take Joel all the way back."
Gallaher says prosecutor Don White did the right thing resisting the pressure to charge brenda slaby with a crime.
(Bill Gallagher) "I think it's enlightening to see don white do this but we don't see it enough I think, at times."
He points to a 1996 case in Price Hill where three little children died in the third floor attic, while their father slept downstairs.
(Voice of Gallagher) "Worked a night shift, fell asleep expecting the children to be fine and the next thing you know the boys are up in a hidden place, doing what sometimes boys do, playing with matches and it really seemed like an accident to many of us."
A Hamilton County grand jury indicted the father, Anthony Edwards, on three counts of involuntary manslaughter and child endangering. But later a jury found him not guilty.
Just this week in Florida, another working mom like brenda slaby forgot to drop off her child at daycare before going into the office.
(Reporter voice) "Ocoee police say a city hall employee was just following her routine when she left her 22 month old daughter in the back of her car."
The child died after three hours in the scorching heat. Florida authorities have not yet decided whether to charge the mother with a crime.
(Florida Officer) "You can imagine what she's going thru."
(Bill Gallagher) "All the statues require, normally, that the person be aware of the circumstances and then disregard them. So, the first question for Don White was "did she know the child was in the car? No." and it sounds like in Florida, that may be the case as well. That mom when she got out and locked the car didn't think there was anyone in there, but Mom."
(Laure Quinlivan, I-Team Reporter on set)
Prosecutor Don White writes an editorial in the paper today defending his decision. He's responding to a criticism levied yesterday by a Univeristy of Cincinnati law professor.
All this talk and debate does serve a good purpose - educating the public. Parents are learning it's never a good idea to leave your child alone in the car. We're learning tips like put your purse or briefcase in the backseat to help ensure you don't forget your child. And finally, we're learning our laws and whether we need new ones.
(Anchor question)
And I understand Kentucky law is more strict.
(Laure) Yes kentucky has Bryan's Law, which says if you leave a child under 8 years old in the car unattended, you can be charged with wanton endangerment.
