Family Forgets 5 Year Old Child in Cab Driver Almost Takes the Blame

[aluokaloo]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090728/ap_on_re_us/us_child_left_in_cab

man. what kinda fool forgets their own kid in a cab? i can understand momentarily losing the kid if your out and about but not somethingn like this.

[Kraheera]

If it's really late, I could imagine them forgetting her in the car. That being said, I think it's ridiculous that the cops were trying to pin the blame on the cabbie.

Honestly... the idiocy of some people.

[Zoritsa_Nepenthe]

A school bus driver I can see getting blamed,the parents aren't around and it's part of their job to make sure everyone is off the bus....but a taxi driver who has THE PARENTS IN the vehicle?! What parent forgets that they placed their child in the van?

[Lunacie]

Yes, it is primarily the parent's responsibility, but I can understand returning from a trip, tired and worn out and over-stressed. They were very grateful to have the little one returned.

However, I can understand having a policy in place that says that the cabbie should always check to see what - or who - has been left in the cab.

Not a 50/50 split on responsibility, but sad and somewhat scary when everyone fails. Fortunately the girl was asleep and wasn't traumatized by being abandoned by her family.

[WitchJezebel]

No way should the taxi driver be held responsible. The parents were right there and they certainly didn't forget to take their bags and luggage but they forgot their child?

School bus drivers are a whole different story; the drivers are responsible for the children on their busses; a cabbie's role is to get you from A to B and move on to the next fare.

[aluokaloo]

No way should the taxi driver be held responsible. The parents were right there and they certainly didn't forget to take their bags and luggage but they forgot their child?

School bus drivers are a whole different story; the drivers are responsible for the children on their busses; a cabbie's role is to get you from A to B and move on to the next fare.

i agree wholeheartedly.

[Lunacie]

No way should the taxi driver be held responsible. The parents were right there and they certainly didn't forget to take their bags and luggage but they forgot their child?

School bus drivers are a whole different story; the drivers are responsible for the children on their busses; a cabbie's role is to get you from A to B and move on to the next fare.

I was suprised to learn that Boston city law says the driver is responsible too. Guess I've seen too many movies where the driver zips away as soon as the passenger gets out. Or maybe that's only in NYC.




z. Duty to Inspect for Property/Found Property: Hackney Carriage Drivers shall,
immediately after delivering any passenger, inspect the Hackney Carriage for any
property, which may have been left behind by the passenger(s). Any property
found in the vehicle shall be immediately delivered to the Hackney Carriage Unit.
After normal business hours, found property shall be delivered to the Front Desk
personnel at Police Headquarters who shall secure it for the Hackney Carriage Unit.


from: http://www.cityofboston.gov/TridionImages/Rules_tcm1-3045.pdf
from: http://www.cityofboston.gov/police/hackney/drivers.asp (http://www.cityofboston.gov/police/hackney/drivers.asp)

[yarrow_elfglow]

No way should the taxi driver be held responsible. The parents were right there and they certainly didn't forget to take their bags and luggage but they forgot their child?

School bus drivers are a whole different story; the drivers are responsible for the children on their busses; a cabbie's role is to get you from A to B and move on to the next fare.

I agree! My thoughts exactly!

[Terra Mater]

Gods, as the article stated, the cabbie is supposed to check his cab after every fare. Checking the rearview mirror is not the same as checking the cab interior. Had he actually turned around to look in the back he would have seen the child.


"That said, it was an important opportunity to remind cab drivers why we have a rule that dictates they must check the back of their cab after every fare."

So, sorry to everyone that pitied the poor cabbie, but he broke a rule and demonstrated one of a million reasons why the rule exists. He knew the rule, knew the difference between actually checking and going through the motions, and chose to go through the motions.

[aluokaloo]

yeah but for the most part its not the cabby's job to look out for whatever you leave behind, though live creatures are a different story. anyways i'm glad the little kid is safe.

[Lunacie]

yeah but for the most part its not the cabby's job to look out for whatever you leave behind, though live creatures are a different story. anyways i'm glad the little kid is safe.

I doubt if most cabbies watch to see how many people and/or critters are getting in and do a body count to make sure they all get out again. That's why I think this rule is a good thing.

[Terra Mater]

yeah but for the most part its not the cabby's job to look out for whatever you leave behind, though live creatures are a different story. anyways i'm glad the little kid is safe.

Actually, in the state he lives in it is the cabbie's job. That's why they have the rule.

[aluokaloo]

well its anyone's job to help a little lost kid. but they shouldn't have tried to punish him for the parent's dumbassery

[HiccupingBat]

well its anyone's job to help a little lost kid. but they shouldn't have tried to punish him for the parent's dumbassery

They should punish him for his own dumbassery, he didn't bother simply turning around, that's his fault.

It's the parents fault for putting him in the situation.

Both parties are at fault, but I honestly think the parents deserve more of a punishment for forgetting their child in a cab.

[aluokaloo]

They should punish him for his own dumbassery, he didn't bother simply turning around, that's his fault.

It's the parents fault for putting him in the situation.

Both parties are at fault, but I honestly think the parents deserve more of a punishment for forgetting their child in a cab.

ewhy try to only attempt to punish the cabby. why not attempt to punish the idiot parents for negligent dumbassery?

[WitchJezebel]

Sure, punish the cabbie because the parents are self-absorbed nit-wits who lost track of their child.

[Lunacie]

Sure, punish the cabbie because the parents are self-absorbed nit-wits who lost track of their child.

The idea isn't to punish the cab driver because the parents were tired and overwhelmed and maybe even absent-minded - it's to make sure the drivers are also responsible for making sure nothing important has been left in the cab - like a small child that may be lying down on the seat and is hard to see and isn't making any noise. Maybe you could think of it as a "back up plan." Athough apparently you believe that parents should be perfect and never make any mistakes and therefore wouldn't ever need a back up plan. Gah.

I haven't gone off and left a child myself, but my daughter did once because she was very distracted because her fur-child had run off and was in danger of being struck by a passing car. It certainly had nothing to do with her being "self-absorbed." That's a ridiculous generalization.

[WitchJezebel]

Oh please spare me, I never said that parents should be perfect so don't even go there. What I am saying is that it is a parent's responsibility to make sure their children are safe. A slip up by taking your eyes off your kid for a second as your daughter did is one thing and that's perfectly understandable under the circumstances. Leaving a sleeping child in the backseat of a hired van after unloading baggage is another.

Differing opinions, that's all it is.

[Lunacie]

Oh please spare me, I never said that parents should be perfect so don't even go there. What I am saying is that it is a parent's responsibility to make sure their children are safe. A slip up by taking your eyes off your kid for a second as your daughter did is one thing and that's perfectly understandable under the circumstances. Leaving a sleeping child in the backseat of a hired van after unloading baggage is another.

Differing opinions, that's all it is.

It was more than just "a second". She had to chase the dog for several blocks and didn't realize she had forgotten her 6 week old baby until she got back home. She felt terrible, but she'd have felt terrible if something had happened to the dog as well. Stress can make us forget anything. So can being overtired. So can thinking the other parent is taking care of the child - which is how sleeping babies even get left in car seats inside locked cars in extreme temperatures for hours. Yes, it's the parent's responsibility to make sure the child is safe and sound, but parents aren't perfect and sometimes they slip up.

I like the idea of having the cabbie check the vehicle each time to make sure nothing important - and especially nothing living -has been left in the back seat.

[watersprite]

No, sorry, nothing would make me leave a child in a cab. If I am responsible for somebody elses' kid, they should be responsible for their own. They DID put the kid BEHIND the back seat of the van. That is irresponsible as well. I suppose they had their more important luggage in the seat with them.

[HiccupingBat]

ewhy try to only attempt to punish the cabby. why not attempt to punish the idiot parents for negligent dumbassery?

I just said that both should be punished, the parents should be even more so. I mean I think the cabby should get a warning or something, the parents are the bigger issue.

[Lunacie]

No, sorry, nothing would make me leave a child in a cab. If I am responsible for somebody elses' kid, they should be responsible for their own. They DID put the kid BEHIND the back seat of the van. That is irresponsible as well. I suppose they had their more important luggage in the seat with them.

And just because I've never left a child or a dog someplace doesn't mean I can't understand how it could happen. But that may be because I have neurological issues (ADHD and Anxiety and possibly Asperger's) that make my memory less than reliable at the best of times. It's possible that some people might never ever forget a child for any number of reasons - but it is also more than possible that anyone could forget for any number of reasons. Saying "I would never" seems to be daring the Universe or the Gods to make us eat our words.