Way To Drop the Ball, Nebraska
As you may know, Nebraska had this "safe haven" law going on, where parents could drop their kids at a hospital if they couldn't take care of them, and they wouldn't get in trouble. People used this law, and dropped off their kids at hospitals in Nebraska, and you'd think that would be the end of the story. Except it's not.
Because Nebraska screwed up. They meant only for babies to be left at hospitals. Newborns, really. Not kids. Certainly not teenagers.
So Nebraska fixed their mistake today, and closed the loop. Now only newborns up to 30 days old can be legally abandoned at hospitals.
And good luck to those older kids. The ones old enough to know how much they aren't wanted, and can't properly be cared for. Don't worry though Nebraska, if you don't want to deal with those kids, you don't have to. You can wait for them to become screwed up adults and deal with them as grownups who have to use the system. Way to go.
Because Nebraska screwed up. They meant only for babies to be left at hospitals. Newborns, really. Not kids. Certainly not teenagers.
So Nebraska fixed their mistake today, and closed the loop. Now only newborns up to 30 days old can be legally abandoned at hospitals.
And good luck to those older kids. The ones old enough to know how much they aren't wanted, and can't properly be cared for. Don't worry though Nebraska, if you don't want to deal with those kids, you don't have to. You can wait for them to become screwed up adults and deal with them as grownups who have to use the system. Way to go.
Labels: Asshat
posted by Green at 11/22/2008 10:03:00 AM
5 Comments:
I had the same thought yesterday. Parents who were willing to drop off older kids are not going to be good parents. SO what, now they can't drop off the kids? Are the parents going to further neglect or abuse them because they are not wanted? Why not keep the law the way it was and allow those kids to go into the state foster care system, maybe fine a family, even a foster family, that gives a crap about your well being.
The military recruiters will be happy.
Nebraska changed their Safe Haven Law because the intent of the law was to give mothers of newborn children a safe place to leave their infant (or to put it more bluntly - to keep people from putting babies in dumpsters). Due to how the law was first written, an age limit was not put on it. California's age limit is 72 hours. See for yourself: http://library.adoption.com/articles/infant-safe-haven-laws-california.html
By changing this law, they are asking people to go through the channels already put in place for older children in trouble. An example would be Boys Town in Omaha, NE.
This law needed to be changed; however, I think it showed just how desperate people are for help with their children. The answer, though, isn't to let people just dump their kids in a hospital and run. Could you imaginge being that 8 year old, or 14, or 17? The answer is more funding for children's homes, foster programs, and family counseling centers and also better education and communication that those services exist. In EVERY state.
I don't think that a lot of these kids were victims of abuse or neglect, The parents just decided to opt out of parenting. Real abusers just kick the kids out on the street and don't give a crap what happens to them.
Chances are, the parents are in a second relationship with someone who doesn't like the kids, so, like an unwanted puppy, they drop them off at the pound/hospital where they make themselves feel less guilty because the kids are in a "better" place.
I know from personally 2 people who did this. One with a 13 year old girl who was acting out because her mom kept bring home different guys home from the bar, so she put her in foster care bacause she was "too much to handle" more like cut into her moms drinking time.
And the other who had a just turned 17 year old boy, whos mom set him up in his own (crappy) apt because his new stepfather didn't want a bunch of teenagers hanging around.
They were both good kids in sucky situations who are actually better off where they are now, rather than with the loser parents they had.
I see kids dealing with this every day at the organization I work for. How horrible to not feel wanted. At any age.
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