Can I leave my infant in the car alone to...,

[Anonymous]

The answer to this question is almost always no. I think it's an utter pain, too. But that's life in the big city.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, you *should* be able to, but there are whack jobs all over the place that will take it upon themselves to call the police and rain down hell on you for this. If people were so concerned about helping out other people, they would say, "Hey, I can watch your baby for the 2 minutes it will take you to use the ATM machine" instead of whipping out their iPhones and making a video and calling 911. But no.

The OP asked if she parked 3-4 cars away from the ATM on a city street if that would be okay. In 90 degree weather like we've had this week, the interior of a car will be 109 in 10 minutes, 119 in 20 minutes, 124 in 30 minutes. Infants are less tolerant of extreme temperatures and in 90 degree weather, an infant die of deyhdration and heat within 15 minutes. Typical parallel parking spaces are about 20 feet long so 3-4 cars if 60-80 feet away. That's pretty far for someone to try and figure out if anyone is with the child on a city street. If you have no idea how long the child has been in the car, seconds may matter. Even spending 2-4 minutes trying to ask around the people in the street if they are the guardian of the child in the car may be enough for that child to die, so some will call 911 and try to get into the car before trying to ask around. A few seconds or a few minutes may make the difference between life and death in these situations.

The number of children who die in hot vehicles per year: 2014 (12 and counting), 2013 (44), 2012 (34), 2011 (33), 2010 (49), 2009 (33), 2008 (43).
People are concerned and want to prevent those accidents. So, people who are concerned that you aren't just in the line of people waiting for the ATM up the block but that you might have accidentally forgotten your child while running errands, are whack jobs. People trying to save your child from a horrible death are whack jobs. People who want to see that number go down as close to zero annually are whack jobs. People who don't want you to go through what the parents in Gene Weingarten's Pulitzer Prize winning article, "Fatal Distraction" are whack jobs. Got it.

How many of those kids died while the parent was parked for a minute and getting cash at the ATM? I would venture to guess zero.

The woman in Arlington safely buckled her baby into a car seat and then turned around and got hit by a dump truck. That hardly ever happens though, so totally okay to leave your kid in a hot car, because chances are nothing will go wrong. You be you.

Total non-sequitur? What does this have to do with the poor woman who died in freak accident?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you live in Maryland no, it's illegal. If you live in VA (not quite illegal) feel free to take your chances.

In Maryland it is illegal if the car is out of sight.

Actually "unattended" within the eyes of the law, means within the vehicle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, you *should* be able to, but there are whack jobs all over the place that will take it upon themselves to call the police and rain down hell on you for this. If people were so concerned about helping out other people, they would say, "Hey, I can watch your baby for the 2 minutes it will take you to use the ATM machine" instead of whipping out their iPhones and making a video and calling 911. But no.

The OP asked if she parked 3-4 cars away from the ATM on a city street if that would be okay. In 90 degree weather like we've had this week, the interior of a car will be 109 in 10 minutes, 119 in 20 minutes, 124 in 30 minutes. Infants are less tolerant of extreme temperatures and in 90 degree weather, an infant die of deyhdration and heat within 15 minutes. Typical parallel parking spaces are about 20 feet long so 3-4 cars if 60-80 feet away. That's pretty far for someone to try and figure out if anyone is with the child on a city street. If you have no idea how long the child has been in the car, seconds may matter. Even spending 2-4 minutes trying to ask around the people in the street if they are the guardian of the child in the car may be enough for that child to die, so some will call 911 and try to get into the car before trying to ask around. A few seconds or a few minutes may make the difference between life and death in these situations.

The number of children who die in hot vehicles per year: 2014 (12 and counting), 2013 (44), 2012 (34), 2011 (33), 2010 (49), 2009 (33), 2008 (43).
People are concerned and want to prevent those accidents. So, people who are concerned that you aren't just in the line of people waiting for the ATM up the block but that you might have accidentally forgotten your child while running errands, are whack jobs. People trying to save your child from a horrible death are whack jobs. People who want to see that number go down as close to zero annually are whack jobs. People who don't want you to go through what the parents in Gene Weingarten's Pulitzer Prize winning article, "Fatal Distraction" are whack jobs. Got it.

How many of those kids died while the parent was parked for a minute and getting cash at the ATM? I would venture to guess zero.

The woman in Arlington safely buckled her baby into a car seat and then turned around and got hit by a dump truck. That hardly ever happens though, so totally okay to leave your kid in a hot car, because chances are nothing will go wrong. You be you.

Wait...so are you saying that parents should climb from the back seat into the front seat b/c they don't know if they'll get hit by a truck while walking around the car to the driver's seat after buckling in their child?!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, you *should* be able to, but there are whack jobs all over the place that will take it upon themselves to call the police and rain down hell on you for this. If people were so concerned about helping out other people, they would say, "Hey, I can watch your baby for the 2 minutes it will take you to use the ATM machine" instead of whipping out their iPhones and making a video and calling 911. But no.

The OP asked if she parked 3-4 cars away from the ATM on a city street if that would be okay. In 90 degree weather like we've had this week, the interior of a car will be 109 in 10 minutes, 119 in 20 minutes, 124 in 30 minutes. Infants are less tolerant of extreme temperatures and in 90 degree weather, an infant die of deyhdration and heat within 15 minutes. Typical parallel parking spaces are about 20 feet long so 3-4 cars if 60-80 feet away. That's pretty far for someone to try and figure out if anyone is with the child on a city street. If you have no idea how long the child has been in the car, seconds may matter. Even spending 2-4 minutes trying to ask around the people in the street if they are the guardian of the child in the car may be enough for that child to die, so some will call 911 and try to get into the car before trying to ask around. A few seconds or a few minutes may make the difference between life and death in these situations.

The number of children who die in hot vehicles per year: 2014 (12 and counting), 2013 (44), 2012 (34), 2011 (33), 2010 (49), 2009 (33), 2008 (43).
People are concerned and want to prevent those accidents. So, people who are concerned that you aren't just in the line of people waiting for the ATM up the block but that you might have accidentally forgotten your child while running errands, are whack jobs. People trying to save your child from a horrible death are whack jobs. People who want to see that number go down as close to zero annually are whack jobs. People who don't want you to go through what the parents in Gene Weingarten's Pulitzer Prize winning article, "Fatal Distraction" are whack jobs. Got it.

How many of those kids died while the parent was parked for a minute and getting cash at the ATM? I would venture to guess zero.

The woman in Arlington safely buckled her baby into a car seat and then turned around and got hit by a dump truck. That hardly ever happens though, so totally okay to leave your kid in a hot car, because chances are nothing will go wrong. You be you.

Total non-sequitur? What does this have to do with the poor woman who died in freak accident?

At first reading I'd agree with you but what *if* something happened to OP while her child was in the car and no one knew the baby was there in this weather? Long shot, I know, but still would give me pause.

[Anonymous]

Posted earlier that I would do this. With windows *DOWN.*

Why is everyone going on like the windows are up in this situation? That's obviously a bad idea on a warm day, much less with the recent temperatures.

[Anonymous]

op I would. But this happened to me last week. Both kids had a high fever and we were out of groceries and needed to go to the doctors. So I take them to the grocery store for 5 min,pick up a fresh lasagnia both kids are un the grocery cart. I open my trunk and put my wallet and keys and phone down. Unload groceries. Close trunk. Just like that im locked out. My dh works an hour away. Its Friday at 3. Rush hour is a bitch. But imagine if i put my kids in the car first. They would've died from the heat. And they're too young to open locks. I felt so relieved my kids were in the cart. I walked them to the doctors office and we waited for dh. It was a hell day. But imagine if they were inside.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Posted earlier that I would do this. With windows *DOWN.*

Why is everyone going on like the windows are up in this situation? That's obviously a bad idea on a warm day, much less with the recent temperatures.

Even with the windows down the sun on the roof of the car still creates an oven-like feel and can magnify the outside temperature. With the windows up, the temperature can rise to dangerous levels within 10 minutes. With the windows down, the temperature can still rise to dangerous levels, it just takes longer. You think the heat is dissipating, but with the sun shining constantly on the car roof, the metal of the car will be constantly emitting heat much like the coils in an oven. Infants and babies can start suffering heatstroke and hyperthermia at 104 degrees. With 90 degree temperatures outdoors it doesn't take long (about 10 minutes windows up, probably about 20-30 minutes with windows down.

The problem that those of you who would do this is that passersby have no way of knowing if you knowingly went for a quick errand like the ATM down the block or if you forgot that your child was with you. They're going to try to save your child first and ask questions later. People seeing your child in a hot car have no way of knowing that you deliberately left your child in the hot car vs accidentally left your child in the hot car. If you had forgotten your child in a hot car while you went into a store, would you want people to try to save your child's life or assume that you deliberately did this and let your child die? People have no idea of your intent, they only see the child in the hot car.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No.

I'm not even reading whatever comes after the ellipsis.

Word.

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO

Nonsense. Of course it's OK if the car is a few cars away and within your sight.

Parents of little babies are so dramatic.

Wait till your kids are teens -- you will laugh at how neurotic you once were.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Posted earlier that I would do this. With windows *DOWN.*

Why is everyone going on like the windows are up in this situation? That's obviously a bad idea on a warm day, much less with the recent temperatures.

Even with the windows down the sun on the roof of the car still creates an oven-like feel and can magnify the outside temperature. With the windows up, the temperature can rise to dangerous levels within 10 minutes. With the windows down, the temperature can still rise to dangerous levels, it just takes longer. You think the heat is dissipating, but with the sun shining constantly on the car roof, the metal of the car will be constantly emitting heat much like the coils in an oven. Infants and babies can start suffering heatstroke and hyperthermia at 104 degrees. With 90 degree temperatures outdoors it doesn't take long (about 10 minutes windows up, probably about 20-30 minutes with windows down.

The problem that those of you who would do this is that passersby have no way of knowing if you knowingly went for a quick errand like the ATM down the block or if you forgot that your child was with you. They're going to try to save your child first and ask questions later. People seeing your child in a hot car have no way of knowing that you deliberately left your child in the hot car vs accidentally left your child in the hot car. If you had forgotten your child in a hot car while you went into a store, would you want people to try to save your child's life or assume that you deliberately did this and let your child die? People have no idea of your intent, they only see the child in the hot car.

They will have every way of knowing in OP's situation, because she will see them when she is at the ATM but within sight of her car. When she sees people looking at her baby, she will say "I'm here -- I have my eye on him!"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:op I would. But this happened to me last week. Both kids had a high fever and we were out of groceries and needed to go to the doctors. So I take them to the grocery store for 5 min,pick up a fresh lasagnia both kids are un the grocery cart. I open my trunk and put my wallet and keys and phone down. Unload groceries. Close trunk. Just like that im locked out. My dh works an hour away. Its Friday at 3. Rush hour is a bitch. But imagine if i put my kids in the car first. They would've died from the heat. And they're too young to open locks. I felt so relieved my kids were in the cart. I walked them to the doctors office and we waited for dh. It was a hell day. But imagine if they were inside.

Locking your kids in the car from the outside is a really really bad idea and a bad habit. So don't ever do that. Don't put your kids in the car, and lock the door. Until you are inside the car yourself.

This has nothing to do with leaving the kids in the car (unlocked) while you are doing something at the curb.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
At first reading I'd agree with you but what *if* something happened to OP while her child was in the car and no one knew the baby was there in this weather? Long shot, I know, but still would give me pause.

OMG what *if* you take your child out of the car seta, where he is safe and sound, and are carrying him to do your errand at the ATM, and you slip and fall and he hits his head and dies in a freak accident because you were carrying him, instead of leaving him safely secured in his car seat?

You could trip over the curb....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Too many weirdos out there - car jacking, kidnapping, etc for the 30 sec you turn your back punching in your pass code and making your selections.
I could never live with myself if there was a bad outcome.

But how could you live with yourself if some childnapper nabbed your child while you were at the ATM holding her in her car seat? Wouldn't it be easier for a kidnapper to get your child while she was out of the car, than inside it?? Just grab and go.

Why are you making it EASY for a childnapper to grab your child by taking her out of the car for heaven's sake??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here's the law for Maryland http://www.kidsandcars.org/userfiles/state-laws/maryland-state-law.pdf
Its only a problem if the car is "out of sight"

There is no current law in VA.

this says the person can't be absent or out of sight. if she is running to the ATM 10 feet away she is not absent or out of sight. she's right there. it's not a big deal IMO

[Anonymous]

Don't worry, OP, I think all the "good Samaritans" who would turn you into the cops for this are too busy judging each other on DCUM. They're all shouting at their computer screens. You should be fine.