by It's Not Me w.
Member since:
April 12, 2007

I Just Witnessed A Crime Against A Child!!

May 18, 2007 09:07 PM EDT
views: 61 | comments: 18

I was just about home when the truck in front of me slammed its brakes and a big man jumped out.  He grabbed a kid that was riding a bike on the sidewalk.  He was punching the kid and pulling him into the truck.  I was horrified.  What could I do?  Sure I was grabbing for my cell phone to call 911 as I'm witnessing this.  I blared my horn and was screaming for the man to let the boy go.  Anyway, the boy got lose and ran over to me.  He was scared and so was I.  The man is screaming at me and I finally understand that this kid had stolen his kids bike.  Does this give a grown man the right to beat him up and try to shove the kid in the truck.  I think not!!  So the cops come and block my SUV at the front.. like I'm going to try to get away.  Anyway, without any questions they handcuff the kid and throw him in the back of the squad car.  Meanwhile, this man is yelling that I'm the get away vehicle.  The cops even start accusing me of this.  Nobody would let me talk.  They wouldn't listen to me or take down a report of what I had just witnessed.  Which was a grown man beating on a child and shoving him into his vehicle.  No, they just sent me on my way.  Okay, so this just happened a few houses down the street and I see that they let the man go and drove off with the kid.  Is this okay???  Please someone explain to me why the cops acted this way.  I'm very shaken up and can't stop crying.

Are there any police officers out there who can explain this to me?

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Comments: 18

diana g. May 18, 2007, 9:11pm EDT
That is horrible. I can't believe that happened, the child was in danger and you tried to help. I would have done the same thing, but I had taken down the officers numbers and reported them the next day. You did what any decent person would have done, regradless of what the child did, that man had NO right to hit him.
Sara :-) May 18, 2007, 9:15pm EDT
Holy Moly! I'm thinking that the kid was the son of this man???? Even so he did NOT deserve to be beat. I do not think that child should of been let go to anyone but his legal parent, if the man beating him was his parent then I think Child Protective Services should hve been called in. I don't know where you live. I can't imagine anywhere allowing this to happen. I think the police were wrong and you might want to call down to the police department and talk to a "higher" up. This clearly was not handled properly and you should have been able to give a full report of what you saw.
It's Not Me w. May 18, 2007, 9:19pm EDT
Thank you Diana & Sara,
Okay, I'm goint to call the police department just like Sara suggested.
Kara S. May 18, 2007, 9:22pm EDT
Do you know who the cops were? If so, you need to file a complaint against them. What they did in this situation was ABSOLUTELY UNACCEPTABLE. They need to get the full story, not just one side of the story. In any case, the child should not have been released to that man if he was beating him, I hope someone called children's protective services...
Michelle W. May 18, 2007, 9:23pm EDT
You should have gotten the officer's name and badge number if at all possible. At least the patrol car number. You can report him to his his superiors at the police station and explain what you saw since the officer didn't even attempt to find out!
Latasha W. May 18, 2007, 9:29pm EDT
Carolanne, I hate that you had to deal with something like that. Calling the police department is your best option. They'll probably refer you to an internal affairs department or something like that.
Police officers are not what they used to be. You certainly did the right thing. Calling the police department and reporting what happened may or may not give you any satisifaction, depending on the kind of department it is. You may want to contact your local newspaper and an investigative reporter may be interested in pursuing the police handling angle.
Deb J. May 18, 2007, 9:34pm EDT
Terrible! I would have done what you did. And I agree with pretty much everything everyone has already said! It would have made me MAD what those cops did!!!! They don't deserve to be cops! I would have called the police dept. and asked to speak to their superior!
Rob Appell May 18, 2007, 9:43pm EDT
The police officer's actions were just as wrong as the man's. If they were city police, I'd contact the California State Police and talk to them about what went on, especially if you're still willing to make a witness statement. Contact the district attorney's office and Child Protective Services. There's got to be someone somewhere who will arrested this man for what he did to the child; whether or not the bicycle was stolen. The man could have detained him until authorities arrived by he had no right in the world to lay his hands on the boy; whether punching him or trying to force him into his truck.
LEЯA © Politcally Incorrect M. May 18, 2007, 10:25pm EDT
Maybe next time the delinquent will think twice before he steals someone else's property.

What was the approximate age of this budding criminal?
Lori F. May 18, 2007, 11:06pm EDT
carolanne....my husbands father was a sheriff in pennsylvania for 40 years...I dont blame you for being shook up. You did the right thing...this cop was wrong...as was the man who was beating that child.

I agree with the others call a supervisor or superior and report the incident.

Good luck
Tiffany M. May 19, 2007, 12:58am EDT
you might also consider that if you were witness to these actions, you may have a right to be there in court, try filing a report and seeing if they will contact the boys parents for you.alot of times people put an add in the newspaper for things like this. try something like, i was witness to a crime that took place on such street, if the police will not contact the parents or give you information on how to contact them , try that route, this incident may in fact be public information, or you may find that the man had a reason to hit the boy,maybe the boy beat up his son or daughter and stole the bike, and even though its a bad situation, this boy may be lucky to have had something so scary happen. he may have just been saved from a life of crime.who knows.
Liberal Joe May 19, 2007, 1:43am EDT
Call a police supervisor or something because this guy could have been a child molester. Personally if were me I would have got my tire iron and took it to this guy.
William Dotani May 19, 2007, 2:13am EDT
If you want to take the time, stir the pot and cause waves, you can do so at many levels for many reasons. You need to write to your state's attorney general, to your mayor, to all elected officials elected in your district, to the State Police and to the Supervisor of the Police in your town or city. In the letter, you need to objectively state what you witnessed, your actions, the false accusations made against you by the other man and how you were treated by the police. Do not put any personal subjective comments in your letter. Just state the facts. At the top of the letter, on the left hand side, put CC in capital letters and make a list of everyone you are sending this letter to. You should also file a separate complaint with the police about being slandered by a false accusation. There are other steps you can take, but I've said enough. The real issue to me is to stop violence. I don't care the reason, violence is intolerable. Unless this man learns this lesson, he will most likely act with violence again.
Elsie Duggan May 19, 2007, 2:31am EDT
I think you should call the police too. There is no reason why this man should have been allowed to go and the boy detained. If the kid did take the bike, he still did not have the right to hit the boy. There must be a record at the police station where the boy was taken. Go backward from there. Good luck.
tammy Happy to be here! r. May 21, 2007, 3:37pm EDT
TO the ones that thing the boy deserves this beating:
There is NEVER a reason for an adult to punch a child. I think the man should be charged with assult and the boy may even get out of the theft charge, because of the beating he received from this man. That will teach him nothing.
Jean E. May 31, 2007, 2:21pm EDT
bless your heart - any followup?
Amy C. Sep 20, 2008, 6:31pm EDT
Call the superviser on duty make a formal complaint.

The child did not deserve a beating, however he did deserve punishment. Maybe a police record but this gives no grown up a right to beat on a child.

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