Message #11155

[radaro]

But wait, unfortunately, I can top that.



Kids left in car, dad charged



By JONATHAN KINGSTONE, TORONTO SUN



 A four-month-old girl and her two-year-old sister were left in a car in "excruciating" heat for an hour yesterday while their dad appeared in court, Toronto Police say.



"The father didn't think he did anything wrong," Staff-Sgt. Douglas Ransom said. "You say to yourself, 'What was this guy thinking?'"



The 24-year-old man was charged with leaving his children unattended. The Children's Aid Society has also been notified.



As temperatures soared into the mid-30s, the little girls were left alone in a Dodge Spirit parked in the broiling sun outside the Keele St. traffic court.



Although the windows of the car were left open, the noontime heat inside reached dangerously high levels, Ransom said. The keys were also left in the ignition, he added.



The baby was crying uncontrollably when the sisters were spotted by a passerby, Ransom said. While one child was sweating profusely, neither youngster required hospitalization.



"The sun was bouncing off the roof," Ransom said. "Given the temperatures, this was certainly a safety issue. The kids are okay but the repercussions could have been much worse."



After police found their father, the man -- whose licence was under suspension -- told police he didn't think his daughters were in any danger.



"We have communicated very strongly to him that his behaviour was inappropriate," Ransom said.



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First of all, I would have taken the car, since the keys were still in the ignition, and driven it straight to the nearest hospital.  Bet the father would get more freaked out that the car was gone than about the kids.



Secondly, "We have communicated very strongly.."  What the heck is that?  Clap the irons on the guy and lock him up in a car on a hot day!  NO MERCY.



BTW there are laws in Ontario prohibiting the leaving children and animals in unattended cars