2,500

That’s the number of American kids, between the ages of 12 and 17, who take their first prescription painkiller every single day that wasn’t prescribed to them.  And you might be surprised to discover there are two places they get these prescription strength painkillers: their own medicine cabinets or the medicine cabinets of their friends.  Shocking, yes?

Georgia is on a mission, though.  The Georgia Chapter of Narconon, along with area sheriffs departments, has instituted what’s been named “Operation Medicine Cabinet”.  The goal is to get as many unused and no longer needed prescription drugs out of these medicine cabinets for safe disposal.  Clearly, this is a program that can benefit every community in America.  Keep reading for even more shocking statistics:

• Prescription drugs are abused more often by teens than any street drug other than marijuana.
• Teens are under the impression that using prescription drugs is safer than street drugs
• 1 in 5 teens admit to abusing prescription medications
• 1 in 10 admit to abusing over the counter cough medicines to get high
• “Pharm parties”, defined as a group of teens who get together and toss prescription pills into a bowl, and then randomly select which pills to take with no thought to what they are and how they may interact with other pills they select, is on the rise.

Clearly, as parents, our concerns are generally directed to what our kids come in contact with outside our homes; however, these statistics reveal our battles may begin long before they ever leave the house. 

This practice of abusing prescription drugs has other dangers as well.  Specifically, concerns of these drugs becoming the “gateway drug” that leads to the abuse of other drugs, such as meth and cocaine, are on the rise.  We have all seen the repercussions of those addicted to drugs and the extent addicts will go to ensure their next high.  Theft, prostitution and other illegal behaviors are common and as you might expect, on the rise as well.

For more information on Operation Medicine Cabinet, visit Georgia’s Narconon Chapter.

Infanticide remains one of the most mysterious and unexplainable human traits and is defined as “the act of killing an infant”.  When a mother kills her offspring, most of us simply can’t understand the thought process that would allow a woman to carry a child nine months, give birth and then take that child’s life. 

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This week marks the arrest of 70-year old Marie Noe in 1998 in Philadelphia.  She was charged with suffocating eight of her children.  Each time one of her babies went into distress, the common denominator was her lone presence.  These deaths occurred between 1948 and 1968.  She eventually confessed to killing four of the children but denied taking the lives of the other four.  Her lawyer negotiated a twenty-year probation coupled with five years house arrest for the now-70 plus year old woman. 

Across the country, sentences vary for women found guilty of murdering their babies.  In 1994, Susan Smith claimed her car was hijacked with her two sons in the back seat, and finally confessed, after a nationwide manhunt, to driving the car into a lake with her children buckled in.  She’s serving a life sentence in a South Carolina prison.  In Texas, Andrea Yates made a 911 call in 2001 claiming to have killed her five children by drowning.  She too was convicted and received life in prison; however, the conviction was eventually overturned and she was found not guilty by reason of insanity.  She’s since been committed to a mental facility in Texas. 

Diane Downs was convicted in 1984 in Oregon for murder, attempted murder and criminal assault.  She also claimed her vehicle was approached by a stranger with an order for her to get out while her three children were in the back seat.  All three children were shot.  One daughter died, while another daughter and a son survived, but who suffered permanent physical and emotional damage. The judge who sentenced her in 1984 was vocal in his desires for Downs to never be released from prison.  She escaped from prison a few years later, only to be recaptured within two weeks.  She was recently denied parole and many believe she’ll never be released.

Clearly, sentencing guidelines vary from state to state and many factors play into how these women are punished.  Maybe it’s that same human nature that drives these women to kill their children that determines their sentences.  Juries and judges are human.  Susan Smith and Diane Downs both played the media and mastered the grieving mother role, all the while lying to everyone around them for weeks and months.  Each allowed law enforcement to continue searching for phantom killers and each allowed other family members to mourn and worry while they had the answers.  Andrea Yates never denied killing her children.  She didn’t allow law enforcement to waste time and resources looking for figment of her imagination she created. 

Regardless of how these cases get played out in the media and courtrooms, and no matter the mother’s behavior, one common thread remains: no one can ever provide a satisfactory explanation for what drives a woman to kill her own offspring.

A New York woman, Margery Tannenbaum, was re-arrested today for further charges due to her posting a Craigslist ad under the guise of her nine year old daughter’s rival that said, “I need a little affection”.  Of course, this resulted in a number of phones being made to the child of those who stood ready to provide this perverted affection.

Her lawyer declined to comment on the specifics of the case, but said that his client is a good person.  In the meantime, another mother across town is surely living in fear of the phone ringing and probably taking monumental efforts to protect her little girl.  Tannenbaum pleaded not guilty when she stood before a judge in May and once again today when she was charged with child endangerment.  She was released without having to post bail.

In a world where kids go missing every day, many of whom are featured on nightly news programs, to purposely place an electronic ad simply because of a rivalry between nine year olds is unthinkable.  Whether or not this woman did it, the ad exists and someone had to have placed it - and it certainly wasn’t the child.  Because the two families happen to be neighbors, it’s doubtful there’ll be a block party this Fourth of July.

Now for the kicker - Tannenbaum was once a social worker and is a licensed psychologist.

The family who was the target of this Craigslist campaign has said that at no time did their daughter answer any of the incoming calls from the twenty-plus men who answered the ad.  Tannenbaum apparently used her own email address and then replied to those interested with the family’s phone number.

This comes on the same day another meddling mother was in the headlines.  This time, the cyberbullying mom, Lori Drew, who relentlessly harassed a young girl on MySpace had her conviction thrown out by a federal judge.  This woman’s hoaxes are what many say led to a 13 year old girl’s suicide.  For now, she’s no longer facing a prison sentence of up to three years nor a $300,000 fine, which her lawyer argued was excessive considering her convictions were misdemeanors.

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 Admittedly, I have very little knowledge of who Jon and Kate are, let alone this magical ‘8′ that follows the title of their TLC reality show, Jon and Kate Plus 8.  Listening to screaming little ones just doesn’t fall into my preferred TV viewing choices, especially if there’s a Law & Order to be found among the available shows.  But it’s hard to ignore the headlines and the news of nearly 10 million viewers who caught last night’s season premiere.  My first question was, “So if everyone’s watching Jon and Kate, who’s paying attention to the North Korean nuke crisis?”

After I delved into the seemingly thousands of websites dedicated to the drama that is now this young couple’s life, I realized there exists the very real possibility of a divorce and custody battle playing out in the media.  Then I realized that magic number ‘8′ is in reference to the number of children this couple share.  Accusations of adultery seems to be what most are interested in and maybe it’s because I’ve come in late on this, I have no idea who’s fooling around on whom, who’s the nagging spouse or for that matter, who’s taking care of these kids while all of this supposed adultery is taking place.  The Learning Channel staff, maybe?

It’s more than surprising when one starts searching for reports from anyone associated with this couple regarding the well-being of these kids should a divorce come to pass.  Clearly, they’re happy kids and despite the constant media up their little noses, they seem to be well-adjusted.  Mom and Dad love these kids, no doubt.  But there are a lot of unanswered questions.   Why would this couple agree to yet another season of this insanity, knowing cameras, both from The Learning Channel as it films their lives as well as the paparazzi, are filming every “evil eye” that’s passed between them and every sigh each time one spouse needles the other?  Aren’t these things better resolved behind closed doors, the way marriages used to work?  Surely by now the money this couple has earned by allowing this all access has been earmarked for lawyers and counselors, especially if they do choose to divorce.  We’ll never know if their lives would’ve been more peaceful had they not chosen to participate in this show, but hopefully, for the welfare of those kids and for their own sanity, they’ll not agree to another season.

If the adultery accusations are true, you can be sure these trysts are more than documented somewhere and depending on which state they reside in (seriously, I never watch this show), one or the other stands to shell out major money each month on child support and possibly alimony payments.

Seems the only thing these two people agree on is how frustrated their lives have become since allowing cameras anywhere near them.  Hopefully, they can find some middle ground before they destroy their marriage and find themselves co-parenting their children from two separate addresses.

What do you do when someone tries to bring harm to you and your unborn child - and you don’t know until after the attempt?  A pregnant 17 year old girl unknowingly drank Gatorade that was laced with ProstaMate.  ProstaMate is used in cattle for different reasons, one of those reasons being to induce an abortion to the cow.  Her boyfriend and the father of her unborn baby gave her the tainted Gatorade and has now been charged, along with another juvenile and a 48 year old man, with attempted homicide, aggravated assault of an unborn child, endangering another person and at least a few more charges.

The teen gave birth to a healthy baby several months ago, despite the FBI confirming traces of this drug in the Gatorade container.  She had already consumed the drink, which supposedly had a single drop of the chemical, in March, 2008 when someone called her family and warned them of the possibility she might have drank poison.

The fact a 48 year old man seems to be the ringleader is more than disturbing.  He’s facing an additional charge of corruption of minors.  Instead of taking any action to stop these kids when they approached him for advice, he chose to provide assistance in the scheme with full knowledge of the potential repercussions.  This drug could have easily killed the girl, her fetus or both.  The potential also exists for breathing difficulties for anyone who consumes this substance.

Hopefully, if it hasn’t already been done, steps will be taken to ensure the father’s rights are terminated.  Although the baby has been tested and there’s been no damage found, long term effects remain to be seen - for both mother and child.

The one adult is now in jail and will remain until and unless he’s able to make bail.  The two boys will most likely go into a juvenile court and the girl who’s now raising a baby with the knowledge the father tried to harm the both of them will be spending a lot of time determining how she’ll ever be able to tell this to her child when the time comes.

Last week, when a judge ordered a 13 year old boy to again start chemotherapy treatments after he and his family chose to discontinue them, the boy’s mother threatened to take her son and disappear.  She made good on her threat; neither the teen or his mother showed up in court today.  There’s now an arrest warrant for Colleen Hauser for failing to appear today.  Further, the boy will now be placed in foster care once he returns to the court’s jurisdiction. 

Anthony Hauser did appear in court today and told the judge his wife told him it was better if he didn’t know where she was taking their son.  After speaking with one of his son’s doctors, he now believes the chemotherapy is the only option.  Unfortunately, that same conversation with the doctor revealed the tumor is now growing and pushing against the port that was inserted as a way to get the treatment into his son’s chest, causing even more pain to the 13 year old.  Still, his mother chose to take her son away from the very ones who could not only alleviate his pain, but probably cure the cancer.  Clearly, the natural healing methods the family had attempted to incorporate fell flat.  The herbal supplements didn’t serve their purpose either.

Because of this mother’s choices, she will now lose her son to the foster system and will most likely have no say at all in his future medical treatments.  Even though she was shown the x-ray taken on Monday that revealed how the tumor has grown, she still opted to flee.  In fact, when the doctor suggested they discuss his treatment options, she quickly ushered her son out of his office and said there was no need for an oncologist.

One can’t help but wonder what this boy is really feeling about his treatment options.  Is he simply going  along with what his mother believes or does he sincerely wish to stop treatments?  It should also be noted that he was diagnosed in the past with a learning disability.

With the arrest warrant issued earlier today, it’s just a matter of time before mother and son are located.  What happens next will largely rest on the judge’s shoulders.

See the first post on this topic here.

for information on canadian lawyer, family lawyers and lawyer click here.

Should a thirteen year-old boy be allowed to decide what kind of cancer treatments, if any, he receives?  That’s what a judge had to decide last week in Minnesota.  The judge’s decision was against this child’s wishes, and now Daniel Hauser must undergo chemotherapy and any radiation treatments his doctors rule necessary.

The boy and his family wanted to pursue alternative treatments that didn’t include any kind of chemicals unnatural to the human body, even though the form of Hodgkin’s lymphoma he’s diagnosed with has a 90% cure rate.  He will remain in his parent’s custody, even though they were charged with medical neglect, provided they schedule an appointment no later than this week with an oncologist.  His mother has stated she wouldn’t force her son to abide by the court’s ruling.

The court says it was acting in the child’s best interest and since he’s only thirteen, he’s too young to make that determination.  This stands to reason since we don’t allow thirteen year-old kids to drink alcohol nor do we allow them to vote.  They’re too young.  Ah, but then again, we do allow underage kids to undergo

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abortions and in some states, not even the parent’s notification is required.  So should this boy be allowed to cease his medical treatment?  Was the judge’s ruling right?  And what happens if the parents choose to not seek medical treatment as their way of honoring their son’s request?  Maybe more importantly, what if there are there natural remedies that can cure cancer without introducing radiation to the human body?  The parents insist their religious beliefs teach natural healing as a way to cure all that ails the human’s body and mind.  Regardless of how any of us feel about it, it’s a huge gamble to take with a young boy who has a cancer that responds well to modern medicine.  Further, this boy also has a learning disability that might be influencing the decision his family says he’s made with no influence from them.

The doctors who testified say six treatments of chemotherapy over six months would most certainly kill the tumor in its entirety.  One man who says he was cured of the same cancer via natural herbs stands behind this family and its decision on how their son lives his life.  He says the boy could die from the chemotherapy if he’s forced to undergo it, but that he’d stand by the family as they rejoice in his brave attempts to “test the law of the land”.

Links to lawyer, family lawyers on lawyerahead.ca

April is National Child Abuse Prevention month.  As we’re nearing the end of the month, it seems as though there are more stories about society’s most vulnerable who are suffering, or worse, dying at the hands of those they trust most. 

Shylae Thomas

This nine-year old quadriplegic girl was found stuffed into a plastic bin nearly 100 miles from the only home she’s ever known.  Her adoptive mother, who’s also her aunt, has been charged with not only her murder, but a myriad of child abuse charges as well.  Seven other children were removed from her care just prior to her arrest. 

The medical examiner in Flint, MI determined Shylae weighed only 33 pounds when she died and will testify this child was starved to death.  Her murder caps the end of a tragic and short life.  Her own mother lost custody of her when she was a baby for many of the same accusations her adoptive mother’s now been charged with, including medical neglect.  The murder trial is slated to start next month.

Enrique Gonzalez

A California gang member, Enrique Gonzalez, is on the run for tattooing his seven year old son with a gang tattoo.  The boy didn’t want the tattoo and was adamant enough that his father (and I use that term loosely) had to call in back-up to hold this child down while he was tattooed.  Gonzalez has been charged with child abuse, false imprisonment, committing a crime for the benefit of a gang and other charges.  He’s yet to be captured and the boy is in protective custody.

Keyuna Thomas

The prime witness against a man who’s been charged with murdering his girlfriend is the couple’s now 13-year old daughter.  She’s expected to testify she was forced to help dismember her mother and watch as her head fell to the floor.  There are few things more horrifying.  Her father, James Hawkins, who was on parole at the time of the murder in 2008, has denied through his lawyer of committing the murder.  At one time, he admitted to dumping her body in north Mississippi, but has since emphatically denied having made any such statement.  He was recently found competent and as a result, will stand trial and be forced to watch his own daughter relive what will be the most devastating event she will ever know in her life.

With these and so many other stories in the news about the endless ways children are being abused, it gives every parent in this country reason to keep their own children close, whether they’re 5, 25 or 105.

England’s leading the way for incorporating satellites to monitor the behavior of its little darlings as they board and depart school buses each day.  This pilot program allows school officials to issue cards, similar in size to a credit card, and will require elementary, middle school and high school aged kids to scan them, much like one would as he clocks in and out of work each day.  After they’ve scanned the cards, their parents can then log in on a website and monitor their behavior.  Those who are encouraging these new efforts insist it will ensure kids don’t cut class as often, reduce bullying and generally rein in other misbehaved little ones. 

Here’s the kicker, and the one point that seems to be most disturbing - there will be Bus Angels who will work undercover to report their classmates.  This is going to be a huge problem!  What happens when some of these kids who’ve suffered the consequences of their bad behavior target another who’s riding the same bus and who’s suspected of being one of these Bus Angels?  For that matter, it really makes no difference if the suspicions are correct.  Put a group of kids who clearly have behavioral problems (let’s be honest…these are drastic measures) in a moving vehicle and you can be sure they’re going to find someone to take their frustrations out on, especially if they know there’s someone else on the bus who’s been asked to play the role of snitch.  They can color it any shade of purple they want, and whether these kids are called bus angels or snitches, they’re going to be targeted.  Period.  It’s classic and although most of us can’t remember it being dangerous in any true sense, there’ve been tattletales in every school, in every neighborhood and in every classroom that houses kids under the age of 12 since the beginning of time.  This, though, can’t be good.  In fact, I’m wondering if many of these bus angels are feeling more like they’re in a hot ring of hell right about now.

This also opens up another round of questions: what happens if a parent’s online, monitoring the behavior of the kids and witnesses her sweet little girl knock the bus angel around a time or two?  Most of us don’t need to be reminded of our responsibility as parents, but again….for a group of kids to be so misbehaved that they require outer space, via satellites, to play the role of babysitter….something else is going on. 

I’m thinking this science project will end up with a ton of hardware that’s in a box and collecting dust in the bus maintenance shed by the time it’s all said and done.

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Seems as though there are a lot of moms in legal hot water these days.  Each day reveals a new arrest or accusation against a woman whose bad behavior as a mother has placed her in the headlines.  Today’s no different.  I’m having a hard time understanding why so many can’t seem to discern bad parenting choices from good ones.  As parents, we always question whether or not we’ve overreacted over a less than glowing report card or when we learn one of our little darlings has skipped school and spent the day on the river.  But I’ve never had to be told that encouraging my son to “beat him up” was not a wise choice, nor have I ever been suspected or accused of doing drugs with my son. 

One woman in Illinois was filmed, via a cell phone, of screaming at her daughter to beat up a classmate in a park.  She was arrested for contributing to the delinquency of a minor.  Her fifteen year old daughter must now come to terms with this and I’m wondering if she’s mature enough to question, even if it’s only to herself, why her mom would encourage her to behave this way.  What happened to “Be sweet and don’t get into any trouble?”  Or, as my mom used to warn, “Girl, don’t go stirring no trouble today.” 

The video ended up on YouTube, but prosecutors have taken it down. 

Our second nominee for Mother of the Year hails from Montana.  Yet another 37 year old mom, this one was charged over the weekend with accountability to theft, accountability to criminal trespass to a vehicle and she’s also charged with endangering the welfare of children.  This last charge is an understatement.  She’s accused of taking her son and a few of his friends on a joyride and allowed them to break into cars to steal things.  Did it not occur to her that some property owners - whether their property is their homes or their automobiles - don’t take too kindly to theft?  In fact, some believe it’s more than justifiable to let their shotguns do their talking - and in most states, they’re supported by the law in this belief.

The kicker in this story is it was her own husband who called police.  He had no way of knowing when he found a pile of what was clearly stolen property in his back yard that it was his wife and sixteen year old son who were responsible for the newly acquired stereos and other items.  As a result of her bad choice, seven teenagers have been charged as well.  My next question is how do you fit eight people in a car and still have room for stolen property?  I’ll have to give her a call for tips. 

Both women appeared in court today with lawyers to face their charges.