The following is a segment for the CTG Writers Group’s HYPOTHETICALLY SPEAKING.
You are at work. While going through a pile of documents, you casually listen to the radio on your Zune to make the boring paperwork you have to do more bearable.
There is an emergency news alert. Some disturbed child has turned terrorist, and is shooting at teachers and students alike at a local high school. When the police arrived on the scene after receiving numerous 911 calls from multiple cell phones, people could be seen trying climb out of the school’s windows because the shooters had padlocked all of the doors.
You frown as you listen to the story, thinking to yourself about how violent the youth of today are. You are glad that you don’t have to worry about your own teenager. She goes to a good school where you don’t have to worry about stuff like that happening.
Something the announcer says catches your ear, and suddenly you freeze in your chair as you give your full attention to the news. Did they say the name of your child’s school? You hold your breath as you wait and listen. Officers have entered the building and bodies are everywhere, but the gunman has escaped and is nowhere to be found. Half a minute goes by and they say the name of the school again.
It IS your child’s school.
Immediately you call your child’s cell phone. Voicemail picks up. You leave a message demanding that your daughter call you as soon as possible to tell you if she is okay. You let her know that you are heading home.
You call off for the rest of the afternoon, explaining that there is a family emergency as you hurry out of the office. You turn on the news station as you fly down the road towards your child’s school. You try not to panic too much as they relay the death toll, which continues to rise as they discover more bodies.
Tears of worry stream down your cheeks. Your daughter is your only child, the only family you have. You pray furiously that she is okay.
When you arrive at the school, the scene is horrible. Ambulances, fire trucks and police cars are everywhere. Adults, children and parents are crying. People are being carried out of the building on stretchers, many in body bags.
Frantically you approach officers, asking them how you can find your daughter. They tell you that there is nothing you can do there amongst the chaos, and to go home in case your child has gone there. They tell you that if your daughter has been found to be a victim, you will be contacted at home. You scan the faces of the crowd for your daughter and leave another message on her voicemail. Reluctantly you go home, which is only several blocks away.
As soon as you get in the house, you hear noises. Relieved, but anxious to see to your child’s well being, you run upstairs and burst into your daughter’s room. She is in her underwear and is stuffing her clothes into a trash bag.
“Baby are you all right?”
Clearly startled, your daughter jumps up. “What are you doing home?!”
“I heard on the news about what happened at your school. Why are you throwing your clothes away?”
Your daughter looks down. “Um, they got someone’s blood on them,” she says.
Your heart thumps against your chest. “Oh no, don’t tell me you were standing next to someone who got shot?” You ask. Before your child gets to answer, there is a loud knocking at the door. You both look out of the window and see three police cars in front of your home.
You move to go answer the door, but your daughter grabs your arm. “No, don’t answer it!” she says.
“It’s okay baby, it’s just the police. They probably just want to talk to you because you were there.”
“Don’t tell them I’m here, then,” your child insists.
“Why not? I’m sure they just want to ask questions to help catch who did this. Why don’t you want talk to them?”
“Because it was me,” your child blurts out, tears in her eyes. “I’m the one who shot all those people!”
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{ 36 comments… read them below or add one }
I think that you HAVE to turn your child over to the police. If you don’t, then YOU will be subject to prosecution. If this happened, you’d really have no choice. Your hands would be tied.
Good post
After reviving myself from the shock, I think I’d have to turn her in like 12kyle said. It’s a truly no win situation.
Love!
What a conundrum! I feel torn, and this is only a hypothetical situation.
As much as it would rend my heart, I’d turn my child over to the authorities.
she would have to get the hell up outta there…
seriously, i wouldn’t open the door for the police. i know that she would eventually end up getting arrested. but i wouldn’t open the door. i would try and sit down and ask her what happpened and want to know what in the world was she thinking and everything.
as bad as i would probably want to try and hide her out…i wouldn’t. eventually she’d have to turn herself in. if the police kick down the door then i couldn’t do anything but hope that she doesn’t pull a “made it ma, top of the world” scenes.
This is a tough one. Being my only child, my only daughter. I would have to find out why she did what she did, but she gotta go.
Turn the child in because if they have to forcefully get to her she may end up killed by them.
That’s messed up. The first thing out of my mouth would be “What the hell you mean you are the one who shot all those kids.” I would have lost it. Then we would have eventually gone and faced the music together. As a parent you couldn’t help but feel responsible and wonder how did it all come to this.
Great scenario. Great twist.
I would speak with my child for as much time as allowed and then I would hope she would turn herself in.
I enjoyed this post..thanks.
Product Junkie Diva
I would tell her to keep her mouth shut while I talked to police. Once I fefused to open the door for the police I would smack the beat the hell out of my child then call the police and tell them that I’ve found her hiding in her room.
whoa. talk about an effed up situation.
i think, after the shock, madness and anxiety washed over. i’d just cry. seriously. there’s not much i could do, aside from letting the po’s come and take my daughter from me. i couldn’t stop them, i couldn’t hide her, i couldn’t do squat, at least not without throwing myself in jail with her.
yeah. this is one of THOSE situations.
dnk, i couldnt imagine it, my kids under me too much
good point, sheila.
that is definitely something to think about. when the police label someone as being “armed and dangerous,” that is another way of saying, “even breathe hard and you’re dead.”
Have you ever read novel “Nineteen minutes”? That’s what happens to one set of characters in the book. It’s heartbreaking to read how the mother tries to come to terms with her child killing all those people….
My question would be: What did I do wrong? How could I have helped give life to someone who would do such a thing. I would feel resposible in a lot of ways. But I don’t think I would open the door…
She would have to turn herself in.
Uh, yeah, that murdering heiffer would have to get the hell on up out my house, for real!! I’m not harboring no criminals, believe that, fruit of my loins or not- I’m not messing with NYPD, no siree BOB!
Now, I would totally be heartbroken and torn up inside, and I’d make sure she had a good lawyer and a shrink and received fair treatment, I’d prob even blame myself for not being able to prevent it, but bottom line? She gotta go…
Whew! This one had me glued to my screen for real…totally engrossed. I guess in light of the one year commemoration of VTech, this was too real.
After probably initially dropping to my knees in hysterics, I would pull myself together…tell her to say NOTHING, let the cops in (make sure they had a warrant) and let them take her away. Get Jesus and the lawyer on the main line.
Don said you were an ill writer. Keep pushing!
IM.NOT.TURNING.MY.BABY.OVER.
fugg that.
FIrst Im asking for a Warrant, then im getting our lawyer over to the house immediately.
If they took her with them, when I got visitation, I would work with her to concoct a scheme that I beat her as a child, and punched her momma in the face every thursday at 4pm, while she watched. We sould come up with the moest horrible stories, so that the lawyer could work up a defense of insanity.
and to combat the the pre meditated portion, I would say I made her sit in a room wiht me and watch gangster violent movie and video games every day. Get the Anti violence and video game people to jump on the bandwagon and say this wouldnt have happened if violent games werent published and corrupting our youth.
Then id hire an investigator to find some proof that the kids that got killed were bullys or bad kids that tormented my child. even f they weren’t or didn’t, Id find a way to amke it look like they did.
Basically id do whatever I could to make sure the prosecution couldnt prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt and hope for a hung jury or mistrial. Then smuggle my child into cuba.
seriously.
: shrugs : Yeah it’s evil but thats my baby.
damn…. i’m not sure what i would do. cry like hell first. tell the cops that she isn’t there, sit down and talk to her, get our lawyer and pastor to come to the house, ask myself why didn’t I know that my child was this unhappy.
I hate to say it but the kid would have to be arrested. Maybe thats because I am not a mommy, but I would turn them in without a second thought.
Because she is a child, i would treat her as such. First try to find out what happened, protect her, protect her rights by contacting a lawyer for advice or to at least meet me at the house. If the police have no warrant, they will kindly explain to them that we were seeking counsel. If she is guilty of such violence then she needs help. Great post.
The police would be draggin both of us out of there. Her for the shooting and me for kicking her tail.
agreed with SHE NEEDS!!
i wouldnt let the cops in though b/c id be too busy woopin her ass! naw but really though, i wouldnt let them in immidiately i’m already knowing they are gonna come in anyway. but i wouldnt put up a fight.
GEEEZ…..
well eventually she would get caught…
i would cry while i beat her ass for the last time!!!!
theres really nothing i could do
wow…i don’t know. The so called “justice” system is fucked up already as it is. I honestly don’t know what I’d do. But I do know the police would not be coming up in my house all willy nilly.
I would throw her ass out the window –
Man, I would be shocked… but then I would realize she is crazy and may try to do me in …
This is a great post! I am SHOCKED at all the parents who would turn their child in. I KNOW my child. So if she did something like that, she’d have a reason. I know, I know…you’re saying there is no reason to do that. But bullying, teasing, etc. have gone to a new level and some have said, “Game over” I’m in charge and they are going off. I’m with Slaus and MisRespresent. That’s my child and she needs her Momma. We’d work it out, but I would not answer the door. I’d lock us both in the “safe” room in our house and when the coast is clear, we’d bounce. I’d get her some help once we land, but the “just-us” system couldn’t have her. This is my gut reaction…but I’m sure after some thought I may say something else, but I’d never just turn her in.
If your child goes off shooting folks at dairy queen just because they were out of mint chocolate chip? they are crazy.
and as a parent, somehow you are to blame.
Turn her in the whole time crying thinking about where did I go wrong.
But her crazy ass couldn’t stay in my house! Crazy heifer might be standing over me with a knife in the middle of the night…
I would turn her in, but I would be SO shocked!
I would have understood that she did it when I saw her putting her clothes in the trash bag.
Wow, interesting mix of responses! My thoughts on a few answers:
12kyle – I’d try my best to get my lawyer on the phone ASAP to ask what I could say to make the police go away for now.
don – I would do the same thing, except I would try to tell the police that I wasn’t going to let them in without a warrant, if I could, or something to keep them out for as long as I could so I could talk to my child and get advice from my lawyer.
shelia – good point, I certainly wouldn’t put up a resistance with the police. I’d try to make them go away,though.
product junkie diva – I think turning themselves in is a decent option, too. But I don’t know if I would have them do that so soon, though. Are they mentally unstable? Were they forced to? What does my lawyer suggest? I’d have to find out those things first.
ms.erika – No, I have not read that novel, but I just may have to check it out, thanks!
slaus – You are crazy *laughs*
mizrepresent – Good that you point out that she is still a child, because I would feel a little differently about the situation if it involved my grown son or daughter.
prettyblack – *laughing* good point about her potentially being crazy!
It was very interesting to read EVERYbody’s response to this – thank you all for making this project even more enjoyable with your participation!
I could imagine that for the first few minutes, I would be in total/complete shock!!
[NO PARENT THINKS THEIR CHILD IS CAPABLE OF SOMETHING LIKE THIS...]
So as not to further complicate things, I’d likely open the door for the po-lice.
Better that than have em’ kick in the damn door and gun us both down .
***Y’all already know some of em’ are more trigger happy than a lil’ bit!!!***
SIGH
First off I’m new to your blog and I would like to say that was different..Different being good. Secondly, someone further down on the comment list said “Not me, my kids up under me too much”. Those are the main ones that shoot up schools, cuz parents smother them, and think that their children are angels. Kids are bad. Plain and simple..I am an 80’s baby, and wheew..the things my mom and aunties and nem went through w/ us..lawd have mercy..
Oh and the other guy down there talking about he would make up something about him abusing his daughter blah blah blah..Duh fool they would take your ass to jail for screwing her up. But I think I get your point you would sacrifice yourself for your daughter..
Now..if that was my daughter..the first thing that would have happened is I would have thrown up all over her..lol..I get nauseous when in stressful situations. Then I would have slapped the hell out of her. Then I would have grabbed her, and I’m sure we both would be crying. Her… because she has throw up all over her, and she just shot up a whole bunch of people, and me…because my baby is obviously ill, and damn..How could I have missed it? In reality I won’t miss it..Anyway.. I wouldn’t answer the door for the police just yet because I would have to finish smoking my funny smelling cigarette, and I would have to talk to my baby. I would find out why. Then when I was ready, I would drive her to the police station and hand her over. She would definitely plead insanity, because my baby a black child is the only “survivor” murder in a school shooting. Now that’s crazy..
Thank you ma’am for your entertainment, sorry to just go on and on. I have a tendency to do that..I’ll be coming back. Keep doing you!
hmmm wow. good one. i think i’d pass out. then i’d beat her. THEN i’d have to turn her in.
wow.
*CRACKING up at slaus’s response. ha!*
now THAT is a parent. lol.
I would go down stairs and tell the cops my child is not home, once they are gone I would go upstairs to have a chat with my child to see what happened and what triggered her to do such a horrible thing! After that I’m not sure what I would do…..
great post!
That would be one of the most horrible situations a parent could find themself in.
Even though she is my child, I would have to let the police take her. Love for a child means letting go sometimes.
Turn her in. That’s the only choice. The chances of aggressive police, parents and community focusing their outrage on you and your daughter are too great. Get a lawyer, go to the station and find out why.
I would definitely have to hide her in the beginning and say she wasn’t there. Then I would try to find out why she thought it was okay to start spraying up her school and shit. Then I would probably break down. Then I would call my Grandmother. Then we would talk to a lawyer and then she would have to turn herself in.
that would really suck. but I don’t know if it’s worse than getting a call saying they are pulling her body out of the school.