FL - Henry Sengaroun for rape of 8yo girl, St Petersburg, 2006

[TisHerself]

My heart goes out to this little girl, what a horrible thing to happen to her, and to her brother. And to her mother everyone can blame her all they want but I'm sure no one will blame her more than herself. They are going to need a lot of healing.

 

[paperhanger44z]

It's amazing that in this day and age so many people still blame the victim. Of course no one is bold enough to blame a child so instead they blame the parents. "If she hadn't been wearing a short skirt, drinking, and in a bad neighborhood then she wouldn't have been raped" is changed to - "if only the parents hadn't let her kid play at the park alone she wouldn't have been raped."

When our three kids were here (they were only 5 years apart in age from oldest to youngest) they played at the park across the street all the time. We would give the oldest a whistle to keep with her in case anything or anyone strange occurred.I know that I was an overprotective father that always worried for them,but you would have to be Superman to keep your eye on three kids every moment of their childhood.I just don't see the great crime this mother committed here.I think some are focusing on the wrong person in this story.


Paperhanger

 

[bakerprune64]

She left them for a few minutes. Her apartment was within view of the park. I do not blame the mother at all. I blame the perp. I am sure the mother feels regret and guilt. But the fault lies 100% with the rapist.

And I'm sure Adam Walsh was only left alone for a few minutes or out of sight for a second...and that is all it takes. The fault is not a 100% the pervert's, bc if the mother had not left her children unattended, then the pervert wouldn't have had the opportunity to rape the poor child. I'm sorry, but I must disagre with you on this.

 

[bakerprune64]

I respectfully disagree. Two families, two poor decisions (although only in hindsight), two raped children.

Jessica's family was THERE with her, and in some small country communities, it is still not uncommon to leave your door unlocked. Grandma thought she had locked the door. I think that your comparison of the two in way off base.:twocents: How old are your three kids Southerngirl? My 12,10 and 9 YO are never left alone under any circumstances. I'm not willing to risk their safety or lives to become one of today's statistics.

 

[Mabel]

My husband and I happened upon a little 2 year old boy alone in the candy aisle of the grocery store yesterday. We easily could have snatched him up and been gone before anyone realized he was missing. Instead we waited there watching him for quite some time before his dad finally came looking for him. I loudly asked my husband if he'd like a new son because here's this boy ripe for the picking. The father was oblivious, he just smiled at me. I wanted to punch him.

Granted, we're in a very low crime area, but you just can't leave kids alone like that. Not even for a minute. If I were a pedophile that child would be history right now.

 

[kidzndogznme]

I never heard about this one. Do you have a link??

AMEN. After that little girl was molested two aisles down in the Wal-Mart a few years back, my kids are not even allowed to venture away from me in the store. Its a sad sad fact of life that kids just cannot be left alone for any length of time for any reason.

 

[bakerprune64]

My husband and I happened upon a little 2 year old boy alone in the candy aisle of the grocery store yesterday. We easily could have snatched him up and been gone before anyone realized he was missing. Instead we waited there watching him for quite some time before his dad finally came looking for him. I loudly asked my husband if he'd like a new son because here's this boy ripe for the picking. The father was oblivious, he just smiled at me. I wanted to punch him.

Granted, we're in a very low crime area, but you just can't leave kids alone like that. Not even for a minute. If I were a pedophile that child would be history right now.

When I worked in our local Target store as a Dept. Manager, there was a little boy (maybe 3 YO) standing in the aisle just bawling. I looked around for a panicked parent and amazingly enough did not find one. I picked up the poor baby and carried him to the front desk, where I promptly paged in the store for the parents of a lost little boy to please come to Guest services. The child was so upset and barely could speak English, so I got one of the Bi-lingual team members to try and translate. The kid couldn't even tell us his name. I paged in the store for almost 45 minutes and never got a response, so we called the police. They showed up with an investigator for CPS and were almost ready to take the child inot protective custody when the parents come strolling INTO the store without a care in the world Now let me tell you, the Target store here is disconnected from the main mall by about 200 yards. Thos bastards left that poor child in the toy aisle to play while they went to the mall to go shopping. I'm proud to say that CPS did take the child and took the parents away in handcuffs. Parents would often leave their children at the Electronics counter to play the video games while they did their shopping:furious: Aside from poor parenting, it was not my job to baby sit their kids. Hell I found a guy masturbating in a pair of womens undies (tags still on them)in the electronics aisle. So for those of you who think your children as safe a few aisles away, think again!

 

[kidzndogznme]

Rare or not, statistics would become very unimportant should one of my kids become a victim to one of these dirtbags. I keep my kids at my side in stores and in public at all times. Period. They know better than to wander off, go visit the next aisle or even walk too slowly and not keep up with me. I don't feel that I live a life of fear but I am on my toes and on the lookout constantly. I would rather live life the way I am now than live life in constant torment and guilt if something, God forbid, ever did happen to one of my kids. This world is a different world than the one we grew up in 20 or so years ago. Adjustments have to be made in the way we live our lives. That is MHO.
I was a victim of sexual assault as a kid and it definitely left me with serious trust issues with humankind in general.
I was once visiting a friend of mine who lives next door to an elementary school. I was looking out the front window and here comes a car into the school lot, out pops a little girl and the mom drove away with screeching tires. The little girl was running behind the departing car screaming for her mother. Then the girl began walking up the street away from the school. So here I am darting out the front door of my friend's house and chased down the kid. She looked at me like I was crazy. I never touched her but I did try to guide her back to the school. The principal was approaching as I neared the school with the girl and he said the mom just dumped the girl like that to go to a job interview. Turns out the girl was in the spec. ed. department and just was wandering away. I probably over reacted to that situation but I just feel that we can never be too careful.

The rapist is the disgusting one. It is humanly impossible to watch your kids 24/7. I have three, and that is just the reality. Most mothers do their best. I do allow my kids to play in the yard alone (with frequent checks). They do leave my side at times in stores, and I immediately begin to look but I don't panic. I refuse to live a life in fear. I take reasonable and common sense precautions. Yes, evil exists, and monsters can have normal, everyday faces. But children raped and/or abducted by strangers are a rare occurance. They get a lot of publicity when they occur. But they are rare.

 

[Jeana (DP)]

I never heard about this one. Do you have a link??

COLUMBIA, S.C. — A jury is now deciding whether a teenager who was molested by a convicted sex offender and Wal-Mart employee six years earlier deserves as much as $5 million in damages after a 90-second encounter in the electronics aisle.

http://www.courttv.com/trials/wal-mart/050106_closings_ctv.html

 

[kidzndogznme]

I also know mothers who feel that it is OK to leave their kids alone "for just a minute" since they are within view of the kids. Such as, "I am only running into the bank for a minute, they should be fine in the car alone". My rule of thumb is that it does not matter if I can see them or if they can see me. My rule is that they can't be any farther away from me in public than it would take me to run to their side if a scuzball showed up and tried to grab them. If they are a block away on the sidewalk, I can't catch up if a perp grabs them and starts to run. In our own fenced back yard they can go wherever they want as long as I am out there with them. Or if I am doing dishes I can see them through the window over the sink and I let them play outside in the backyard provided there are at least 2 of them out there and provided our large dog is out there with them. He would tear anyone apart who tried to hurt one of us.

Well, theoretically the mother could still see her kids for the most part as she returned quickly to her apartment. Probably the kids were having fun swinging and playing in the park and wanted to stay. The mom thought, "I'll only be gone for a minute." Of course, hindsight is 20/20.

 

[Floh]

Mr Aaron Chambliss is truly to be commended for his swift action although it came to naught in regards to him chasing and ultimately catching the perp.

at the very least he got the manic to leave the child.

too many people don't want to 'get involved'.

he took the challenge, so well done he.

 

[hoping4truth]

I agree with Floh. He deserves to be commended for his actions. What a great testament to human nature - and that there really are good people in the world!

I disagree with what most of you say about the mother, however.
What if she was there, what if she didn't leave...etc;

I don't want to make judgements because I don't know what kind of person this lady is. She may have made a mistake - one that caused years of psychological pain for her 8 year old daughter, but a mistake just the same. We all have to be held accountable for our actions, and I'm sure she'll see the ripple effect her choice has on her family - her daughter will suffer for years, and she'll be there to see it.

I would hate for everyone to think I was a bad mother because I thought my kids would be safe together half a block from my house where I could see out of my kitchen window so I could turn off the stove. How many families have thought that same thing? Look around - this site is full of them! How can you blame them for what happend to their children? Everyone has bad judgements, everyone turns their back for a second.

Now, if there is history of her leaving her children unattended for long periods of time, etc; then that's grounds for negligence, but for simply making a choice that she didn't think would place them in danger (how many of you have ever left a knife on the kitchen counter, and didn't realize how easy it could have been for your child to get to it - and thank god they hadn't) is a horrible reason to condemn her.

 

[southcitymom]

And I'm sure Adam Walsh was only left alone for a few minutes or out of sight for a second...and that is all it takes. The fault is not a 100% the pervert's, bc if the mother had not left her children unattended, then the pervert wouldn't have had the opportunity to rape the poor child. I'm sorry, but I must disagre with you on this.

Of course the fault is 100% the pervert's. He's the one who raped this little girl.

I am real surprised that anyone could find fault with the mother in this situation. She made a decision that is by no means clearly negligent. Many parents, myself included, may have made this same decision. It's just not black and white.

I am sure she is reeling from the decision at this stage in the game, but I for one cannot judge her harshly. There but for the grace of God and all that...

 

[concernedperson]

I agree with Floh. He deserves to be commended for his actions. What a great testament to human nature - and that there really are good people in the world!

I disagree with what most of you say about the mother, however.
What if she was there, what if she didn't leave...etc;

I don't want to make judgements because I don't know what kind of person this lady is. She may have made a mistake - one that caused years of psychological pain for her 8 year old daughter, but a mistake just the same. We all have to be held accountable for our actions, and I'm sure she'll see the ripple effect her choice has on her family - her daughter will suffer for years, and she'll be there to see it.

I would hate for everyone to think I was a bad mother because I thought my kids would be safe together half a block from my house where I could see out of my kitchen window so I could turn off the stove. How many families have thought that same thing? Look around - this site is full of them! How can you blame them for what happend to their children? Everyone has bad judgements, everyone turns their back for a second.

Now, if there is history of her leaving her children unattended for long periods of time, etc; then that's grounds for negligence, but for simply making a choice that she didn't think would place them in danger (how many of you have ever left a knife on the kitchen counter, and didn't realize how easy it could have been for your child to get to it - and thank god they hadn't) is a horrible reason to condemn her.

You're good. We all make mistakes...no one is perfect. The mom was concerned about their apartment catching fire and the innocents that would have been involved. A half-block isn't a desertion when you think a stove would have far reaching repercussions.

There are way too many families that have no consideration for anything.She made a quick decision...one that could have saved lives and a the same time she put her own at risk.Damned if you do and damned if you don't.

 

[bakerprune64]

I agree with Floh. He deserves to be commended for his actions. What a great testament to human nature - and that there really are good people in the world!

I disagree with what most of you say about the mother, however.
What if she was there, what if she didn't leave...etc;

I don't want to make judgements because I don't know what kind of person this lady is. She may have made a mistake - one that caused years of psychological pain for her 8 year old daughter, but a mistake just the same. We all have to be held accountable for our actions, and I'm sure she'll see the ripple effect her choice has on her family - her daughter will suffer for years, and she'll be there to see it.

I would hate for everyone to think I was a bad mother because I thought my kids would be safe together half a block from my house where I could see out of my kitchen window so I could turn off the stove. How many families have thought that same thing? Look around - this site is full of them! How can you blame them for what happend to their children? Everyone has bad judgements, everyone turns their back for a second.

Now, if there is history of her leaving her children unattended for long periods of time, etc; then that's grounds for negligence, but for simply making a choice that she didn't think would place them in danger (how many of you have ever left a knife on the kitchen counter, and didn't realize how easy it could have been for your child to get to it - and thank god they hadn't) is a horrible reason to condemn her.

These children were mere Babies...7 and 8 YO's. They had no business being left behind for even a few steps. She could have prevented this tragedy by taking them with her to turn off the stove. I have uprooted my children from activities before I would ever consider leaving them behind. If the man who ran to help was too far to help, what makes anybody think that the mother could have helped them from a half a block away? Yes, it is a tragedy and I feel horrible for this poor little girl and her brother. But mom does not to be responsilbe for her choices too.

 

[hoping4truth]

These children were mere Babies...7 and 8 YO's. They had no business being left behind for even a few steps. She could have prevented this tragedy by taking them with her to turn off the stove. I have uprooted my children from activities before I would ever consider leaving them behind. If the man who ran to help was too far to help, what makes anybody think that the mother could have helped them from a half a block away? Yes, it is a tragedy and I feel horrible for this poor little girl and her brother. But mom does not to be responsilbe for her choices too.

Bakerprune, I agree with you. She does need to be held responsible for her choices - and she will. Her daughter has 10 more years before she's an adult, and who will be taking care of her when she has those nightmares? It will be her. Who will be the one who will have to answer her daughters questions of "Why me" with a heavy heart? It won't be me.

That mom has a lot of thinking to do, and a lot of guilt on her shoulders. I don't think it's fair for public judgement to increase that load. If there was evidence of her being unfit PRIOR to this incident, I might feel different.

I think you and I are on the same page - but our definiton of an appropriate "punishment" differ. She's already being punished by her own guilt.

 

[Roxye]

These children were mere Babies...7 and 8 YO's. They had no business being left behind for even a few steps. She could have prevented this tragedy by taking them with her to turn off the stove. I have uprooted my children from activities before I would ever consider leaving them behind. If the man who ran to help was too far to help, what makes anybody think that the mother could have helped them from a half a block away? Yes, it is a tragedy and I feel horrible for this poor little girl and her brother. But mom does not to be responsilbe for her choices too.

Wow, aren't you a little judgemental?

This woman will for the rest of her life beat herself up for a very innocent choice she made. It was a choice any of us could have had to made, and might have chosen the exact same thing. 8 and 7 are hardly babies. And a half a block is hardly desertion.

Any time our children get hurt, and I mean anytime, there is always something as a parent we could have done to stop it from happening. Example, your kid is playing soccer and breaks his arm, well if ya hadn't let him play, that would have never happened. If your little girl falls down on the bar at ballet, cracks her skin open and needs stitches, well, if you hadn't let her take ballet, it never would have happened. I could go on but you get the point.

Life is full of choices in general, no one ever makes the right choice ALL the time. Yes, her choice has cause her children years of pain and years of healing to come, but the mother will hurt right along with them. She could quite possible hurt more. I am sure she is blaming herself, just as you are. She is wrong and so are you.

The little girl may be the direct victim, but everyone else in this family is a victim as well. And they are not a victim of the mother's choice, they are a victim of the scum who attacked that little girl.

 

[bakerprune64]

Of course the fault is 100% the pervert's. He's the one who raped this little girl.

I am real surprised that anyone could find fault with the mother in this situation. She made a decision that is by no means clearly negligent. Many parents, myself included, may have made this same decision. It's just not black and white.

I am sure she is reeling from the decision at this stage in the game, but I for one cannot judge her harshly. There but for the grace of God and all that...

So you are saying that her leaving those kisd there ALONE, had nothing to do with him raping her daughter? She was too far away to do anything and obviously couldn't see the kids from where she was. I do find her at some degree of fault here. He probably wouldn't have raped her if she hadn't been there unsupervised.

 

[MrsMush99]

So you are saying that her leaving those kisd there ALONE, had nothing to do with him raping her daughter? She was too far away to do anything and obviously couldn't see the kids from where she was. I do find her at some degree of fault here. He probably wouldn't have raped her if she hadn't been there unsupervised.

I agree with you 100%. It is the parents responsibility to look our for their childrens best interest. Leaving them alone is NOT in their best interest. The woman is responsbile for her children and she acted irresponsbily.

 

[bakerprune64]

Wow, aren't you a little judgemental?

This woman will for the rest of her life beat herself up for a very innocent choice she made. It was a choice any of us could have had to made, and might have chosen the exact same thing. 8 and 7 are hardly babies. And a half a block is hardly desertion.

Any time our children get hurt, and I mean anytime, there is always something as a parent we could have done to stop it from happening. Example, your kid is playing soccer and breaks his arm, well if ya hadn't let him play, that would have never happened. If your little girl falls down on the bar at ballet, cracks her skin open and needs stitches, well, if you hadn't let her take ballet, it never would have happened. I could go on but you get the point.

Life is full of choices in general, no one ever makes the right choice ALL the time. Yes, her choice has cause her children years of pain and years of healing to come, but the mother will hurt right along with them. She could quite possible hurt more. I am sure she is blaming herself, just as you are. She is wrong and so are you.

The little girl may be the direct victim, but everyone else in this family is a victim as well. And they are not a victim of the mother's choice, they are a victim of the scum who attacked that little girl.

Well yes I am being judgemental thank you very much, bc however you want to say it, the kid got raped by ther pervert most likely bc she was left alone. ALONE, in a park out of her mom's sight. And yes at 7 and 8 children are still babies. I would not have chosen to leave my kids unattended to go turn off the stove. A fall in ballet or soccer is an accident. her leaving those kids int he aprk was not an accident, she did it intentionally.