I know I should* be able to find this information, but after wading through tons of laws, I have been unsuccessful at finding the answer. So, Dopers, how old does a child have to be in Tennessee to be able to stay home unattended? I think my neighbors are violating the law, but I can’t be sure until I see it.
IInal, and I don’t know about Texas, but it’s possible that there is no set age. There isn’t in NY. In all but the most obvious cases , it’s handled by child protective services on a case-by-case basis.
Sorry, meant Tennessee
Doreen
You can call the Tenn. Dept. of Human Services. You don’t have to tell them your name.
Some years back, I tried to find out the same information for Florida. Anecdotally, I was told 10 or 12, but no one could provide a cite. No biggie now, tho, since my kid is 16…
My personal and unprofessional opinion - it varies with the child. Mine did the latch-key thing for a few months before she turned 10. But we lived in an extremely safe neighborhood and the bus stop was half a block from our house. And I got home from work within an hour of her return.
My kid started staying home at age nine, too, but similar to Fairy we lived in a safe neighborhood, neighbors knew he was home alone, and I worked five minutes away. He knew not to answer the door or phone unless it was the special ring, which we gave only to closest friends. He has also been very trustworthy and mature for his age.
If the circumstances were different, I may not have felt comfortable doing this until about age 12. And, of course, he does not have responsibility for younger siblings.
Why is it any of your business? Is there something more menacing going on here where the kid’s outside playing covered in bruises with an arm in a cast but he claims “I faww down go boom” or he flinches everytime he hears a zipper become undone? Perhaps the kid’s nigh skeletal and wearing a burqa?
Your neighbors probably can’t afford a sitter or have any relatives in the area who could over such duties so they decide to trust the kid at home. I’m sure they’ll appreciate you being a Gladys Kravitz when they’re mired in the legal system with more expenses than they would normally be able to bear.
Mind your own business.
that’s rather harsh hep, isn’t it?
The OP doesn’t give a whole lot of data, is asking a legitimate question.
And, yes, if there were a small child left unattended, the police/child protective services should be involved. Depending on the child and the age, it may in fact be very dangerous to leave them home unattended. Fires, accidents etc can happen all too quickly.
IME, there’s not often a hard line given, 'cause there’s too many factors (length of time, age and maturity of the child, time of day condition of house etc.).
If you are really concerned about their safety, I’d suggest making the call to the appropriate CPS agency.
This is all I’ve been able to find so far, but I have no idea if it’s even relevant:
Perhaps the child in question called me and asked for help because she was a. Hungry and had no food in the house and B. had no idea where her parents were and C. I have a daughter and I want to know at what age she can legally baby-sit.
Why is it any of YOUR business? If you don’t have anything helpful to offer, then just don’t respond. Thank you.
Long Post Warning! Sorry, it got away from me…
Well, I agree heptapod may have jumped a little high, but (s)he has a point, too. I live outside a little backwater town that’s really nice, if you can get along with everyone minding your business for you. My family sticks out a little, because it’s just me and my 11 year-old daughter. I think they wonder where I buried her mom (but I’m not tellin’!). Don’t know why a single mom is accepted, but a single dad must have something wrong with him. But that’s another thread (or not).
Still, it was cool until I got called out of town for what I thought would be just the day. I called my regular sitter, who lives 3 houses (say a quarter mile or so) away. Could she check on my daughter if I’m not back by 4? Sure.
Then the situation I’m responding to out of town goes south, and it’s obvious I’ll be there a couple of days. I was unprepared for this in a number of ways, not including child care, but a call to my sitter put that part to rest, at least. Her daughter and mine are good friends and sleep over at each other’s house a lot, so it was no biggie to arrange things. My daughter would come by the house after school, take care of the animals, and then go on to the neighbors.
Then my sitter got the idea that it would be easier to orchestrate if my daughter just rode the school bus one more stop to her house, and then they could drive back to tend the animals at their leisure. So she called the school, per their rules, and asked that she be dropped off at the different stop. Turns out I hadn’t specifically given the woman permission to do this, so a red flag went up. OK, she told them, never mind.
A while later, the school called me, and I assured them I had indeed authorized the lady to watch my kid; I was sorry she’d had the terrible manners to suggest an alternative bus stop when not specifically authorized to do so in writing, and I would punish her kindness when I returned. They seemed mighty curious about what my arrangements were outside of school, but, as I said, it’s a bit of a nosy town. I went back to work.
Next day, I get a call from the Protective Services folks. They told me they were investigating a complaint that I was leaving my daughter unattended. When I explained everything that had happened, the frost warmed and melted (she’d had the impression my daughter was about 6), and finally we had a laugh about small-town nosiness. Next, the DPS lady confided that the person reporting thought I’d been beating my daughter because she’d come to school with a black eye once in the 3 years we’d been there. DPS Lady assured me that didn’t even make their radar screens, but it pissed me off anyway.
Then it turns out DPS has to make a home visit just to complete their paperwork. It didn’t take very long, but it was an intrusion I should have never had to deal with. I don’t know how many other single parents with full-time jobs are out there, but any of them will tell you how busy their days are, at least until their kids are asleep. Heck, parents with partners, too.
Moral of (overlong) story: If you have good reason to believe a child’s in jeopardy, by all means call and let DPS sort it out. I used to foster high-risk kids, and am all too familiar with what can happen when parents are inattentive. But I’d ask that you leaven that concern with a little common sense. If the kids seems happy and thriving, I’d say the parenting is working, even if it’s not the exact style you’d use. And a witch-hunt is the last thing an overtaxed parent needs. Perhaps more importantly, it ain’t good for the kids who have to explain it to their peers, either.
So, Calliope, fill us in: is there more going on?
While I agree with your recommendation to use common sense, I want to add that happy and thriving are not the only concerns, It is perfectly possible for a four year old regularly left alone for short periods (say to take a sibling to or from school) to be happy and thriving - until the day the house catches fire.
Calliope, if you give some details, I can tell you how it would be handled in NY - as I worked in CPS for years.
Doreen
I made it my business because you opened your trap in the first place.
Thanks for the clarification though.
Cool it, Heptapod. Your tone is not appropriate in this forum.
And re. the OP question, welfare of children is ALL our business. If you have a concern about someone else’s child, you can call Human Services. They will investigate and if there is no apparent danger to the kid, they can at least provide some helpful supportive resources for the parent(s).
Jill
ps - In my state it’s illegal NOT to report it if you suspect neglect or abuse of a child.
Well put, Doreen, and I agree completely in the case of a child that age. But all the more reason for us to get details on the actual OP before we take this much farther. Otherwise, we’re debating too many “what-ifs”. Hopefully, Calliope will check in soon and set us straight.
In retrospect, I suppose my long-winded tale was a bit of a hijack, as it supplanted the OP’s facts with my own little saga. But I thought it was a good way to make my point (which appears taken), and to be honest, it felt good to get it off my chest. It really irritated me at the time.