Where Are We Going and Why Are We In This Handbasket Part IV

A 48 year old grandmother leaves her grandchild alone unattended but takes her dog with her!

Loretta McGill-White, 48, was charged with risk of injury to a minor. McGill-White left the toddler unattended in a crib, police said. About 40 minutes after police and state child welfare officials arrived at her home, she returned and got out of her car holding the dog, authorities said.” I think the officers were a little taken aback when she pulled into the driveway with a poodle on her lap," police Capt. Jeffrey Blatter said. "It draws the question of what's more important.” Police said she told them she left briefly to take her husband to work.

What's more important indeed? This grandma obviously thinks her dog is more important than her grandson. But it isn’t surprising. The boy’s mom is in jail on drug related charges. I don’t think grandma wanted to be in charge of the baby. The article goes on to say that the house was unlocked. So what was she thinking?

I would like to err on the side of compassion. So I believe grandma suspected the police would come to check on the baby and she deliberately arranged things so that she would be gone and ultimately Children’s Services would come and collect the boy, freeing her from all obligations. She just couldn’t handle a baby. And why should she? After all she already raised at least one child to adulthood, why get saddled with a baby at her age? Better to allow the baby be raised by strangers until mom is out of jail and can fight for custody.

That’s my theory. There are some holes in it. For one, Mrs. McGill-White left the baby alone to take her husband to work. That means there was a second adult home and aware of the situation. Two adults leaving a child alone, even if one had to work is inexcusable. Given grandma’s hyphenated last name I suspect hubby isn’t a blood related grandpa to the baby. That is the only reason I could think of as to why a grown man would agree to endanger a baby that way. But it is all speculation on my part.  For all I know, these are two bitter people, in a dysfunctional family who like dogs more than babies. Well grandma could get 10 years. No word on why hubby wasn’t charged. Maybe he didn’t even know the child was there. Go figure.