Posted on 11/11/2003 4:33:08 AM PST by Theodore R.
Young girl wins courage award
By Michelle Dynes rep2@wyomingnews.com Published in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle
CHEYENNE - Seven-year-old Kaytlynn Shelton is shy and quiet around strangers, but she knows when she needs to speak out.
The Laramie County Sheriff's Department gave her an honorary award of courage Monday for her potentially life-saving 911 call. At 2:30 a.m. Aug. 28, someone broke into the Shelton home. Kaytlynn hid and dialed 911.
Her mother, Leslie, said her husband, Steven, was out of town, leaving her alone with her two children that evening. She heard noises coming from the basement and hid Kaytlynn and her younger brother, Max, in a closet. She gave Kaytlynn a phone and told her "to stay in the closet no matter what she heard" while she went to investigate.
Leslie was being attacked by the intruder when help arrived. While her assailant escaped, Kaytlynn's call saved the day.
Dory Clark, victim-witness coordinator for the sheriff's department, said Kaytlynn's call played a huge part in getting help quickly. She said while this is the first time an award like this has been given out, it will continue.
It also can be used as an example to teach children what to do in a crisis.
"We can't do our job without that help," she said.
She added that even someone as young as Kaytlynn knew to call 911 and keep hidden until help arrived.
Dispatcher Alethea Youts answered Kaytlynn's call that night. She said it's unusual for someone so young to take charge, but Kaytlynn handled the responsibility well. Youts said she told Kaytlynn to stay put and talked to her about school to keep her calm.
She also took part in the award presentation, saying, "It's nice to meet the victims we help."
Leslie said Kaytlynn knew for about a month that she would be getting this award, and she is "excited."
But Kaytlynn was modest about her award and just said she'd hang it up in her room. And she made it clear she couldn't have done it alone. She brought homemade gifts for the people who helped her get through the ordeal, along with handwritten thank-you notes.
Leslie said that after the attack, Deputy Phil Raybuck taught the kids how to take fingerprints and let them play with his flashlight.
"He tried to keep things as normal as possible," she said. "He did a good job."
"That little girl did an exceptional job on the phone," Raybuck said, "She did what she had to do. She held onto her little brother and held onto the phone."
Kudo's to Kaythlynn. But am I to read this article and conclude that the mother had no means to defend the lives of her children other that handing a seven year old a phone? I don't see any mention that he mother was armed with a weapon sufficient to the task of defending her children.
And what an idiot, to go "investigate" completely unarmed . . . that's as stupid as all those horror movie teenagers who go to "investigate" the strange noise in the basement. IF I were unarmed (an unlikely contingency by the way) I would gather the kids and sneak quietly out of the house rather than expose myself to danger and leave them to their fate.
I recently had a S&W 696 44 special modified with a neat device ...........magna-trigger ! Works very well.
Stay Safe..........woof !
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