Passer-by catches baby in 3-story fall

The Denver Post ^ | 10/01/2006 | By Felisa Cardona

[rawhide]

The 9-month-old, left alone by young babysitters, was dangling from a railing before losing her grip.

The baby girl's tiny hand was wrapped around the third-floor railing of a Denver condominium complex, her feet dangling over the sidewalk below.

Mary Bussey and her son Brandon, who were on their way to his football game Saturday afternoon, saw the baby hovering above their heads.

The 9-month-old girl was crying, left alone while she was supposed to be in the care of her 13- and 10-year-old uncles, Denver police spokesman Sonny Jackson said Sunday.

The baby's teenage mother left the girl with her brothers while she went to work Saturday, Jackson said.

The boys wandered off and left the front door open, allowing the baby to crawl out onto therailing at the Shadow Wood condominiums at 3141 S. Tamarac Drive.

"I thought someone was hanging on to the baby from the other side," Bussey said. "I thought, 'What a rotten trick."'
But Bussey quickly realized that there was no trick and nobody was holding on to the baby.

Bussey told 13-year-old Brandon to run up the stairs and grab the baby before she fell. Bussey positioned herself under the railing.

"Her little fist was the only thing hanging on. The poor little thing could not hold on anymore," Bussey said.

Brandon didn't make it to the third floor. As the baby let go of the railing, Bussey put out her arms.

"I was very scared," Bussey said. "All I could say was, 'Don't drop. Don't drop."'

The little girl fell, and Bussey caught her.

"It's a really weird feeling having a baby fall in your arms," she said. "I held her to my body and hugged her. She completely stopped crying."

[Eva]

Some ten year olds are perfectly capable of babysitting a child, but maybe not for such a long period. As a matter of fact I have known ten year old baby sitters who were more capable than the teen age sitters, who were more interested in the opposite sex, than the job they were hired to do. The problem with this story is that there didn't seem to be ANY adult in the family.

[MinuteGal]

"Thank God she didn't spike the baby after catching it."

This has got to be the LOL of the month!

Leni

[Sloth]

"On Sunday, the child was returned to her mother because the mother did have a babysitter - her 13-year-old brother - assigned to watch the girl, Whitman said."

The reference is to the fact that the mother HAD assigned the 13yo to babysit -- that was a mitigating factor in the decision to return the baby to the mother. There is nothing suggesting that the 13yo was AGAIN placed in charge of the baby AFTER this incident.

[ModelBreaker]

Award custody to Mary Bussey, jail the mother. . .

A thirteen year old ought to be an ok babysitter for a three year old. Generally, I would prefer girls--they're a little more responsible and the house is usually cleaner when we get home. But a thirteen year old ought to be fine.

It seems to me the one to blame is the thirteen year old who took responsibility and then wandered off.

Putting parents in jail whenever something bad happens to any kid is a very left-wing notion. There will always be a causal chain you can reconstruct in retrospect that puts the blame on the parents. The left loves that stuff because it gives them control over the kid--foster care and all that.

The reality is, stuff happens. Sometimes it's really bad stuff. You can't follow your kids around with a net nor should the law require you to. Your logic leads to the notion that no child should ever be allowed outside a padded room with two adults, certified by the state of course and having nothing else to do, stare at the child ready to spring lest he harm himself when they blink.

[Cate]

DIVINE INTERVENTION!!!

[Ready4Freddy]

OK, I can see that, thanks. Or are you sure that the baby doesn't have yet another 13yo uncle? ;>)

[andyssister]

Right you are!! Thanks for setting me straight. :)

[JamesP81]

You are correct. At some point after you have taken every reasonable precaution you just have to admit that, at times, bad things happen and there's not much you can do about it. I suppose the self-righteous ones on this thread would prefer that the mother quit her job and go on welfare.

[beezdotcom]

...and you're into nanny-statism. I was babysitting when I was 11-years-old.

Some might still think that a little young - but I concur with your point. Clearly, 13 _SHOULD_ be old enough - however, I think one (of the many) problems here is that a 13 year old male family member is often less attentive than a 13 year old female being paid for the job.

[ModelBreaker]

You are correct. At some point after you have taken every reasonable precaution you just have to admit that, at times, bad things happen and there's not much you can do about it. I suppose the self-righteous ones on this thread would prefer that the mother quit her job and go on welfare.

I know. She didn't have an abortion, bless her. She is working to support the child. She arranged for LEGAL childcare. I'm glad I was raised by someone other than the self-righteous bunch on this thread. But they show up on every thread where something bad happens to a kid and demand jail time for the parents.

[madison10]

Thank you. Eleven is alittle young...these days.

[DCPatriot]

I fought that inclination to give in to my serious side right up until I clicked 'post'. ;^)

[Red Boots]

You are a sad sad person. The state needs to bug out of a situation where a mother leaves an INFANT with other CHILDREN and the infant falls from a three story building. Uhhh, ok. I suppose next you'll tell me that it's just natural selection and we should leave it alone?

If we value LIBERTY AND FREEDOM, we have to accept that fact that sometimes other people are going to make decisions that we might feel are not the best. In fact, Sometimes the outcome of these decisions might be really awful, but in a FREE society, each individual is free to make and be responsible for their own decisions; including decisions that affect their children.

Of course, after you get through your righteous rant; you might consider that the government control you seek to impose on others, in an attempt to ensure perfect outcomes, will also lead to outcomes that are less than perfect. Then you might see that your desire to control outcomes is actually the problem, but I doubt it. The self-righteous rarely do.

[DCPatriot]

Glad some of us have our sense of humor today. ;^)

[sandbar]

>>>Some might still think that a little young - but I concur with your point. Clearly, 13 _SHOULD_ be old enough - however, I think one (of the many) problems here is that a 13 year old male family member is often less attentive than a 13 year old female being paid for the job.>>>

I made the same point and I agree with you.

[sandbar]

>>>If we value LIBERTY AND FREEDOM, we have to accept that fact that sometimes other people are going to make decisions that we might feel are not the best. In fact, Sometimes the outcome of these decisions might be really awful, but in a FREE society, each individual is free to make and be responsible for their own decisions; including decisions that affect their children.>>>

I stick with my 'you are a sad sad person' statement. LOL!

Sheesh.

[Pharmboy]

Pretty impressive--we could use her skills in the NY Giants receiving corps.

[McGavin999]

You've heard of angels on earth? This woman is an angel!

[beezdotcom]

I made the same point

Not exactly. I meant mine as a general statistical observation. However, plenty of 13 year old boys would be responsible enough to do the job. It's unfortunate that THIS one proved not to be - and it's unclear how much of this was gross negligence, and how much of it was due to a brief, tragic moment of inattention that is committed by people of ANY age. Without knowing more, I'm reluctant to scream for anyone's head.

[beezdotcom]

and it's unclear how much of this was gross negligence, and how much of it was due to a brief, tragic moment of inattention that is committed by people of ANY age