Posted on 07/14/2007 6:17:46 AM PDT by Daffynition
GREEN BAY, Wis. -- A state senator accidentally drove over his young granddaughter Friday, killing her, the senator said in a statement.
Sen. Dave Hansen said he was leaving to attend a meeting when his granddaughter ran out of the house and got behind his car. Hansen said neither he nor his wife knew the girl had run outside.
The girl, Elliana Zaidel, was to have turned 2 on Wednesday.
Hansen said he is in deep shock and attending to the needs of his family.
The accident happened at Hansen's home in Green Bay at about 8:40 a.m. The toddler was sitting on a sofa when her grandmother left the room to get a blanket so the two could snuggle after the senator left for his meeting, said Jay Wadd, the senator's chief of staff.
The girl then ran outside.
"It happened that fast," Wadd said. "I think Ellie wanted to be with grandpa. She just loved him."
Green Bay Police Lt. Mike Graham issued a statement calling the girl's death a "tragic, unfortunate accident. There are no pending criminal charges."
Zaidel is the daughter of Paul and Cathy Zaidel of Stiles, a tiny town just north of Green Bay, Wadd said. Hansen and his wife have baby-sat the girl for about a year while her parents worked.
A 59-year-old Democrat, Hansen has been in the state Senate since 2001. He has three daughters and seven grandchildren, according to his official biography.
A tan car with a door ajar sat halfway down Hansen's driveway late Friday morning as police investigators took measurements at the scene.
Neighbor Mike Maloney said neighbors comforted a distraught Hansen and his wife, Jane.
"I just can't imagine it happening. It's terrible," Maloney said.
Kids and Cars, a child safety advocacy group in Leawood, Kan., said about 50 children are backed over in a driveway or parking lot every week in the United States and at least two die.
The typical child is 12 months to 23 months old, and 70 percent of the drivers are a family member of the child, said Janette Fennell, founder and president of the group.
Kids and Cars is promoting a bill in Congress that would require automakers to make it easier for drivers to see what is behind them, either with better mirrors, bigger back windows, cameras or sensors that automatically stop the vehicle.
Sometimes kids are faster than our eyes & reactions.
Yep - preemption and anticipation works well in the application of military science and tactics, chess and child raising.
And neither could this grandfather and his wife, who it sounds like were also totally committed to their granddaughter. So if you acknowledge the safety of a child is never guaranteed even in your own superior care, then why do you judge this family so harshly? As I said, may you never experience the devastation of someone dying or even being hurt as a result of an accidental error on your part. And I pray if you do, that you will experience more compassion from others than you are showing this family on this thread.
“...when growing up they were NEVER out of sight as toddlers!
Wow. You must’ve been super-human.”
That’s what I was thinking. I remember, decades ago, I put the baby smack in the middle of our double bed, and went downstairs to get her bottle and suddenly... thump... screech! — Yes, she’d decided this was the perfect moment to learn to roll over for the very first time, and test it out by rolling off of the bed (no harm done, by the way!).
I feel bad for the child’s grandmother... she’s going to be re-winding time in her mind for the rest of her life. Very sad.
It is a good thing to follow the First Law of Holes: if you are in one, stop digging.
Thanks. Make a great day.
This condescending “I would never make that mistake” attitude is revolting. What it actually reveals is a disturbing and dangerous false sense of security.
Nothing invites catastrophe so much as a sense of invulnerability. Every single one of us is capable of making this or countless other kinds of mistakes. It doesn’t take carelessness or negligence either.
I am so sick of this attitude showing up like clockwork on every thread like this. Anybody that really thinks that their little darling has never been out of their sight or even momentarily out of instant control is fooling themselves.
I agree. She’ll forever ache for that one last snuggle with her granddaughter that never happened. I pray that she’ll be able to forgive herself as God has already forgiven her, and that they will all find His peace in the midst of the terrible pain.
Forty years since my baby sister passed away and tears still come to my Mother’s eyes when we talk about her. The grief never ends, even though I thank God that He gave my parents much peace from day one. That was His gift to them, and I’m thankful they were able to accept it so graciously. It spoke volumes to those around them and drew many to the Lord in the process.
That's because your Excursion is sooo big, the edge of the garage door is actually behind the vehicle... ;-)
So well said. If anything would make me leave FR it is this consdescending elitist self-rightous judgmental attitude that shows up on EVERY thread about a tragedy. It SICKENS me.
Crap happens....
Yup - when I was 2 ish - lived on a farm in SC circa. 1944 - no electricity or indoor bathroom - I snuck out and got a drink from a big drum suspended to the side of the shack we called home - hey it had a faucet on it!
Thank goodness I had presence of mind to proudly proclaim to my mother that “I had gotten a drink of water without coming inside” - where? she asked - I showed her - the next thing I knew I was over her lap and her long fingers were down my throat - I puked a lot - she put me in the car and drove me to the nearest hospital some 40 miles away - they pumped my stomach -
I still can not figure out how I could not discriminate between water and kerosene.
who it sounds like were also totally committed to their granddaughter
Sorry - total commitment = locked door - both parties.
And that is my criteria - which my wife and I co-developed and agreed to - to each there own - or none and let chance rule.
Yes, by all means, bring in the gooberment regulations. There ought to be a law. Why? If we could just save one life it'd be worth it. After all, it's for the chilrun. /sarc off. Tragic incidents don't make good law. Blackbird.
Exactly; stop digging your own. I have EVERY right to make my opinions known, with or without your permission. And if, by doing so, it helps someone be LESS JUDGMENTAL about another's tragic mistake, then I have indeed accomplished a great thing.
You were very lucky.
Awwww, ain't that sweet.....you want everyone to pay extra for their vehicles to assuage the guilt of careless parents.
How about requiring all children be tethered at all times to their parents until the age of five?
And how - maybe this set me up for how I would make every effort if I ever had kids to minimize the chance of this happening to them.
How about requiring all children be tethered at all times to their parents until the age of five?
I could go with that one. :-)
He was in such a hurry to get to the anti-Bush rally!
bump...
I ALWAYS shift to “P” (park in automatics) or Neutral (manuals)
when I have a passenger leaving my car.
And do a 360-degree headswivel TWICE before backing out; going slowly
and double-checking while backing out of my drive-way.
I guess I’ve been always fearful of these sad events of accidental
death on people’s own driveway.
Yep, prayers for their family.
The original article I saw yesterday was odd, and probably reactionary by the reporter, in that they hesitated to say that it was the Senator himself who ran over his poor little granddaughter. It started out saying that she was run over by a car in front of his home, with no mention of who did it.
They cannot leave their bias out even when there’s no reason for it. It was a horrible accident.
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