[CaliGirlGodHelpMe]

If I've said it once.....

I simply CANNOT UNDERSTAND the sheer stupidity of parents who think they are soooo clever, catching these monsters horribly abusing their children on videotape. Don't they realize that, if they had simply TOLD the nanny that she was under video surveillance (not giving out specifics of numbers of cameras and their placement OBVIOUSLY) the abuse would never have happened?

If it were me, I would simply say, "You understand that we have 24-hour video surveillance in most of the house. Do you mind being taped while working here?" That would put the person on notice so that, no matter what her nature or frustrations, she would think long and hard before harming the child, abusing the furniture, inviting unsavory boyfriends over, etc. - and these terrible incidents of abuse will hopefully become a thing of the past. Okay, that's my rant for the night.

Cali Girl

[Jeff Chandler]

How about just raising your own kids?

[LPStar]

What if they step into a closet or bathroom or something to abuse the baby then? I'm sure there couldn't be cameras over the toilets, for example.

[ChemistCat]

If the nanny bit the kid, she knew she'd get caught, if her head was on even that straight.

I don't get this: I suspect my nanny of doing something to make my 4 month old unhappy, because my 4-month-old shows fear of her. It's not stranger anxiety--it's open fear. Rather than sacking the nanny, right then and there, I install a hidden camera. Then I don't check it for a month (why? too busy?) until the now 5 month old turns up with a bite mark. Whoa, abuse there. Call police. Hello???

That's a month of torture done to a baby too little to even crawl...and they may say they didn't see it coming, but they did.

This seems very like baby-left-in-hot-car-by-busy-parents to me. She should be dead. It looks to me like this woman was trying to kill her.

[Concerned]

CALIGIRLGODHELPME WROTE: "I simply CANNOT UNDERSTAND the sheer stupidity of parents who think they are soooo clever, catching these monsters horribly abusing their children on videotape. Don't they realize that, if they had simply TOLD the nanny that she was under video surveillance (not giving out specifics of numbers of cameras and their placement OBVIOUSLY) the abuse would never have happened?"

CALIGIRLGODHELPME ADDED: "If it were me, I would simply say, "You understand that we have 24-hour video surveillance in most of the house. Do you mind being taped while working here?" That would put the person on notice so that, no matter what her nature or frustrations, she would think long and hard before harming the child,..."

You make a good point...but after several years of looking for a nanny who would work under those conditions, you might still be looking to hire your FIRST nanny until your infant has grown up and is off to college.

[coloradan]

That might work for your own kids (if you can hire a nanny at all, under the circumstances) but it doesn't take the nanny off the streets; she will just work for someone else and abuse that baby instead. Is this somehow better?