Accidents do happen, but when they involve children, the law comes down hard no matter what the excuses are.
Over in Brevard County, FL, a father is facing child neglect charges after the State Fire Marshal’s Office said he left his 7 year-old son home alone during a fire. He was charged with child neglect without much investigation.
The investigators said the man’s son was alone when the home caught fire around 12:30 a.m. on Sunday. Thankfully, the boy escaped uninjured. Firefighters said that the boy ran about a half of a mile to a nearby convenience store, where he got help from deputies.
It is believed that the boy was left home alone for around 90 minutes. The father claims that he was walking to an IHOP at the time. Obviously, a terrible excuse and one he and his attorney will need to talk over. The home had been without power since Friday and candles were lit to provide light. It was a candle in the boy’s bedroom that ultimately burned down the house.
The DCF (Department of Children and Families) was called in and placed the boy into the custody of the father’s girlfriend, which has angered the boy’s mother and maternal grandmother. Aside from a potential child custody battle, this man is looking at jail time unless he has a very skilled defense attorney. Child Neglect is classified as a 3rd Degree Felony. If convicted, this man could be looking at up to five years in prison, not to mention up to five years of probation and up to $5,000 in fines.