New push made for law on kids left in vehicles

Jen Lawson

Thursday, April 1, 2004 | 11:39 a.m.

With the weather warming up again, efforts are under way to try to keep more children from being left in hot vehicles this summer.

After Metro Police investigated more than 50 cases last year of children who were left in cars, Lt. Jeff Carlson of the department's abuse and neglect section saw a need for a statute that addresses the problem.

Sen. Valerie Weiner, D-Las Vegas, and Assemblyman Marcus Conklin, D-Las Vegas, agree, and they're working on a bill that would specifically target parents or caregivers who leave their children in cars.

"It's a health issue. It's a safety issue," Weiner said.

Independent of the legislators' efforts, Carlson recently wrote a proposal and submitted it to Metro's intergovernmental affairs office -- the office that takes suggestions from officers on new laws -- asking the office to push for a change in the current statute next year in the Legislature.

Metro handled 56 cases of kids left in cars in Las Vegas and unincorporated Clark County between April 1, Metro started counting, and Dec. 31, 2003.

There is no law in Nevada that specifically states that leaving a child in an unattended vehicle, in and of itself, constitutes neglect. The statute defines neglect as physical or mental injury of a non-accidental nature.

That became an issue last summer as two children died after being left in hot vehicles.

The parents of those children were not charged with any crime, however, because prosecutors determined they didn't willfully neglect their kids; they forgot they were in their vehicles.

In about a half-dozen other cases, however, parents or caregivers were cited for child neglect because they purposely left kids unattended in cars.

In one case, a pickup truck with three children strapped inside rolled down a driveway, across a street, into a yard and hit a wall. The kids weren't hurt.

In two other cases, cars left unattended with children inside were stolen. No one was hurt in those cases, either.

"I wanted to clarify the abuse and neglect statute to make it less vague as to when cases can be submitted (for prosecution) when children are left in cars," Carlson said. "There's nothing specifically in the statute about cars."

He wouldn't share specifics of his proposal, but he said it suggests ages at which children can be left alone in cars, how long a caregiver can be gone and how far away a caregiver can be away from a vehicle before a child left inside can be considered "left alone."

Metro gets one bill draft proposal per legislative session, and department officials will decide what that will be later this year. The department can also work with lawmakers to pursue other legislation, said Lt. Stan Olsen, who handles the department's lobbying.

Carlson's proposal is not related to the bill Weiner and Conklin are sponsoring, although both seek to accomplish the same thing: protecting children from injury and death.

Janette Fennell of Kids and Cars, a national nonprofit organization based in Kansas, worked on a bill in Nevada's last legislative session that would have provided a middle ground between giving parents a slap on the wrist and pressing child endangerment charges, which she said can be too extreme.

Sponsored by Weiner, Senate Bill 17 would have levied a $300 fine against parents who leave any child age 7 or younger in a vehicle. It would not be an offense if the youngster is under the supervision of a person who is at least 14 years old.

That bill never made it out of the Assembly.

Weiner said the new legislation she and Conklin are writing "may be very similar" to Senate Bill 17. With Conklin on board, she is hoping the bill will garner enough support in the Assembly to get approved.

The bill would impose a fine that could be waived if the parent or guardian takes parenting classes.

The goal is to "educate them so they will change their behavior," Weiner said.

That goal is shared by supporters of a initiative launched Wednesday. The Nevada PTA kicked off a public awareness campaign called "Hope from Hayden Month" addressing the issue of kids in cars.

The monthlong effort is named for Hayden Fish, a 7-month-old boy who died June 6 after his father, David Fish, mistakenly left him alone in a hot van for about six hours.

Pink and blue ribbons will be distributed throughout the state through retail outlets and will be sent home with school children so that families can attack the ribbon to car antennas or rear view mirrors.

The ribbon is to remind families to constantly check the back seat for small children so they are not forgotten.

"It can happen to you," Fish said emotionally during a kickoff of the public awareness campaign Wednesday at Centennial High School, where he is a teacher. "It's the worst thing that can happen."