'Jacob's Law' aims to prevent child deaths in hot vehicles

[chequita guevara]

seriously?

We have a lot of old people down here, apparently wandering off. I have noticed about three of these Silver alerts this year, and was wondering what they hell they were.

[Wezil]

I've never heard of a "Silver Alert".

We put our old people on ice floes.

[Wezil]

Or make them move to Florida.

[Sava]

I dunno... letting them wander into traffic seems like a good idea

[SlowwHand]

Take the little pill, Sava.

[Imran Siddiqui]

The blue pill?

[Solomwi]

Actually, it's not just a day-care worker problem. Parents do it. Go in to shop, eat, drink or whatever. Pets and children. And no, it's not a Texas-specific problem.
That's not addresed to you, Asher. I plan for a living, so I know it's coming.

Yet "Jacob's Law" (amen to whoever said stop naming laws after dead kids) applies only to childcare workers. That's a pretty good sign that it's simply an empty gesture designed to give people some warm fuzzies and score political points, rather than an actual attempt to solve a problem. Typical.

[Dis]

agreed. At least where I live, I can't recall the last time a childcare facility has been involved in something like this. Most often than not it involves ignorant parents. The last one I remember is a guy who went into a bar who said he wanted to gamble to make some money because he was broke. . Unfortunately he left his kid in the car . The kid was alright, it was only about 20 minutes.

Most parents here have wisened up, so now they leave the car running with the AC on . Unfortunately now there is a problem with people stealing cars with the kid still inside.

[Dis]

As for Amber alert, I'm ok with it generally. But I seem to recall initially they said it wouldn't be used for domestic disputes, yet I see it continuously being used for domestic disputes. (ie the child's real father take the child). But I do understand that in many of these cases, the father kills the child to get back at the mother, so I understand the Amber alert.

[Imran Siddiqui]

I hate to be cynical -- ok, so that's a lie -- but it occurs to me that this law will change one thing. If it mandates training for the workers then, when the workers still leave kids locked in vehicles, the workers' employers will have immunized themselves against the inevitable civil suit -- because they performed the mandated state training. The worker alone will be liable.

Well that's the only reason it was really passed. Don't have to disclaimer cynical-ness about it.

[bipolarbear]

At what age does the kid become responsible for their on well being? When I was a kid and things got hot I knew enough to get out of the car (as is self evident).

[Darius871]

Well that's the only reason it was really passed. Don't have to disclaimer cynical-ness about it.

Are you so sure they would be that easily immunized though? Absent an explicit exemption in the statute, I fail to see how "training" (whether mandated or not) necessarily trumps respondeat superior. If I'm Domino's and I "train" my drivers to refrain from drinking on the job, that doesn't absolve me when one of them chugs a bottle of Jagermeister and plows into a bus full of nuns.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Are you so sure they would be that easily immunized though? Absent an explicit exemption in the statute, I fail to see how "training" (whether mandated or not) necessarily trumps respondeat superior. If I'm Domino's and I "train" my drivers to refrain from drinking on the job, that doesn't absolve me when one of them chugs a bottle of Jagermeister and plows into a bus full of nuns.

It would severely reduce liability or help in claiming that the employee was not acting in the scope of employment (similar to a frolic) due to the constant education on the subject.

[Thoth]

Why not just let evolution take it's course?

[chequita guevara]

Who says that this isn't evolution? You seem to be under the misunderstanding that evolution is only about individual germ lines, and not species v. species as well. Our species is better able to survive with rules like these.