Hi all

I'll try to keep it as short as possible.

Last year when my six yr old was playing out in the square in front of my house a four yr old boy from a few streets away handed her some pills and told them they were for her. Luckily enough my daughter had the sense to bring them inside to me. I had a fair idea that these were not smarties so my first thought was has she taken anything, after much gentle questioning I realised that she didn't eat them. Next thought is obviously for the four yr old. So I find out who he is and prepare to go tell his parents in case he took  something.  I leave the house to be confronted by the boys very pregnant mother and her brother. They demand that I return these pills as it is their Mothers medicine. I told them that if it was their Mothers medicine that they could have it back after the police tell me it's prescription based and nothing more sinister.
Sorry this is going on for so long.

I go back inside and call the police and speak to a very unhelpful Seargent, who tells me to flush them down the loo, at this point I said I wanted someone to come to the house and remove the pills as I don't want them in my home even if they are down the loo.
The police arrive take one look at the pills and a statement from me and go to see the boy's mother, police come back to me again and said that the pills were two Vallium and one Ecxtasy tablet, and that if my daughter had eaten them would have certainly died. When the police went to see the boys Mother she confirmed that is what they were and said were for her own personal use. The wee boy apparently picked them up from a table, they weren't given to him so I suppose this make it all right (I think not). I must add here that the boy's Grandfather is one of the biggest Dealers in the area I live in. The Police told me she would be charged with Culpable Homicide and  I was asked if I would appear in court and I agreed. I attended court the other day and was told I could leave without giving evidence, I presumed she had plead guilty to the Culpable Homicide she was being charged with. However I heard on the radio this morning that the case was dismissed from court through a lack of evidence. I am so angry that this girl has been allowed to carry on where she left off and not have any charges against her, what would have happened if my daughter had of taken these drugs and died would there still be a lack of eveidence then? I don't think so.

Does anyone know where or who I can write to so I can express my disbelief and anger. I know it probably won't get me anywhere but I don't want this to pass without trying to do something.
Sorry Rant Over

Alli

hi Alli
I know you've probably already thought of this but have you contacted social services as those kids are definitely at risk!!sorry i can't be of more help on the legal side...

Hi Allie,

Culpable homicide = A term which covers a number of different types of criminal homicide. They are all part of this one category in that they are "cases where death is caused by improper conduct and where the guilt is less than murder.
Culpable homicide is often broken down into "voluntary culpable homicide" and "involuntary culpable homicide". Voluntary culpable homicide is homicide where the mens rea for murder is present but mitigating circumstances reduce the crime to culpable homicide. Involuntary culpable homicide is homicide where the mens rea for murder is not present but either the independent mens rea for culpable homicide is present, or the circumstances in which death was caused make it culpable homicide. Involuntary culpable homicide may arise in the context of an unlawful act or a lawful act. The mens rea requirement is different in each case.

Mens rea = the mental element in the defenition of a crime. All common law crimes require proof of the appropriate mens rea

They can only charge someone with culpable homicide if someone has died.

Thanks for your replies
As far as I am aware the eldest child has been put into foster care, but she still has responsibilty for the little girl. This also makes me angry.

Jolin_71
Please excuse my ignorance. I just presumed she would be charged with this from what the police told me.

The thing that is grating on my nerves is the fact that they couldn't do anything. Surely with the evidence I could provide and the fact that she admitted that these drugs were actually hers they could have charged her with something.

I have actually spoken to one of the officers involved and they are disbelieving too that she was let off with this.

I can only hope that she has had enough of a fright to make her at least keep her drugs in a more secure place to stop this happening again.

In the area I live there are lots of children out playing and not all of them will be as sensible as my daughter and I can only hope and pray that this doesn't happen again and actually cause harm or death to any child.

Alli

Maybe they just know people in the right places :(.  Years ago, my partner was attacked in a pub (his regular) and had a broken glass stuck in his head by the landlady believe it or not!  Her boyfriend had started a fight and was about to hit a lady (another regular) so my partner put his hand on his shoulder and he turned round and hit him.  There was a scuffle on the floor, watched by me and loads of others and that's when the landlady stuck the glass in my partners head (and she actually broke it on the bar first!).  We went to the police station and reported it and they were charge with GBH or ABH (can't remember now) on my partner and the lady in the pub.

While we were waiting for the court case, the landlady's father offered us money (alot to us in those days) to drop the case, but we didn't.  When it went to court, they got off (despite my partner needing several stitches in his head), because a Justice of the Peace had given the landlady and her boyfriend a good character reference!!  He wasn't even in the pub at the time! Unlike many others who would have given evidence if allowed!

There is no such thing as justice in this country!

Fiona

What a horrific story!! I'm fuming just reading about it. Have you thought about going to you local newspaper? Or calling your local news network? This really should be brought to public attention.

Hi Harriet

I did think about going to the newspaper, however decided against it as the girl involved comes from one of the biggest Drug Dealing families in my area. To be perfectly honest at the moment I cannot afford to move house or I would have done as soon as the incident had takenplace, I really don't want to make too much fuss as I am really quite terrified that anything is going to happen to my kids or myself.

Alli

Hi,

I have very little faith in our Justice system after my partner was assulted in a public carpark while on the phone to the police,by the time police got there the guy ran off picked up later by police ,meanwhile partner already giving statement photographs of his neck and face being taken CPS didn't charge him as the guy(ex builder who kicked of a job)claimed my partner hit him first even though my partner was sat in his car talking to the police and my partner was the one with hand marks accross his neck and cuts above his eye,the only other witnsss was this guy brother inlaw who refused give any statement to the police.
The police said there was very little you can do as his solictor had advissed the guy to say itwas self defense.
My partner was badly shaken up and a police officer who called round to the house
to see my partner was just astaken back with the CPS and surprised taht he got away with it said he was sorry but the police hands were tied.

Briony

sorry dont know any thing about the legal side of things

just that if your a criminal  the law works for you - -   but if your a victim then it wont work for you

the laws in this country sucks

I cannot believe this. What a catalogue of useless authorities and they have the nerve to preach about social responsibility while ducking it at every opportunity themselves. Alli, try not to worry about safety. If the horrors had been going to intimidate you theyd have done it before it reached court, and youve done a good job bringing your kids up to keep them safe from daft incidents like this.

I can understand completely that you don't want to put yourself and family in any danger by taking these scumbags on and trying to do something to stop them dealing on your doorstep, as well as stopping them putting all kids around in danger. If you got all the decent people to stand together with you would that help? I am sure they would all be outraged and horrified about what's happened.
The borough council in my area are really cracking down on people like that now, we are seeing people like that being evicted and having anti social behaviour orders slapped on them. Someone in Derby has recently been banned from visiting a town for the next several years. The people in her street were having a party because the reign of terror from her and her family was finally over.
Speak confidentially to your council about it, you may be surprised at the support they give, especially when they hear about what could have happened to your daughter, besides once you have brought this to their attention they will be worried about repercussions if a child is harmed in the future and it comes out that they knew all about it all along but did nothing to prevent it.

Thats is very scary and very glad to hear your little girl came in and gave them to you, a big congrats to her for not taking them :)   To bad nothing happened to her, do hope you find a lope hole and she gets charged :(

The law in this country is an ASS!!!
How long will it be before all good law abiding citizens start taking the law into their own hands as whichever way you turn, its always the villian who seems to have the law on their side.
Something has to be done and soon. are we to become a nation of vigilantes.

Hiya Harriet

I didn't see any point in informing the council as there is nothing that they can do as these people privately own their house. We will hopefully be moving soon anyway as OH started a new job recently so we should be able to find somewhere else that is more suitable for us. I happened to be speaking to someone who lives close by about this and he said where he came from in Ireland this type of behaviour would be punished by the local "vigilanties". I am still unsure if the damage that was done to the Drug Dealers house not long after that was down to this person, I never dared to ask.

Hopefully I'll be finding somewhere else soon.

Alli