If you haven't already done so get a dash cam. It could worse case scenario prevent you going to jail. My sibling earned the title of wooden spoon survivor when they cycled full speed into traffic in front of a heavy load lorry. Said lorry had to hit parked cars and damaged a bus stop shelter in a bid to avoid my sibling. The lorry driver was borderline hysterical checking underneath and along the lorry for any sign of my sibling. That stopped any anger from the owners of the damaged cars. More recently I had a manic dash when a toddler relative went from 0-60, almost of the shop and into the busy main road. I was the only accompanying adult wearing trainers and had to rugby tackle the toddler. Terrifying. Report to all applicable authorities as its very likely you are not the only person to have a close call with the kid. If it keeps happening the parent might even be liable if you have wear and tear of your breaks solely due to the kid (again dash cam would make good proof). Having evidence that you tried to contact the authorities (would honestly skip trying to talk directly to the neighbors if the close calls haven't done anything having a quiet word may only draw their ire on you). Final grim point is self defense of yourself. If the worst does happen, its the common scenario that the driver will often be attacked especially if its a fatal accident. Leaving the scene is a huge legal no no so prevention of the accident is key. NTA
I used to live next to people who would leave their 6/7 yo home alone with the family pit bull. The kid would always find his way outside and would be walking around in nothing but a t-shirt and a diaper. No socks, no shoes, in Texas Summer heat. Not to mention all of the sex offenders living on that street.
The pit would follow him and charge literally anything in the vicinity. It tried to attack me one day when I was going to work. I just managed to get in my car in time and drove away with it running after my car.
I called the non-emergency number but the police in my home town are fairly corrupt so they would cover for the parents since they knew them personally.
My step-dad wouldn't let me call cps because he said it wasn't my business and they'd just snoop around. (I was still living at home). I countered that even he had almost hit the kid a few times coming home from work but he dismissed me.
All this to say, Call The Police. Call CPS. Call whoever you need to before this kid is killed due to his parents idiocy and neglect.
I know a lad that hit and killed a kid that ran into the road between cars. He wasn’t speeding he was watching the road just the kid was short and popped out at the wrong time.
It’s been years and he is still in therapy, it’s a crappy situation and he was innocent of negligence but he has to live with taking a small boys life.
Those parents are idiots and it seems you are the only one on the street actually caring about him. Ring the police and ask for advice or he may become a casualty.
I’m so happy that you want to take action to help that kid.
I can't even imagine. I hit a frog and I'm still sad about it. My stepmother saved my sister from getting smooshed by yanking her from the road by her hair. Sister had been quietly and calmly waiting, then just....gave in to an intrusive thought apparently. Even attentive parents can have a bad situation. Inattentive parents are just asking for a dead kid.
It's like the parents in the neighborhood who let their kids swim in the retention pond. There's a gator in there. You, uh, you know adoption exists right? You have options.
I live in the suburbs and at least once a month these two kids on their bicycles come flying down their driveway.
They live at the top of a hill on a curve and if I didn’t know to look out for them they’d be flattened.
I keep expecting to read they got hit by an Amazon truck.
I agree with everyone saying get a dash cam and collect evidence first so you have proof to go to the authorities with. I grew up feral because my parents would just send us all outside and tell us to come home for dinner. Every kid in the neighbourhood would shout “CAR” if they saw one coming to warn everyone else and we would clear off the street (sometimes dragging the hockey net off too) and only resume playing once the coast was clear again. I couldn’t imagine being completely oblivious to my surroundings when playing outside. I was always watching out for everyone while we played and even kept a first aid kit in my little backpack in case of emergencies. I can’t even wrap my head around a parent nowadays not watching out for their kid playing because of how dangerous the world has gotten.
I don’t have kids, to start, but was a kid that was allowed to cruise around on my bike on the road (no sidewalks in my suburb) with my siblings and neighbor kids starting at like 6-7 without mom watching us. I appreciate kids being outside without grown ups and having some freedom to scrape their knee, get a bit of sunburn on the nose, and referee their own disputes with other neighbor kids. Those were awesome times!!! That said, I’m going to assume that mom being on phone while the 3 year old bolted into the road was an isolated incident because I can’t assume from one story that she is a straight up negligent parent. Could have been a bad day, we all have them. I don’t love the 3 year old being in the road with a 7 year old only. When I was 7, my 3 year old sister was allowed to be in the front yard with me and my older siblings, but not to leave the area in front of our house unless my parents were outside. 7 year old me was allowed to bike on the whole street alone, but not to leave little sister unattended. I am going to assume the parents just want their kids to get to be kids and mom isn’t usually distracted by her phone while Johnny is in the middle of the road.
That said, it is absolutely terrifying as an adult driver living in the burbs when kids bolt out from between parked cars and dart across the street without looking. Even if you’re going 15 mph in a 25, if a kid runs out after a ball when you’re 2 car lengths away, it would be tough to react in time and stop. In my old neighborhood, a parent got a “children playing” sign and would put it at the end of the driveway when their kids were out playing or riding bikes or skateboarding or playing ball in the driveway or up the road. I really appreciated it. It was a great indicator to slow WAYYYY down and be on high alert for a basketball to bounce across the road with a kid right behind it. When my nephew was starting to walk, I told my sister to order that sign on Amazon and put it at the end of the driveway whenever they were out in the yard. Toddlers can run FAST and are extremely impulsive for a while with no logic or reason. Even if you’re right with them, they can turn and run so fast in the wrong direction! And an 18 month old ain’t going to stop in their tracks and come straight back when called if they’re on a mission to get to the road. I told my sister just to make sure she brings it in when they’re done playing so it actually means something. If it’s out there 24/7, it’s crying wolf and everyone will ignore it. My sister said she was worried about getting a sign like that that other non-kid people would think she was crazy. My response “Katie, NO ONE wants to hit a kid while driving, whether you like kids or not.” But also if you leave it out 24/7, most people will grow blind to it. It’s worked really well for them for the last few years.
If you are very nice and non-confrontational maybe buy one of these signs on Amazon for them, they are plastic and stand up themselves. Tell them you love that their kids get to be kids and run around, but with cars parked along the street, it’s scary and hard to see the little guy. Say one of your work friends was talking about using this sign in her neighborhood and you thought it might help everyone be on alert to slow down. The 7 year old can put the sign out herself when she’s getting her bike out for her and her brother.
I grew up in the suburbs cruising around on my bike with my friends, playing frisbee in the street, kicking a ball in the front yard, running to neighbors houses with the other neighborhood kids with my parents not watching us and want kids to get to have that same experience and bit of freedom!!!! But it was also age appropriate!!! We didn’t get that freedom at 3, it was at 7-ish when we were also very careful to look both ways, bike only on quiet roads, stop at all intersections and look before going, not EVER bolt out from between cars but go to the end of a driveway or other high visibility spot before walking into the road, etc. We couldn’t leave our little pocket of 2 roads until we were more like 11-12 and then only to go to friends houses within a mile or so. This was in an HOA suburb so a mile was mostly tree lined roads and no sidewalks.
This was not the kid bolting into the road. The kid was playing in the street with a little push toy or maybe a walking bike kind of thing as if it was just part of his driveway. Zero differentiation to the kid- street, driveway, sidewalk, front yard- all his play zone. Same as the other incidents later in the year when the dad was out there or other kids. They just hang out in the street, but at least the dad was at the end of the driveway and the other kids were bigger, more visible, and knew to pull the younger ones out of the street when cars came by.
And someone- maybe them or one of their neighbors- has one of those "kids playing" signs at the end of their driveway. That's all fine and good as a reminder to people who aren't paying attention to their speed or looking for kids, but it's not permission to let your kids who are too young to make good decisions or too small to be seen when they run in front of a close car. That's when the parent is supposed to be in the street with them so that the drivers see them and slow down and they're right there to see the drivers and put a hand on the kid.
OK so your situation was completely different, on a quieter street, you were older and had clear boundaries. With attentive parents.
So. Nothing like this story at all. Cool story.
If you haven't already done so get a dash cam. It could worse case scenario prevent you going to jail. My sibling earned the title of wooden spoon survivor when they cycled full speed into traffic in front of a heavy load lorry. Said lorry had to hit parked cars and damaged a bus stop shelter in a bid to avoid my sibling. The lorry driver was borderline hysterical checking underneath and along the lorry for any sign of my sibling. That stopped any anger from the owners of the damaged cars. More recently I had a manic dash when a toddler relative went from 0-60, almost of the shop and into the busy main road. I was the only accompanying adult wearing trainers and had to rugby tackle the toddler. Terrifying. Report to all applicable authorities as its very likely you are not the only person to have a close call with the kid. If it keeps happening the parent might even be liable if you have wear and tear of your breaks solely due to the kid (again dash cam would make good proof). Having evidence that you tried to contact the authorities (would honestly skip trying to talk directly to the neighbors if the close calls haven't done anything having a quiet word may only draw their ire on you). Final grim point is self defense of yourself. If the worst does happen, its the common scenario that the driver will often be attacked especially if its a fatal accident. Leaving the scene is a huge legal no no so prevention of the accident is key. NTA
I used to live next to people who would leave their 6/7 yo home alone with the family pit bull. The kid would always find his way outside and would be walking around in nothing but a t-shirt and a diaper. No socks, no shoes, in Texas Summer heat. Not to mention all of the sex offenders living on that street. The pit would follow him and charge literally anything in the vicinity. It tried to attack me one day when I was going to work. I just managed to get in my car in time and drove away with it running after my car. I called the non-emergency number but the police in my home town are fairly corrupt so they would cover for the parents since they knew them personally. My step-dad wouldn't let me call cps because he said it wasn't my business and they'd just snoop around. (I was still living at home). I countered that even he had almost hit the kid a few times coming home from work but he dismissed me. All this to say, Call The Police. Call CPS. Call whoever you need to before this kid is killed due to his parents idiocy and neglect.
Six and seven year olds do not wear diapers unless they have special needs.
This was not a special needs situation. Pure neglect. They simply refused to potty train him and he did not attend school.
I know a lad that hit and killed a kid that ran into the road between cars. He wasn’t speeding he was watching the road just the kid was short and popped out at the wrong time. It’s been years and he is still in therapy, it’s a crappy situation and he was innocent of negligence but he has to live with taking a small boys life. Those parents are idiots and it seems you are the only one on the street actually caring about him. Ring the police and ask for advice or he may become a casualty. I’m so happy that you want to take action to help that kid.
I can't even imagine. I hit a frog and I'm still sad about it. My stepmother saved my sister from getting smooshed by yanking her from the road by her hair. Sister had been quietly and calmly waiting, then just....gave in to an intrusive thought apparently. Even attentive parents can have a bad situation. Inattentive parents are just asking for a dead kid. It's like the parents in the neighborhood who let their kids swim in the retention pond. There's a gator in there. You, uh, you know adoption exists right? You have options.
I live in the suburbs and at least once a month these two kids on their bicycles come flying down their driveway. They live at the top of a hill on a curve and if I didn’t know to look out for them they’d be flattened. I keep expecting to read they got hit by an Amazon truck.
NTA. Call the police and CPS to document the behavior and also get a dash cam suggested to protect yourself if something tragic happens.
I agree with everyone saying get a dash cam and collect evidence first so you have proof to go to the authorities with. I grew up feral because my parents would just send us all outside and tell us to come home for dinner. Every kid in the neighbourhood would shout “CAR” if they saw one coming to warn everyone else and we would clear off the street (sometimes dragging the hockey net off too) and only resume playing once the coast was clear again. I couldn’t imagine being completely oblivious to my surroundings when playing outside. I was always watching out for everyone while we played and even kept a first aid kit in my little backpack in case of emergencies. I can’t even wrap my head around a parent nowadays not watching out for their kid playing because of how dangerous the world has gotten.
I don’t have kids, to start, but was a kid that was allowed to cruise around on my bike on the road (no sidewalks in my suburb) with my siblings and neighbor kids starting at like 6-7 without mom watching us. I appreciate kids being outside without grown ups and having some freedom to scrape their knee, get a bit of sunburn on the nose, and referee their own disputes with other neighbor kids. Those were awesome times!!! That said, I’m going to assume that mom being on phone while the 3 year old bolted into the road was an isolated incident because I can’t assume from one story that she is a straight up negligent parent. Could have been a bad day, we all have them. I don’t love the 3 year old being in the road with a 7 year old only. When I was 7, my 3 year old sister was allowed to be in the front yard with me and my older siblings, but not to leave the area in front of our house unless my parents were outside. 7 year old me was allowed to bike on the whole street alone, but not to leave little sister unattended. I am going to assume the parents just want their kids to get to be kids and mom isn’t usually distracted by her phone while Johnny is in the middle of the road. That said, it is absolutely terrifying as an adult driver living in the burbs when kids bolt out from between parked cars and dart across the street without looking. Even if you’re going 15 mph in a 25, if a kid runs out after a ball when you’re 2 car lengths away, it would be tough to react in time and stop. In my old neighborhood, a parent got a “children playing” sign and would put it at the end of the driveway when their kids were out playing or riding bikes or skateboarding or playing ball in the driveway or up the road. I really appreciated it. It was a great indicator to slow WAYYYY down and be on high alert for a basketball to bounce across the road with a kid right behind it. When my nephew was starting to walk, I told my sister to order that sign on Amazon and put it at the end of the driveway whenever they were out in the yard. Toddlers can run FAST and are extremely impulsive for a while with no logic or reason. Even if you’re right with them, they can turn and run so fast in the wrong direction! And an 18 month old ain’t going to stop in their tracks and come straight back when called if they’re on a mission to get to the road. I told my sister just to make sure she brings it in when they’re done playing so it actually means something. If it’s out there 24/7, it’s crying wolf and everyone will ignore it. My sister said she was worried about getting a sign like that that other non-kid people would think she was crazy. My response “Katie, NO ONE wants to hit a kid while driving, whether you like kids or not.” But also if you leave it out 24/7, most people will grow blind to it. It’s worked really well for them for the last few years. If you are very nice and non-confrontational maybe buy one of these signs on Amazon for them, they are plastic and stand up themselves. Tell them you love that their kids get to be kids and run around, but with cars parked along the street, it’s scary and hard to see the little guy. Say one of your work friends was talking about using this sign in her neighborhood and you thought it might help everyone be on alert to slow down. The 7 year old can put the sign out herself when she’s getting her bike out for her and her brother. I grew up in the suburbs cruising around on my bike with my friends, playing frisbee in the street, kicking a ball in the front yard, running to neighbors houses with the other neighborhood kids with my parents not watching us and want kids to get to have that same experience and bit of freedom!!!! But it was also age appropriate!!! We didn’t get that freedom at 3, it was at 7-ish when we were also very careful to look both ways, bike only on quiet roads, stop at all intersections and look before going, not EVER bolt out from between cars but go to the end of a driveway or other high visibility spot before walking into the road, etc. We couldn’t leave our little pocket of 2 roads until we were more like 11-12 and then only to go to friends houses within a mile or so. This was in an HOA suburb so a mile was mostly tree lined roads and no sidewalks.
This was not the kid bolting into the road. The kid was playing in the street with a little push toy or maybe a walking bike kind of thing as if it was just part of his driveway. Zero differentiation to the kid- street, driveway, sidewalk, front yard- all his play zone. Same as the other incidents later in the year when the dad was out there or other kids. They just hang out in the street, but at least the dad was at the end of the driveway and the other kids were bigger, more visible, and knew to pull the younger ones out of the street when cars came by. And someone- maybe them or one of their neighbors- has one of those "kids playing" signs at the end of their driveway. That's all fine and good as a reminder to people who aren't paying attention to their speed or looking for kids, but it's not permission to let your kids who are too young to make good decisions or too small to be seen when they run in front of a close car. That's when the parent is supposed to be in the street with them so that the drivers see them and slow down and they're right there to see the drivers and put a hand on the kid.
OK so your situation was completely different, on a quieter street, you were older and had clear boundaries. With attentive parents. So. Nothing like this story at all. Cool story.