After finding a young boy all alone trying to sell his teddy bear for food, Franklin police charged the child’s parents with child endangerment.
Officer Steve Dunham found the child in a busy area and went beyond the requirements of his badge to help.
Officials said they received a call on Sunday afternoon that a young boy was wandering in downtown Franklin alone.
Police said the 7-year-old was peddling his toy in front of a drug store to get money for food.
“It broke my heart,” Dunham said. “He told me he was trying to sell his stuffed animal to get money for food because he hadn't eaten in several days.”
Dunham took the child to a nearby Subway to get something to eat, then brought him back to the Franklin Police Department.
“(We) said a little prayer and ate dinner together,” Dunham said.
Police Chief Russ Whitman said Dunham gave the boy comfort and safety that he didn't have at home.
After further investigation, police said the child and his four brothers lived in squalor. Investigators described the home on Main Street as full of garbage, cat urine and liquor bottles.
Investigators charged the parents, Tammy and Michael Bethel, with 10 counts of child endangering.
http://www.wlwt.com/news/franklin-boy-tries-to-sell-teddy-bear-for-food-police-go-beyond-call-of-duty/41162218
“(Police) treated them like their own kids, and that's exactly what law enforcement does in situations like this. How would we want someone to treat our kids?” Whitman said. “Hopefully, these officers’ actions change these kids’ lives and maybe change the lives of the parents to become better parents.”
Dunham said he doesn't look at it as anything but just doing his job, and he made a new friend in the process.
“I came back to check on him and he was hiding. He jumped out to scare me when I came back in the building; he got me real good,” Dunham said. “(We) would like to go home at the end of the day feeling like (we’ve) done something positive and, you know, had some kind of positive impact."
The victim’s advocate sent the Franklin Police Department a thank-you note, commending them for going the extra mile to give a vulnerable child some comfort and safety.
Police said the 7-year-old boy and his brothers, ages 11, 12, 15 and 17, have been removed from the home and are now staying with family members.
The parents have been ordered to have no contact with them.
Well those kids are fucked for life. Hopefully their guardians will not foster a victim complex in them, but that maybe wishful thinking as they may not know that pity is harmful.
I've know more than my far share of situations similar to this one. My father owns property in shitville that is just south of us, and his tenants are similar to these people. They rarely pay, they are manipulative and dirty and, worst yet, he's been trying to 'gift' these liabilities to me my entire life. The children, I've witness grow up, turned out worse for the wear only to continue bad decisions as they don't have access to decent information or parenting.
>>66476
>Having pity for a starving child will ruin it.
Wow, you sound like a great person.
>>66460
>17
Wow, you'd think a 17 year old would find a way the fuck out of a starving home.
>>66499
maybe that 17 year old didnt want to leave his younger siblings.
>>66476
I hope you vote on Wednesday
>>66498
Murca
>>66498
It's not pity they need. It's structure and a chance to improve. Keep virtue signaling your way into Heaven, though.
>>66526
He's fucking 7 years old, not some runaway teen. You show them love and a good home. Sounds like you're a hard ass. Let him enjoy being a kid before doing that shit.
>>66507
This tbh
>>66541
>ket him enjoy being a kid
Being a kid is first and foremost learning about life, not having fun (well it's not a priority to be honest but if you can do both then it's fine)
It's like the inept millennials that stay at home all day and don't know anything about anything
>>66561
OK, we get it. You are edgy and tough on children. This bit is dead. Move on to shit posting about something new.
>>66561
>Being a kid is first and foremost learning about life, not having fun
>implying children are required to learn about the fundamentals of filing taxes, and write up a curriculum vitae
>expecting infants to withhold information that only 16 or 18-year-olds should know
why do you even come to this board? do you enjoy smelling your own shit?
go teach a kid to open a bank account, while you're at it.
wow
>>66571
I'll along the lines like the anon your responding to except the millennials seem to be insecure, not inept.
People who splurge in the beginning and learn to continue this destructive behavior will lead miserable and unfortunate lives. Why do you think spoiling a child is a good thing? The word spoil means to rot. Look at addicts who justify a destructive habit as fun because they don't have the skills to cope with life's stresses.
And who else is going to teach a kid to open a bank account? Our schools? They're poorly funded as is because some idiots think private education is more effective. They fail to see the selective results from people with money as opposed to letting everyone in.
What's best for the kid is not what the kid will always enjoy. What's best for people is not what they always will enjoy. But go ahead, make my life easier.
>>66459
>took a kid to subway.
>to "feed" him.
This isn't a heart-warming story, this is a horror story.
If he left him play alone in a pile of syringes, the boy would have been safer.
>>66581
How is raising a proper child akin spoiling it?
Making a child feel loved and teaching it what is wrong and right is what makes good people, not specifically financially effective people, but they will have better social skills and thus do better in society.
It is however completely fine if you believe in a strict upbringing, to each his own.
Note: I had a very strict and unloving upbringing. This is what made me 'rotten' as a child.
>>66584
The autism is real
>>66586
Ok then, I ll moderate my sayings:
It's all about balance and that very balance is not found by today's parents, not often enough anyway. The thing is that the child must also take initiatives and not receive everything on a silver spoon
>>66590
This I fully agree with.
>>66587
>testosterone is the sole reason for people avoiding social experiences
yeah, totally.
definitely has nothing to do with... well, I don't know... religious restrictions, family ethitcs, inability to leave one's house due to possible dangers in their surroundings, inability to afford going out, etc... right?
gr8 b8 m8
>>66581
>>66586
I'll have to agree with anon. If you believe a strict up-bringing, or not... that is one's choice.
but, I'll unprofessionally rebut what >>66581 mentioned, concerning the teaching of kids on how to open a bank account (I know there are many more factors involved, but I'm talking in a general context).
no matter, what it may be... money, strict parents, private schools, public schools... anything, man... there is no way for a small child below the age of 13 to comprehend, or grasp higher-level terminology, when in a comes talking about life. it's not within their reach of mental capacity.
what you're talking about involves behavioral factors. behavior and discipline is what a child needs at first, then one can begin to teach them about life.
>talking out of my ass, but you all get the point
>>66627
I agree wih everything you qaid appart from under 13 y o not having the mental capacity to understand higher-level terminology (we are talking about IQ aren't we).
A person's IQ doesn't change a lot during his live so it depends on the upbringing, I ve been introduced to politics quite early for example
>>66581
>letting a kid fucking starve is what's best for them because muh manliness