Strollerderby

It's an awful situation and my heart breaks for his mother.  However -- if, God forbid, my PDD-NOS daughter were to grow into a violent adult who attacked babies, small children, or animals, I doubt I'd take her out in public.  Bruce's mother asks "what am I supposed to do, lock him up?" and sadly I would have to say yes.  What if that baby would have started screaming and provoked an even more violent reaction?  What if he had seriously injured or even killed him?  There's no way I'd take such a chance.

I hope that she's able to find help for him.  Perhaps the local department of disability services will step in and offer some assistance.

I agree with Knitty. I think an outing to a huge store like that should only be attempted if his mom had some help to watch him and make sure that he is not near babies if he has said that they irritate him. The baby has bruises, and it could have been worse. It is a very difficult situation, and I can only imagine how frustrated his mother must be at times.

If he is a danger to random infants, maybe he should be locked up.  

He got what was coming to him.

That guy better be glad that wasn't me there with my daughter...if he'd slapped my child I'd be the one in jail and he'd be in the ICU!

RamAirIV-  Amen!  I'm sorry the guy's autistic, but you touch my kid and you're going down.  His mother is being unrealistic-  if you know your grown son (with the strength of an adult) hates babies, perhaps Walmart is not the best place to be taking him.  She wants society to tell her what to do?  How about not unleashing him on an unsuspecting public.

No way I'd be okay with just a "please don't do that again".  I would want that guy locked up.  I feel bad sorry that he has a disability and it must be hell for his family but that doesn't mean they have the right to inflict his issues on infants.  A grown man, who doesn't control himself, could easily kill an infant in seconds.  He is a danger to society.

I'm not a violent person, but if that had been my child the guy would have been lucky to survive.

So this lady sees some guy flipping out in an aisle at Walmart and when he ends up in line behind her she doesn't put herself between him and her kids? and she let's him get close enough not only to touch her baby but to hit it? WTH was she thinking?

and this mother of a 30 year old autistic man has never really gotten him help even though he is known to be violent to small children, and then she not only takes him to Walmart, but she loses him there. the mother should have been arrested for public endangerment.

i don't think it is in anyway easy to raise a child with autisim or any other kind of unfortunate disability, and i am all for trying to work with them to integrate them into society. i also think that most of society needs to deal with being uncomfortable around "different" people. but, the caretakers of these people need to be aware of their limitations and not put them in dangerous situations. because i agree with some of the other postings, you'd better believe if some guy tried to strike my kid, i would end him right there in front of everyone in the store, i don't care if he is unwell or not. and honestly, if i found out his mother knew that he had a history of violence towards children and she had taken him and lost him in walmart anyway, i would have beaten her down too.

Right on, RamAirIV.

Shit like this is jus tone of many reasons why I stay out of Walmart!

My oldest is 19 and non-violent, but if he were, you can bet your bottom dollar I'd be on him like ugly on an ape.  

I don't think jail is the place for this man, especially with a general jail population, but he needs to know this is not acceptable.  If it means being in solitary, then fine.  

Obviously, his mother needs help.  My son has been deemed "too high functioning" to get help.  His IQ is on the low-normal range, and he definitely autistic, but he will receive no help with job placement or the like.  

So, I can totally understand her frustration.  If she can't leave him alone, is she supposed to be chained to her home too???  

There is no absolute black and white here, except he needs to learn to keep his hands to himself.  

We are all for helping children with disabilities, but what happens when they become adults???  

by me staying out of Walmart, I mean, to stay away from the weirdos that place attracts...seriously

"We are all for helping children with disabilities, but what happens when they become adults???"

That's one of the thoughts that keeps me awake at night, Sheri.  Right now my daughter is a tiny, adorable toddler who is fawned over wherever she goes.  As an adult, she might be the "weirdo" that people give up their place in line to avoid, and that breaks my heart.  Hopefully the extensive therapy she's getting now will help her avoid that fate, but even if she does, many of the other autistic children I know won't.  When our children grow up, the overriding sentiment seems to be that jail is a perfectly acceptable place for mentally impaired people unable to control themselves.

Well - if they are violent, and unable to control themselves it isn't fair to the populace at large to let them wander free.  I know that extreme violence is rare, but is an severely autistic adults right to walk around free greater than someone's else's right to not be assaulted?  This is Reagan's fault.

I know raising a special needs child is very difficult, but no matter what the disability is it does not mean they can break the law.  I agree with a lot of the other comments, if I saw anyone hit my child I would beat the living shit out of them!  This is one mom who would not back down!  If the man is a danger to people around him he should not be out in public.  He should be locked up.  

I don't believe that locking this man up or banning him from Wal-Mart would be the best answer. He may have been able to explain why he did it, but my experience as a teacher of kids with autism leads me to believe that if he's going to go ahead and hit a baby because they make him crazy, he can't really stop himself without help. He has every right to be out in the community, trying to be as normal as he can. His mom probably couldn't have stopped him from doing what he did, and she was right to keep him away from the other woman and her kids as best as she could. Unfortunately, he got away from her, and she is probably totally mortified by what happened. Who knows how many times he has been to the store before without smacking an infant? Sometimes I want to smack kids at Wal-Mart, too, and the Supercenter I used to go to gave ME such serious sensory issues that I'd only go after midnight. I feel terrible for both mothers, but I'm glad this didn't escalate into some stupid, punitive punishment for a disabled man.

Shannon, how ridiculously apologetic and PC.

As the mother of a four month old, I would freak the hell out if some random grown man slapped my child. He knows why he did it, and this incident shows he knows he can do it without consequence. I agree that jail isn't the answer, but he needs some sort of reprimand here. Right now, BJ knows he can slap a baby because he doesn't like that child and nothing happens to him. Ridiculous!

The police took a report. The mother of the baby is pursuing charges. She's mad that they didn't arrest him on the spot. Or "take him to a hospital" at the time it occurred. How hard did he hit her baby? It doesn't really matter but there's a difference between smacking someone and punching someone. Babies tend to bruise easily and bump into things with no problems. The baby's mom seemed to act like she didn't know what other head trauma he had. It just seemed like she was pushing the issue for more affect.

As a mother of three young children including a nine month old baby I wouldn't let anyone get that close to my kids. The mother of the baby saw him cussing and throwing things. Why in the world would she stend there and let him get that close to her baby??

BJ's mother needed to keep a better eye on him. Obviously he shouldn't have hit the baby that was wrong. Maybe she should avoid shopping with him or go at different times if he has problems. I find it hard to believe though that this is a problem for him every time he goes shopping. I think the point here is that BJ and his mom need some help in dealing with his autism.

If he hit the baby because it was crying and it was a sensory issue for him then punishing him is moot. Locking him up isn't going to deal with the problem that he needs help in how to function in public despite his sensory issues. Arresting him isn't going to help that and would probably continue to aggravate his sensory problems and not be conducive to helping him. The point is to teach him how to control himself and not repeat the problem. You can't just lock him up and throw away the key.  

I really think both mothers could be doing better for their children. Did anyone read the comments on that story? Some of them are just brutal to both sides. It even talks about the baby's mom's and dad's criminal backgrounds!!

I am the mother of the baby and I would like to clarify a few things then maybe my opinion will be easier understood. First,this man did not simply slap my baby. This was a full force punch. As a boxer in a ring would inflict his opponent for a win. Second, I did not LET him that close to my child. He invaded our privacy. We were in the check out line already when we heard the glass jar hit the floor and then heard him cursing at the check out line beside us. I immediatly grabbed my nine year old daughter moving her to the back of the cart to avoid trouble. I was already holding my 6 month old in my arms when I turned to have this huge man standing there suddenly punch my baby. How much closer could I guard my infant than in my arms?

I understand your position but there also seems to be many sides to this story. Everyone is saying hit/slap except for you. Wouldn't the store have video to confirm which side of the story is correct? You say that a glass jar broke so weren't there store clerks around cleaning up the mess? Why didn't anyone else step up and say anything?

Is your baby all right? You probably took him to the doctor, correct? I only ask because it seemed like you didn't know what his injuries are but with the tecnology we have today the doctor will be able to tell you if there is any brain injuries or anything of concern.

I'm not saying that your child deserved to be hit either. Of course not! No one deserves to be hit that goes without saying. We also have a duty to protect our kids though. When you're in public you don't have privacy. You say many times that you saw him. You saw him again when you were in line. You could have moved from your spot in line to go somewhere else to avoid him like you did the rest of the time you were in the store. If he was being that disruptive its surprising that you took your eyes off him and didn't notice him getting close enough to you to touch your child. It's our job to protect our kids even if that means turning your back and taking the "punch" for them. Everyone has an opinion these days and when stories like this pop up in the news you open yourself up for the possible scrutiny.

I don't think anyone is blaming you for what happened to your child. I think the point that some people are trying to make is that people really have to be aware of their surroundings and do everything we can to protect our kids in this day in age. My children are now grown and I have two grandbabies and I would do everything I can to keep them out of danger- Even my adult kids!

I'm also curious what you think should be done with this man? It said in the news that you were pushing the case through the prosecutor's office. I think that's where most people have devided opinions. Even if he were to be processed through the court system and mandated therapy or something it wouldn't require him to be arrested at the scene. Is that what you're hoping to accomplish? It's very likely that had he been arrested at the scene, they would have taken him to jail and I don't think that's the place for him at all. I think the article said that the police don't have to arrest for misdemeanor either just to file a report. What else were you wanting them to do? Are you still pushing the court case?

I also think that more of the burden should be placed on the guy's mother because she is responsible as his caregiver and should have kept a better eye on him. If she can't control him she needs to find someone who can or not be going to the store with him when there is a lot of people especially babies.

Seriouslyy he is autisitc i have a autistic sister and she loves to get out and she hates being in the house for so long and is it right to lock someone up form something they love to do. And i do feel bad for the baby but seriously he is fine everyone gets bruises in life unfortunately this autistic child has one he cant get rid of and they are sueing him because of something he cant control what is wrong with this picture i deal with this everyday and if anyone was in my position they would be think the exact same thing the baby was crying because something was wrong, well autistic children hurt when they hear a sound they dont like just like when we hear a sound we dont like and want to cover our ears. Most of you feel bad for the baby because you dont now what it is like to have an autistic child it is like having a baby for the rest of your life they have no control!

coolteamblt he doesnt know he did it he was hurting just as much as the baby and yes he should get some help but lock him up for something he cant control that insane its like locking a normal man up for breathing he can just stop breathing

none of u understand what it is like to have a autistic child it is very hard