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BABY ON BOARD

Mom Charged with Child Endangerment for Letting Son Pump Gas

He's only three, after all

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by Dain Fitzgerald

Staff Writer t

Image: The Smoking Gun

This one's not the obvious government-overreach story it looks like at first glance.

A Pennsylvania mom's been brought up on charges for letting her 3-year-old pump gas, informs the Smoking Gun. A witness saw Theresa A. Moran Camara's son filling the tank and apparently spraying himself with fuel as he struggled to remove the pump from the car, according to authorities. It's a claim Camara herself copped to, according to the police report. She confessed to having "allowed her son to help her in pumping gas," and confirming "that he had sprayed gasoline onto both of them."

Camara's now been charged with the misdemeanor of "endangering the welfare of a child," in an act caught via surveillance video in addition to the eye witness, who described the mother as "instructing" her son on how to pump gas.

Nothing is known at this time about the subsequent legal fate of Camara and son...

Via the Smoking Gun.
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Does child endangerment sound like the right charge for allowing a 3-year old to pump gas?

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Comments (view in Forum)

  • gailhall
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    Depends if the mom was there by his side, teaching him. If she left him alone that is wrong, if she was teaching him to pump gas right by his side , that would be a different story.
  • Dan_Tien
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    @gailhall Wiping himself is appropriate at that age. Pumping gas is not. Check out the MSDS I posted for another comment. Kids don't get exposed to bensene by wiping themselves, but why worry about them getting leukemia if you can sit in your car and let your three year old pump your gas for you, right?
  • gailhall
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    @Dan_Tien , she didn't let her 3 yr old pump her gas, she just let him help. And did you know that our shower curtains made from China, has certain chemicals in them that can harm a child. So I guess we don't need that eiher. Theres lots in this world that can harm a child. You can't stop living.
  • Dan_Tien
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    @gailhall "You can't stop living." No, but you can take a few simple, common sense precautions to keep your kids safe, like not putting them into contact with highly flammable, explosive materials, not letting them play in traffic, and not leaving loaded handguns in your unlocked nightstand. Or you can justify actions that are a result of ignorance. elevate them to the level of stupidity and pray to God when your child ends up in the hospital or morgue..

  • View all 19 replies >

  • Denizen_Kate
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    We should IQ test the population and anyone who scores less than 100 should have "Stupid" tattooed on their forehead. Perhaps we could weed them out of the shallow end of the gene pool.
  • jessejaymes
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    @PoliticalSpice When you're ready to do the same for every liberal fem nazi as for the GOP stupids I'll kick in a few thousand.

  • View all 9 replies >

  • texas_cutie75
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    Ok, I have in the past have let my neohew "help" me. I place the nozzle in the tank and let him hit the buttons and hold into the nozzle. He likes to be a big boy! She should not have allowed him to manuever the nozzle all by himself.
  • u
    CaryNickel
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    After reading the article I came to the conclusion that.... Yup: this IS the ridiculous government overreach story it appears to be at first glance.
  • u
    CommonSense
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    So he got covered in gas. I've been covered in worse.
    The child didn't get hurt. Granted had someone lit up a cigarette this would've turned out bad, but then you're not supposed to smoke or light any fires at a gas station anyways.
    I think it's good that the mother wants her kid to learn how to do things. Her kid could grow up to be strong, motivated, and successful because of that but if she loses her kid and he gets placed with foster parents who could care less about teaching the kid things now he might not.
  • Dan_Tien
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    Not a problem? Have a look at the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for gasoline. It includes: "If ingested, do NOT induce vomiting, as this may cause chemical pneumonia (fluid in the lungs). Contact may cause eye, skin and mucous membrane irritation. Harmful if absorbed through the skin. Avoid
    prolonged breathing of vapors or mists. Inhalation may cause irritation, anesthetic effects (dizziness, nausea, headache, intoxication), and respiratory system effects. Long-term exposure may cause effects to specific organs, such as to the liver, kidneys, blood, nervous system, and skin. Contains benzene, which can cause blood disease, including anemia and leukemia."

    Gasoline is dangerous to breath and can be absorbed through the skin. I wouldn't even let a 3 year old come in contact with the residue on the pump handle. They are still at the age when their hands spend a good deal of time in their mouths.

    http://www.hess.com/ehs/msds/9950allgradesgas...
  • u
    Cheenoguy
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    Aww shucks if the boy wants to put that thar fork in the electrical plug thingy just let em it'll taught him notta do it.
    I gaught shocked and it made me the smurt man I are today
  • u
    CommonSense
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    @Dan_Tien
    OK I see why that's a problem.
    She probably didn't know gasoline was that dangerous. Clearly it can if it starts on fire, and you definitely wouldn't drink it but I could see how she wouldn't know it could poison through the skin as most things can't do that.
    Make her take a parenting class with special focus on dangerous things you shouldn't let your kid near.
  • gailhall
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    But it is the law that no one under 16 pumping gas so with that being said, its wrong.But come on people, what happened to the good old days , when we rode on back of grandpa truck without seat belt, pumping gas with our parents, and sitting in their lap learning to drive. This is making a mountain out of a mole hill.
  • Dan_Tien
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    Ah, the good old days when kids fell out of pick-up truck beds, absorbed leukemia-causing benzene through their skin from gasoline, and got crushed between their parents and the steering wheel during car crashes.
  • gailhall
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    @Dan_Tien , well , I'm one of those kids, and that never happened to me. And kids grew up a lot better then kids do today.

  • View all 12 replies >

  • CanadianIndy
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    I used to do this around that age as well. So long as the child is supervised and taught how to safely perform, no harm. This lady was an idiot though. If my pop had seen even a drop of gas spill, he'd have called an ambulance and thrown me in the bin of kitty litter.
  • u
    Cheenoguy
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    If she had allowed him to "help" and made sure the hose came out without getting it all over himself he wouldn't have been endangered and nothing past "aww isn't that lil boy such a cutie helping his mommy."
  • CanadianIndy
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    @Cheenoguy True. But I don't think this counts as "child endangerment" though. Yes, she /allowed/ her son to be in danger, as have many parents. But did she /put/ him in danger? That may be harder to prove.

    After all, sadly someone can't be charged for criminal stupidity.
  • u
    Cheenoguy
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    @CanadianIndy
    She allowed him to do something that endangered the child and is actually illegal in some states. It's a misdemeanor so she isn't losing the child (unless it leads to more info for CPS) or even doing time. Hopefully the judge sends her to a parenting class.
  • u
    Cheenoguy
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    @OhWiseOne
    As I picture you as the the kind of guy who sits around the bug zapper with a can of PBR chuckling I will have to doubt you.
  • u
    crusader
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    Not sure if that could be child endangerment but at three that is silly. He is two young to be pumping gas, I know he will need to know how someday but he could probably not even reach to place the nozzle back in the pump. But once he masters that I geuss he could start mowing the grass at 4, and the weed eater at 5. It is good to teach your kids life skills but parents should have the common sense to know when it is an appropriate age to teach them.
  • PayThatCEO
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    At 3 years old my son could sit at the table and careful slice a cucumber (with me right there watching, of course).

    I'm not saying a 3 year old should get out of the car and pump the gas by himself, but anyone who has ever been a parent has let their child "help" do something grown-up. Our own parents did the same thing with us. I grew up before seat belts in cars and parents would let a child sit in their lap and "drive". Yes, the car would be moving.

    As far as I can tell, this woman didn't endanger her child unless she dowsed him in gasoline and struck a match. It's time the law back off and go catch some criminals.
  • u
    crusader
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    @PayThatCEO Yes I drove a car on my moms lap but she was able to take control at any time. My wife often has her 4 year old neice help bake cakes and cookies, and has since she was 3. But the fact that this boy covered himself in gas says that she was not close enough to him from doing that. I don't think a three year old can physically pump gas and should wait until they are older,and physically more able to do so. I pumped gas well before I was 16 as some states require. I have rode in the back of pickups as well. But I was old enough and mature enough to do those things. I am not saying that this mom should be charged but she definitely used poor judgement in letting a 3 year old help pump gas.
  • PayThatCEO
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    @crusader

    I was going by the sentence "She confessed to having "allowed her son to help her in pumping gas," and confirming "that he had sprayed gasoline onto both of them.""

    If she was close enough to get "sprayed" then she must have been right there.

    I agree. Probably not the best idea a parent ever had, but certainly not worth involving the law. That's the point I was trying to make. At what point do we lose our right to make our own decisions as parents and as people? What's next? They arrest you for allowing a child to help you bake cookies? I work in a pediatric emergency center. Children get burned all the time "helping" mommy.

    It's not that this woman may have made a bad judgment call, it's the fact that the law is more and more worming into our personal lives. That frightens me.
  • Denizen_Kate
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    True, but as a parent the words you need are "No. Not until you're a little older." Worked for me. My son managed to survive my parenting.:)
  • scotta
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    @Denizen_Kate I agree. Just stated from personal expierence. I also stated no umtill you get a little older
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