Good Samaritan Beaten After Attempting to Help Lost Toddler Find Parents

[Pitt Gorilla]

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/...m_npd_nn_fb_nn

A good Samaritan was mistaken for a kidnapper — and beaten by the parents — in a Florida park after trying to help a lost toddler, police said.

The 2-year-old had become separated from her folks during a softball game on Saturday at Southwest Sports Complex in Lakeland, and was spotted by a man at the park with his friends, according to a police incident report published Sunday.

Believing she was lost, the man asked the child where her parents were and walked around the premises with her in hopes she could point them out.

But when the child's father was alerted by bystanders that his daughter was being led away by a stranger, the well-intentioned act was mistaken for a kidnapping attempt.

"I saw this man with my daughter in his hands walking toward the parking lot. What would you do?" the father told NBC affiliate WFLA in a phone interview. "I wanted to kill him!"

Thinking they were stopping a crime, the father and two friends approached the stranger: As his friends took the toddler away, the father punched the good Samaritan "probably five or six times," he told WFLA.

"I thought he was trying to take my daughter," the protective dad told the station.

In a 911 call released to the media, the mother also admits to hitting the man who was with her daughter, and says she did not immediately believe that the incident was simply a misunderstanding.

Lakeland Police, on the other hand, said they were confident that the man was just trying to help the girl.

"An independent witness who didn't know the family or anybody said they saw him pointing out different males saying 'is that your father?'" Lakeland Police Sgt. Gary Gross said in an interview with WFLA.

Police also said the good Samaritan had no prior criminal history and that they were able to verify that he had been at the park with friends.

"It’s understandable how parents can possibly be upset in a situation involving a lost child. However, this incident truly involved a good Samaritan trying to assist a lost child finding their parents," the police report read.

Despite the man's innocence, several posts were published on social media defaming his character. Family and friends of the toddler posted the man's name, photo, and place of employment online, calling him a "child predator."

No charges have been filed against the parents.

When contacted by WFLA, the good Samaritan declined to comment, citing safety concerns and telling reporters he'd left town with his family.

"This guy is a father, a local businessman, has two children, was trying to help this child but they turned it completely around," Gross told the station, "And that's not right."

Still, when asked whether he believed the man's innocence, the child's father said no.

"No, hell no, I don't," he said over the phone, "Not at all."

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by Mile High Mania

If the guy was trying to do the right thing, it's a tragedy... I do understand the reaction of the father though.

I kinda sorta understand the initial reaction. Maybe.

But then you have to start to dig around on what actually happened (I found a few other articles) and as it turns out the guy was drunk with some friends of his at a softball game and lost track of the kid. Additionally, going home and getting on social media and then in every interview afterwards doubling down on his being an asshole is reprehensible.

The guy is prototypcial "Florida Man". He's a piece of trailer trash who lost track of his own kid, had a mob of his buddies jump the guy, refuses to accept responsibility for misplacing a 2 yr old and in any interview he can find manages to fit 3 or 4 profanities in there while saying "hell yeah I beat that guy up and I'd do it again....wooooohoooooo! 'Merka!"

**** that dude in his face. The cops should've charged him with child endangerment and the guy that got his ass kicked should end up owning his trailer before all is said and done. Unfortunately the samaritan is entirely too good a person and is refusing to do so.

[Fish]

People are the worst...

[Steron]

Had somebody made off with the kid they'd be the first ones saying there were a lot of people around how did nobody not stop it.

[Beef Supreme]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

I was in the mall a couple of years back, and saw a toddler-type kid wandering around. I watched for a few minutes and was pretty sure that the kid was lost, so I did what any reasonable male would do. I kept an eye on her since she was near the exterior doors, but went and told the teenage girl at the Cinnabon to call mall security, staying at least 20 feet from the child at all times.

This right here, unfortunately.
The samaritan was doing a good thing, and the father was a waste of space, but the sad reality is, if I don't know you and your kid, I'm not going anywhere near the situation.

I don't need some bogus pedo charge on my record, or the expense of fighting it. Look after your own damn kids, cause I sure as hell won't. Sorry.

[Mile High Mania]

Originally Posted by TimBone

You understand punching someone five or six times without taking a minute or two to get all the facts?

No... I can understand the initial over-reaction. You see someone walking away with your child, yeah that will illicit the worst reaction unfortunately.

[ThaVirus]

Originally Posted by Pestilence

Have you never been to a softball game? Or a little league baseball game? [img]Half the parents there just let their kids run around and do whatever[/img]. Bunch of ****ing idiots.

Shit, didn't our parents do that?

Disclaimer: the kid in this story was 2. At that age, they should legitimately be up your ass at all times. There's no excuse for losing track of your 2 year old.

[Mile High Mania]

Originally Posted by ThaVirus

Shit, didn't our parents do that?

Disclaimer: the kid in this story was 2. At that age, they should legitimately be up your ass at all times. There's no excuse for losing track of your 2 year old.

This.. our kids were never out of line of site or beyond 10 feet from us when they were 5 or younger. At older sibling games now, sure they're off doing what they do on the side with friends.

The age of the kid and the fact the parents let them get away is the big problem here and dad likely over-reacted in part because he panicked realizing he screwed up.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by Steron

Had somebody made off with the kid they'd be the first ones saying there were a lot of people around how did nobody not stop it.

There was a lawsuit a decade or so back about a maintenance worker that was driving around (I believe in England) and saw a little girl on her own. He was driving a white windowless utility van and was scared to help her because he thought people would say he was trying to abduct her.

She ended up drowning in a neighbors koi pond and he got sued for it. The local authorities pretty much said "yeah, we'd would've ended up prosecuting him for kidnapping...probably a smart move..."

He won the case outright. The goddamn mob, man. As has been noted, you cannot simultaneously be an absentee parent AND vigilante warrior. It don't work that way, kids. If you're going to essentially count on the public being your babysitter, you don't get to accuse anyone unfortunate enough to get stuck with the job of malevolent intent. And if you're going to do so, I guess you don't get to be all that surprised when your kid drowns in a landscaping pool.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by ThaVirus

Shit, didn't our parents do that?

Disclaimer: the kid in this story was 2. At that age, they should legitimately be up your ass at all times. There's no excuse for losing track of your 2 year old.

If you're sober it's not hard. But when mine was 2 we'd take her to spring games at Faurot and she'd just walk off. It was actually kinda funny. We were, y'know, sober with our child around so we'd keep an eye on her, but I'd hang back about 10 feet and walk behind her just to see if at any point she'd decide she gave any ****s about mom and dad.

Nope. She'd have just walked into a crowd of 15,000 people. Some of them are just fiercely independent at that age. They'll actually grow out of it a bit; at 3 she's not going to get that far away. But at 2 - pft; she's never known anything to go wrong for her so away she went.

The kid will wander, but that's why you don't get sauced at a softball game and lose track of it. Ours has been coming to 2-3 games/wk for every year of her existence and we haven't misplaced her yet...

[Pitt Gorilla]

Originally Posted by Mile High Mania

No... I can understand the initial over-reaction. You see someone walking away with your child, yeah that will illicit the worst reaction unfortunately.

You would certainly stop the guy, but you wouldn't be stupid enough to beat someone's ass without finding out what's going on. More than likely, the other person is trying to help your dumb ass.

[Swanman]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

If you're sober it's not hard. But when mine was 2 we'd take her to spring games at Faurot and she'd just walk off. It was actually kinda funny. We were, y'know, sober with our child around so we'd keep an eye on her, but I'd hang back about 10 feet and walk behind her just to see if at any point she'd decide she gave any ****s about mom and dad.

Nope. She'd have just walked into a crowd of 15,000 people. Some of them are just fiercely independent at that age. They'll actually grow out of it a bit; at 3 she's not going to get that far away. But at 2 - pft; she's never known anything to go wrong for her so away she went.

The kid will wander, but that's why you don't get sauced at a softball game and lose track of it. Ours has been coming to 2-3 games/wk for every year of her existence and we haven't misplaced her yet...

My 2-year-old will end up 3 states away if we let her slip out of sight for 15 minutes.

[The Franchise]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

If you're sober it's not hard. But when mine was 2 we'd take her to spring games at Faurot and she'd just walk off. It was actually kinda funny. We were, y'know, sober with our child around so we'd keep an eye on her, but I'd hang back about 10 feet and walk behind her just to see if at any point she'd decide she gave any ****s about mom and dad.

Nope. She'd have just walked into a crowd of 15,000 people. Some of them are just fiercely independent at that age. They'll actually grow out of it a bit; at 3 she's not going to get that far away. But at 2 - pft; she's never known anything to go wrong for her so away she went.

The kid will wander, but that's why you don't get sauced at a softball game and lose track of it. Ours has been coming to 2-3 games/wk for every year of her existence and we haven't misplaced her yet...

I've been at games (older daughter's softball games) and watched my 6 year old twin girls play with other kids. Those other kids parents have no ****ing clue where they're at. Even at 6....I expect my kids to stay close enough to where I can keep an eye on what they're doing and who's around them. If its an especially busy day at the fields....they don't leave my side.

[Mile High Mania]

Originally Posted by Pitt Gorilla

You would certainly stop the guy, but you wouldn't be stupid enough to beat someone's ass without finding out what's going on. More than likely, the other person is trying to help your dumb ass.

Yeah, I think that's what most reasonable parent would do... but, if your 2 year old gets out of sight like this one did, you're likely not all that reasonable. Sure, shit happens, but seriously you have to watch your kids. It takes a minor moment of time for shit to go wrong.

[TLO]

This reminds me - how old was the kid that fell in Harambe's pen?

[notorious]

Give him an encyclopedia and her a Desert Eagle.