What was stupid was not using the baby listening service. That is undeniably indefensible.

I don't imagine I'd let children of that age play unsupervised in a field next to my house. We are talking about toddlers and pre-school children here.

Certainly not in a field almost a hundred meters away while I dined and drank occasionally going to check up on them when I felt I could drag myself away......

The parents are culpable here and a strong message needs to be sent out that it isn't acceptable.

Personally i think the profile fo the case has sent enough of a message to parents everywhere. I'm not sure that a prosecution would make much, if any, difference now.

Other than the fact you can abandon your children and get away with it scot-free.

Like i say, a witchhunt. Everybody KNOWS they've fcuked up, everybody KNOWS there's a case for prosecution, everybody KNOWS they're going to be subject to legal interrogation if they do something similar. I'm no laywer and probably a good thing, but as i say i don't believe throwing the book at the McCanns in this instance will be in anyone's interests, other than for those who want to see them punished further.

witchhunt? what are you on about? there is no witchhunt, they broke a law they get prosecuted. not rocket science is it.

We could go round in cirlces all day. Legally, you're correct, nobody's denying that. But "extraneous circumstances", "public interest", call it what you will. In my opinion it's not a straightforward black and white send-them-down case, that's all. Cheers.

i would consider jumping a red light on the way to get someone to hospital with a life threatening injury to be "extraneous circumstances" not pissing off to the local pub to have a quiet pint and a tapas.

So all a drink driver has to do is carry his kid around in the car. If there's a serious accident and the kid dies then the driver shouldn't be prosecuted :rolleyes:

Of course they should. HTH

Extraneous circumstances apply to sentencing not prosecution.

They may be prosecuted and not receive a punitive sentence.

Douglasb post #35 here has reasonable statistics.

Say one child a week in the uk similar to Maddie.

Which is exactly what this thread is doing :rolleyes:

Tel, I agree that a prosecution would serve no purpose and hopefully this will serve as a notice to other parents that this behaviour isn't acceptable, thus avoiding nanny state legislation to prevent it re-occurring.

However, there'd be a lot more sympathy for the family if they'd simply put up their hands and said what we did was careless and whilst we could never have foreseen an abduction, toddlers shouldn't be left unattended in situations like this.

Thanks, speedking. I find that figure a lot easier to believe.

So Snazy's 8 per hour only puts him 1343 per week out...

FCD, i hear what you're saying, but it just seems a little bizarre to me that your opinion of the parents would be swayed if they undertook some sort of public relations or awareness programme?? Do they HAVE to be put in the limelight any more than they have? I'm not sure whether they've ever actually cited what you want to hear publically but if they haven't then i'm pretty sure they're thinking along those lines at the very least!!

Tel, its not neccessarily my opinion I'm stating but more of an attempt to explain why I think there is a lack of sympathy by many on here.

Personally, I disliked their initial attacks on the Police as if attempting to shift blame for their own irresponsibility. They alluded to windows that had been forced open which was later disproved - it almost seems as if they've tried to justify their inaction by coming up with excuses. Its linked to my current beef with people in the UK, many of whom seem incapable of taking responsibility for their own actions - someone else is always to blame.

A point i would like to raise is, Where is the proof the girl has been abducted ?
We, the press, the world are taking the parents word that their daughter was abducted, there has been no factual proof she was abducted.

They admit Daddy was the last to see her in the room asleep, at conflicting times by the way and he telephoned his sister in the UK within minutes of the child dissapearing using the words ''Maddie has been abducted'' how many of us with children have used this word when one of your kids has gone into a friends house and not told you and you get that pannicky moment when you cant find them.
Missing maybe but not abducted, from moment one of all this, the father has never 'seemed' that upset to me.

Just my point of view of course and as a parent i would like a happy resolution but lets be honest do we honestly think its going to happen.

could nto agree more, more poeple need to take responsibility for their actions and the consequences of their actions, cause and effect and all that.

Shame the kids were asleep in the back of the appartment, could not be seen from the bar.
Of course they must have Xray vision.