UPDATE:
"If my child's hungry, I'm going to feed it."
Genine Compton, the Dayton, OH mother who was charged with child endangerment for breastfeeding her child while she was driving. Oh, she was also on the phone, but that's been pushed to the side for now.
See, Compton's kid is breastfed at this exact time each morning. The police don't really care what the reason is, it's dangerous, and also illegal. First, there's that whole carseat thing, but also "the danger [of] an accident [and] possible deployment of the airbag," according to police. Compton says it's the same thing if she gets hit with an airbag. She also says she'll do it again if she feels the need to do so.
The potential penalty of 180 days in jail would put a pretty big damper on the baby's eating schedule, although I suppose Compton could pump and then pass her milk through the bars for someone else to give to her child. Still, one would think that simply not breastfeeding while driving from now on would be a simpler solution.
Visit whiotv.com for the video.
Original post follows:
*-*-*-*-*-*
A woman in Ohio was driving while breastfeeding. Oh, and she was also talking on her cellphone.
To paraphrase my fellow Strollerderbian Jeanne Sager -- Now this is what I call multi-tasking.
I have a confession to make -- I've never breastfed, obviously, but I have given my infant son a bottle while talking on the phone. I wasn't driving, however. My way seems a little safer.
Driving While Breastfeeding would be DWB. I guess this could be DWBTC? Driving While Breastfeeding and Talking on a Cellphone?
The woman in question was allegedly caught in the act by a fellow motorist, who called the cops. The police then used the license plate number to track down the chatty momma. Her response? "39-year-old Genine Compton...told them she was breast-feeding and wouldn’t let her child go hungry."
Oh. OH. I see. Could you, perhaps, pull over to the side of the road? Just asking.
The charge is a misdemeanor, and the potential consequences are $1,800 fine and 180 days in jail. That seems like a lot of jail time for a misdemeanor, but what do I know.
Dayton police office Michael Burke pointed out that "the legal concern is that Compton had a child in her lap, not that she was breast-feeding in public." Well. Glad we cleared that up.
Source: MSNBC
Image: sxc.hu
Read more:
