Legal Commentary

the evolution of baby strollers

By David A. Giacalone

Do you remember when you could easily see a baby in its stroller — and could tell whether a baby was actually in a stroller without getting a search warrant? [The little cutie on the far right below is my big sister Linda, in 1949. I don’t know the two other kids.]

. . . . . . . . . . .

A news story with a happy ending over the weekend out of nearby Abany, NY, reminded me of those days and of my occasional bemusement as baby strollers have been super-sized over the past few decades — turning into vehicles that their owners could only transport with vans or min-wagons, or buses. See “Teen saves baby who fell under bus” (Schenectady Daily Gazette, May 31, 2008); and “Teen: ‘I don’t feel like a hero’: Boy who grabbed baby from beneath bus receives thanks” (Albany Times Union, June 1, 2008); plus a video from CBS-6-Albany). As the TU reported yesterday:

“Amanda Hoffman of Bertha Street was trying to get Anthony, her 5-day-old baby, and a stroller on the bus by pulling the stroller up the stairs of the bus.

“Unknown to her, the baby fell out of the stroller, hit the blacktop and rolled underneath the bus tire, police spokesman Detective James Miller said.”

Luckily, fourteen-year old Tyler Purvis-Mitchell, “saw the baby underneath the bus in front of a wheel. He quickly grabbed the baby as the bus was about to take off.” The infant received only a cut on his forehead and some scrapes, and was released from Albany Medical Center Hospital later that afternoon.

. . . . . . . .

How did this happen? According to the Times Union:

“During an interview at her home Saturday evening, Hoffman said she knew something had dropped out of the stroller, but thought maybe it was a bottle. A strap on a car seat inside the stroller may have been loose or not snapped, she said. She said the teen acted quickly to save Anthony, a dark-haired, 7-pound baby born just May 25.”

Well, I have nothing particularly deep to add to the reactions you are probably having to this tale. One more example of bigger not necessarily being better — and of the importance of an ounce of prevention. Best wishes to Anthony Hoffman for a long and interesting life. And, thanks to Tyler Purvis-Mitchell for his quick thinking and action.

sleepless . . .
the baby?s age
in days

children?s ICU?
a tissue box beside
the pay phone

I smile at her
smiling at the baby
smiling

… by John Stevenson from Some of the Silence (Red Moon Press,1999)

Full post as published by f/k/a . . . on June 02, 2008 (boomark / email).