How Could You? Hall of Shame-Debra Lane

^{This will be an archive of heinous actions by those involved in child welfare, foster care and adoption. We forewarn you that these are deeply disturbing stories that may involve sex abuse, murder, kidnapping and other horrendous actions.}

From Calhoun, Georgia, 55-year-old Foster mother, Debra Lane,was charged with “second degree cruelty to children and reckless conduct after police say she left a 2-year-old child alone in a hot vehicle for more than four hours on Monday.”

“When she realized her mistake, she called 911.

“When our officers arrived they described her as almost inconsolable.  She kept repeating how could someone do this to a child?” said Calhoun police Lt. Tony Pyle.

Pyle says 55-year old Debra Lane had taken care of the little girl and her two siblings for nearly a year, almost as long as the Division of Family and Children Services says she had been a foster parent.  Lane had a routine to get them all to school before heading to work.  But on Monday, she told police the routine was interrupted.

“Irresponsibility and negligence, those don’t match her name,” said Leslie Deperro, an acquaintance who works in the same business complex.  She says Lane dedicates herself to helping victims of domestic violence and children in need, making the mistake even more heartbreaking.

“I don’t think no matter what anybody in this community says about her, they can’t hurt her any more than she’s going to hurt herself,” said Deperro.

When Lane found the girl, she was still strapped to her car seat.

“The child appeared to be lethargic and dehydrated, and was treated by EMS at the scene. The child was stabilized and subsequently transported by ambulance to Gordon Hospital,” said Calhoun Police Lt. Tony Pyle.
Police say there’s no distinct line on when they will charge someone and when they’ll let it go with a warning.  But they say four hours, is too long.

“Whether it was a mistake or intentionally, the results for the child are still the same,” explained Pyle.

The child is going to be fine, still DFCS moved the siblings to someone else’s care.

Deperro says the businesses in the complex off Dan Cheri Drive don’t attract much foot traffic, especially on the side Lane parks.  Had Lane not received an invitation to go out for lunch, the little girl could have been there all day.

Both police and DFCS say they held educational campaigns to make parents aware of the dangers and remind them to look twice.  In a written statement it said:

“The safety of Georgia’s children, whether they are in foster care or not, is the number one priority of the Division of Family and Children Services.

The Division is concerned when any child is harmed, and is charged to respond to reports of neglect or abuse and to reduce the risk of the child coming into harm’s way again. Particularly, with the issue of hyperthermia, the Division has been engaged in awareness campaigns urging caregivers to “look again” before walking away from their cars.

We are thankful that today’s incident did not end in the tragedy that we have seen too many times before,  and we will redouble our efforts to educate parents and the public on the need to look again.””

Police: Foster mother leaves 2-year-old in hot car [WXIA 8/25/15 by Rebecca Lindstrom]

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