A father’s decision to pick up his daughter from school caused a scare Monday afternoon as a 5-year-old was reported missing after her mother said she had not returned home from her day at Stevens Elementary.
The girl was reported missing by her distraught mother and school officials just before 5 PM, 45 minutes after she should have gotten off the bus near her home. A check of Stevens school bus records showed the girl had not been a passenger.
The report sparked a flurry of activity in the East Precinct as police officers searched the area and the little girl’s picture and description were quickly disseminated to agencies like Metro. Police also visited a list of residences of family members where the girl might have gone. CHS received a handful of tips from readers who saw police cars at the Stevens campus at 19th and Galer where the mother waited with police.
Police learned just before 6 PM that the girl had been picked up from school by the girl’s father who was described as “estranged” on police radio.
This ain’t the 70’s, shouldn’t that mom be picking up the 5 year old?
Ok, I actually walked home from Stevens when I was 5, but that WAS the 70’s!
“estranged” or not… Wouldn’t you call the other parent or at least try to call the other parent BEFORE calling the police?
What makes you think she hadn’t called? He may not have picked up, especially if this was a controlling tactic on his part. You could also ask why didn’t he tell the mom before he did it.
Hey Concerned – the kid was supposed to be on the BUS. What does walking home have to do with anything? The mom probably works and was ready to pick up her kid from the bus stop and was understandably upset when her kid didn’t get off.