Convicted of letting a Child collect Goose Feathers

Jonathan H. Adler writes:

On a sunny day in June, Karyann Parkinson made a fateful choice that could affect her life for years to come: She let her 5-year-old son, Sam, walk alone to a neighborhood pond to collect goose feathers.

Nothing happened to Sam, at least not physically. But for her choice, Parkinson was charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor, a first-degree misdemeanor in Virginia. In August, she was convicted by a local judge after a bench trial in the Williamsburg Juvenile & Domestic Relations District Court and given a six-month suspended jail sentence.

Knowing Parkinson — a then-neighbor and former student—and having attended the trial, it seems she was punished less for making a debatable parenting choice and more for refusing to come to heel when questioned about her decision.

Lenore Skenazy often posts stories like this. We need laws that clearly say that parents can use their own judgment, unless some objective harm is proved.