Police say mom ordered daughters out, drove off

[samanthajane13]

By JIM FITZGERALD, Associated Press Writer Jim Fitzgerald, Associated Press Writer – Wed Apr 22, 12:23 am ET

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. – Usually, it's an empty threat: "If you kids don't stop fighting, I'm going to stop this car right now and leave you here!" But a mother from an upper-crust New York suburb went through with it, ordering her battling 10- and 12-year-old daughters out of her car in White Plains' business district and driving off, police said Tuesday.

Madlyn Primoff, 45, a partner in a Manhattan law firm, pleaded not guilty Monday to a charge of endangering a child. A temporary order of protection was issued, barring her from contact with the children, who were physically unharmed.

Primoff's lawyer, Vincent Briccetti, would not comment Tuesday on details of the case. But he said, "Madlyn is a great mother connected with a great family, and she is grateful for the outpouring of support from friends and family."

There wasn't much support from strangers, however. Mothers interviewed near the scene said they couldn't imagine doing what Primoff did, though some understood the urge.

Iris Gorodess, 49, of Mahopac, who has four children ranging from 10 to 19 years old, said she sympathized with Primoff's actions, right up to the point where she pulled away.

"I used to pull over and make the kids change seats. Also, I make sure the kids have their iPods and their games. And I have a minivan, so they're not up my neck all the time.

"But I can't see pulling away. That has to be too scary for the children."

White Plains police said Primoff ordered the arguing girls out of the car Sunday evening as they were driving home. She left them at Post Road and South Broadway, an area of shops and offices 3 miles from their home, then drove off, the police report said.

The report does not say whether the girls had cell phones.

Police would not say if Primoff ever returned to look for the girls, but they said, without explaining how, that the 12-year-old eventually caught up with the mother. The 10-year-old was found by a "Good Samaritan" on the street, upset and emotional about losing her mother, police said.

The girl gave police her mother's name and their address in well-to-do Scarsdale, and they asked Scarsdale police to check Primoff's $2 million house. Shortly afterward, Primoff called Scarsdale police from home to say the 10-year-old was missing, said Scarsdale Detective Lt. Bryant Clark.

He directed her to White Plains police headquarters, where she was arrested.

Dr. Richard Gersh, director of psychiatric services at the Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services in Manhattan, said Primoff's behavior was not appropriate.

"It is a traumatic situation for a child to be abandoned by a parent like that. You can imagine what emotional issues might arise," he said.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090422/.../us_fed_up_mom

[old_soul]

Just heard about this on the news ~
!!! There for the Grace of God go I .........

Well, Madlyn, coulda, woulda........but I didn't. Sometimes we just have to ignore those urges, my dear. Working on your last nerve and all that...

Lord knows, It ain't easy............

[Mojave]

OK, I probably won't have the popular opinion here. While I would never and have never done this with my son or stepkids, this doesn't seem particularly police-worthy to me. Yes, it sucked. But we're not talking about little kids. These are older kids. Older than I was when my parents allowed me to go to the store and walk to school by myself. And I am willing to bet that either one or both of them had cellphones.

Mind you, I don't know how scary the 'business' district is, but unless they couldn't reasonably get home on their own or call to get a ride home, I think the charges are a little strong for this. Maybe if more details are released....

[Gatordog]

I would never do this - it was night and the business district had to be desolated on a Sunday night. As to their ages, they are children. Older children have been snatched during the day - both boys and girls. the ten year old has to be very traumatized. the mother is not a stupid woman. What would possess her to do that. If she was at her wit's end, she should have confiscated cell phones and threatened to throw those out of the car.

Gator

[samanthajane13]

Okay-from my mom, who knows the area quite well. (We have family there.)

The area where the kids were left off was NOT a bad area, as of the last time we were there-when I was a kid. It's not slummy or a high crime area.

But it's quite a hike to Scarsdale.

And given the fact that it still gets dark pretty early, cellphones or NOT, I wouldn't drop off my 20 year old there alone, at that distance from home.

And yeah-I HAVE threatened the girls with the "pull over and drop their azzes off" ploy...but never carried through with it.

[old_soul]

Originally Posted by samanthajane13

Okay-from my mom, who knows the area quite well. (We have family there.)

The area where the kids were left off was NOT a bad area, as of the last time we were there-when I was a kid. It's not slummy or a high crime area.

But it's quite a hike to Scarsdale.

And given the fact that it still gets dark pretty early, cellphones or NOT, I wouldn't drop off my 20 year old there alone, at that distance from home.

And yeah-I HAVE threatened the girls with the "pull over and drop their azzes off" ploy...but never carried through with it.

Yes, LOLOLOL, it's that parental testing that we've been through, we know how she felt! What bothers me is that LATER she called LE saying the child was missing.........Missing, Lady? You dropped her a** off in the middle of town, and ran away cause you couldn't cope! Just like when a baby is crying and crying and crying..... take a deep breath, and stop. She should have pulled over and THEN started screaming her head off.

I live not far from there... quite a convoluted stretch to get home for that kid, or anyone...thank goodness the good samaritan was a GOOD samaritan!!

there's that saying....'Look before you Leap'...you know what I mean..LOLOL

[samanthajane13]

NY mom says she was wrong to leave kids on curb
By JIM FITZGERALD
Associated Press Writer

A suburban mother who ignited a national debate said Thursday she was wrong when she ordered her bickering daughters out of her car and drove off without them.

Madlyn Primoff, 45, of Scarsdale spoke after a White Plains city judge said he would dismiss the child-endangerment charge against her in six months if she stayed out of trouble.

"Clearly, I made a mistake," Primoff said after the court session, her husband Richard standing beside her. "But I truly love our children and I know that I am a good parent."

She said her family discussed what happened April 19, when she put her 10- and 12-year-old daughters out of the car in downtown White Plains. The girls were attending school and not in court Thursday.

"We've put it to rest and we'll move forward together," she said.

In court, prosecutor Audrey Stone said Primoff, a partner at a Manhattan law firm, was "engaged in family therapy" and was not considered a danger to the children. After her arraignment, Primoff was not allowed to return home but that mandate was modified the next day to an order of protection that remained in effect Thursday and bars Primoff from any criminal activity toward the children.

White Plains City Court Judge Eric Press adjourned the case and agreed to dismiss it and seal it Nov. 9 if Primoff behaves.

Primoff and her daughters were three miles from home on the evening of April 19 when Primoff pulled over and ordered the girls out for squabbling. Defense attorney Vincent Briccetti said later that Primoff intended merely to drive around the block and pick the girls up, but they were gone when she returned.

"She wasn't abandoning her children," he said.

When Primoff could not immediately find the girls, she went home, picked up her husband and her father and resumed the search. They found the 12-year-old, who had begun walking home. But the younger girl, upset and emotional, had been taken in hand by a passer-by, who called police.

When Primoff called police to report her daughter missing, she was told the girl was safe. When she went to police headquarters to pick her up, she was arrested.

Primoff quickly became the focus of a debate on talk shows and the Internet about how to deal with the common family dilemma of children angering a parent by fighting in a car. Most mothers questioned sympathized with Primoff's situation but disagreed with driving off.

"I can't see pulling away," one woman said. "That has to be too scary for the children."


http://www.buffalonews.com/260/story/663977.html


TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE!!!