Massive head trauma, internal injuries.
The child won't make it to morning.
The mother and the grandmother sit
in the waiting area.
They haven't been told yet.
The boyfriend, the babysitter, denies
he was high on smack, insists the child
was asleep in the playpen,
when he ran to the deli to buy cigarettes.
He can't explain how the toddler
got hit by a car on the highway
seven blocks from the apartment.
Nancy reads "Smack":
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Nancy confesses: "As a caseworker employed by the NJ Division of Youth and Family Services, I interviewed the adults, but was unable to get the babysitter to admit that the child had wandered away from him while he was scoring smack. The case was closed and no one was charged."
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4 comments:
Sad and very true. I remember a case in NJ where a little girl was hit on the highway at five in the morning.
Jesus that's brutal.
Powerful but sad piece. Great work!!
How sad it must be to lose a child in this careless way. Great writing!
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