Two eight year old boys were yesterday caught trying to start a fire in East Maitland.
Officers say the pair were trying to set alight a pile of dry leaves and grass they had collected in Quarry Street at around 6:30pm, using a lighter.
Due to their age no charges can be laid.
Police spoke to the parents of the boys and completed child at risk notifications.
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This is disgusting, they need to start teaching them in school how a fire can effect things. Show them burnt houses, animals even people if that’s what it takes to get it in their young silly heads that lighting fires is wrong! Maybe after seeing what it can do hopefully they’ll think twice before doing it!
No Charges? Make them do community work with BURN VICTIMS or help clean up after these fires, this should sort them out and then haul the parents in for a little chat. Eight year olds KNOW RIGHT FROM WRONG.
A couple of years ago I caught a 7yr old boy stealing a cigarette lighter from go lo in Raymond terrace.i chased this kid into the street where there were 6 of his mates there exchangeing cigarette lighters that they had stolen.I took this kid back to the shop where the very young manager let him go without calling the police.
About 3months ago again I chased another 11yr old boy in my car after he stole some cigarette lighters from a shop in Raymond terrace. The shop owner called the police and still to this day is waiting for them to turn up. Mind you the police station is directly across the road from where this happened.
My point here is that kids are stealing cigarette lighters quite a lot these days and shop owners need to put these items away from these kids hands instead of having them on the counter so they can steal them so easily.
As a rep I am in a lot of different shops daily and I see this so often groups of kids waiting for the shop assistant to turn their backs so they can steal a lighter or 2.
I am not surprised to hear kids are playing with lighters and are getting caught lighting fires.
There is a real problem out there with kids stealing lighters and shop keepers need to put these items out of view or lock these items up as they do with spray paint.
It shouldnt matter of age they comitted a crime. They areold enough to no right from wrong. They should be punished. Punish the parents for no teaching them and for not looking after the kinds. What are 8yr olds doing walking around the streets. Anything could of happened to them.
i agree they need to do something in the schools teach right from wrong educate them on the consequences their actions and about what will happen if you play with fire not just teaching children that they have rights and parents are not aloud to punish them. i also cant believe all the parent bashing that has gone on lately as a parent who has been on the end of this i want to say i am a hard working responsible parent who has done everything to help my children learn respect kindness and right from wrong but who also knows you can not control everything your child dose even as young as 8 my son has mental health problems as well as behavioral problems i have done everything a parent can do to help their child theropy doctors ect, and yet people still judged me for what he had done like where are the parents so please don’t judge till you know the whole story
I totally agree with previous comments that age should not be a criteria for punishment. The degree and nature of crime and its possible consequences should be the “ONLY CRITERIA”. EACH AND EVERYONE COMMITTING ANY KIND OR NATURE OF CRIME SHOULD BE PUNISHED ACCORDING TO THE AGE AND DEGREE OF CRIME. Only then kids, teenagers and adults all will think twice before doing anything wrong. I just want to know “WHY THE GOVT AND THE AUTHORITIES ARE SO AFRAID OF PUNISHING THE KIDS/TEENAGERS?” Because they know they wont be punished, kids are doing anything they fancy. Instead of letting these kids go free with only a few words of warning, these kids should have been made an example for the whole of NSW kids sending the clear message to them that “No one will get away scot free with these kind of disgusting and malicious and dangerous acts in community”. Its time Australia woke up, sit back and re-visit all the laws and punishment policies to encourage and instil some respect and a healthy fear of LAW and AUTHORITY and CONSEQUENCES OF THEIR ACTS.
Where are the parents and why are these boys not in school? Stop blaming the education department and blame the parents that are failing to look after their child.
If my child was in a bush lighting fires, I would ensure that they were either one helping the firies put them out or two….sitting in a gaol cell.
. 11-year-old boy , giving the bird to authorities, accused of lighting a 5000ha Hunter Valley bushfire. Doesn’t look like climate change to me. It looks like parental failure to me, given the father did the same sign with both hands when his son made bail.
‘The court heard the boy was already awaiting sentencing on a separate charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and had recently been suspended from school.’
Nope! No climate change but a failure to instill respect, remorse and accountability in our childrenand may I ADD to that list, Failure to instill, compassion for other people, everything they have ever worked for , and compassion for all the animals that are dying as we speak, not to mention the Firemen leaving their family’s and risking their own lives …….all because, ….you wanted attention……..disrespectful , bastard kids…….I still say Jail for kids ….they know what there doing at that age………and we have been made to
“SPARE THE ROD….SPOIL THE CHILD’…. we need to get that line back, they cannot step over or cross……………they have no respect for any type of authority, every sort of law there is protects the children…….we need to get tougher with these kids……..bring back the parental rights to good parents, to chastise their kids when they need it……
No matter what age a person is, if the person is old enough to start a fire, the person is old enough to take the punishment, and as for a father saying he can not follow his six kids around the Streets, what is his 8 year old doing on the Streets