To wish I could send this woman a bunch of flowers?

[Sausagenbacon]

www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/mum-who-hit-boy-12-8022761

So, a group of 20 or so kids are throwing mud and rocks at people using the river. A paddleboarder remonstrates with them, they argue back and she hits one with a paddle.
I think she's very brave. And the journalist doesn't think of asking the family how they feel about their son/grandson enjoying himself chucking rocks at people! It's all, poor boy.
If I knew where she lived, I'd send her a bunch of flowers.

I mean, if that was my son I’d tell him I hope the learned his lesson. Don’t throw rocks at people, don’t hang out with other kids who throw rocks at people.

And the little shites didnt leave the area also, she did a public service to rest of people passing after her.

What some people on Mumsnet dkt realise is their kid is this horrible scumbag who assualts women.

Fighting violence with violence doesn't work

Calling the police would have been the public service

Vigilante justice is not the right thing

If she had been hit by something and turned around heat of the moment with the paddle in her hand not realising it was a child just acting in self defence it would be understandable.

This was an adult getting more and more wound up until they snapped and lashed out. Because that's what young boys need to see more of 🙄

Sounds like the police investigated, concluded sensibly that the little shit deserved it and they wouldn't take it further. Then the family called racism because it was a white woman and black boy and splashed it all over social media, police force big wigs shit their pants over the potential reputational damage because of the race aspect so reinvestigated and pursued it.

If it had been a white child it never would have gone further.

@SuperPup86 it’s not up to the police to decide if someone “deserves” to be assaulted. The women hit the only black child in the group, they may have been a group throwing stones but she wasn’t acting in self defence and was found guilty, in court. Perhaps the child should now be allowed to hit her on the head with a paddle given she is the only one who has been charged and found guilty of a crime?

it’s not up to the police to decide if someone “deserves” to be assaulted

Ha!

They have rules and procedures and guidance in abundance, sure. Behind those are people though - actual humans, making judgement calls. Deciding which cases to pursue.

Anyone who works in or with the police, or has a family member in the police knows that this kind of judgment/decision is made every day.

Police clearly had no intention of pursuing it - she was de-arrested. Its only the race aspect that then forced their hand. Well played by the little shits family.

How do you know it was the race aspect?

rock-throwers should have been charged with something like ‘intent to harm’ or ‘intent to kill’ or whatever the proper equivalent charge is.
They’ll do it again at some point. Many of us know adult versions of these delinquents. They’d probably be better adults if they’d faced consequences.

Agree.

No consequences for the gang of hoodlums here. They've been sent a very scary message.

How bad was the wound on his head I don't think it said?

1cm wound it says. hardly having your head cracked open.

manipulative little scumbag youths.

They’d be better adults if we had better social care.

They'd be better if they had decent parents. It's too easy to say they need better Social Care I.e. it's the fault of the government.
I don't know what the answer is. I don't believe youngsters like this have any fear of consequences because there are no effective sanctions any more.

If you read between the lines this is the most likely explanation.

They’d be better adults if we had better social care.

How does that thinking help you when your child is being whacked in the head with a purposely thrown stone? Who the fuck cares about what's gone wrong in these bad apples' lives/parenting?

The impact matters. And saying that better social care could be the solution - fine, as a prevention. but after the incident? what they did was wrong. and provocative.

what did a group of 30 hoodlums expect to happen when pelting people with rocks?

really?

if that's not provocaton or a criminal matter, FML.

100% agree

How do you get people to be decent parents though?

I wish I knew.
But if a parent can't parent, why do we think that government can do the job?

Because it can. We know that better social intervention results in lower crime. We know that people being supported makes them less likely to lash out.

Someone on another thread posted that some parents these days blame rather than parent. That’s what’s happening here. Better social care etc. is a last resort after alllllll parenting attempts have failed. In this case they haven’t even tried. Poor woman.

Soon it will become like peaky blinders as enough hoodlums won’t be punished by police (not their fault) that local gangs will continue to rise and take matters in their own hands.

The kid got £500! he'll do it again because he can and he knows it!
He got a very small cut on his head... he is laughing at all of us.

BUT the woman did the right thing.. its the rest of us and the so called justice system which is so wrong.

How weak were the Police? having imho correctly decided not to take the matter further, family and friends campaigned to get the decision reviewed... shameful.

We know that people being supported makes them less likely to lash out.
Out of interest, the words 'lashing out' infer that they are the ones wronged. They're just hooligans. Throwing rocks.

But they will be though. Happy kids with supportive, engaged parents aren’t throwing rocks at people.

Also @Sausagenbacon (and others) when you say you want them to be punished but improved social care shouldn’t happen, what you’re actually saying is ‘they should still do the crime. They should just be punished more afterwards’. So in that utopia of yours, the woman is still being pelted with rocks from twelve year olds.

We'll have to agree to disagree.
These kids are living in families that consider this behaviour. A few hours a week social care wouldn't change that.
Or maybe I'm unduly cynical.

@Pumperthepumper
I'm 100% in favour or early intervention and support for families BUT in the mean time, children also need to know actions have consequence.

These kids have not received either & will continue to behave criminally.

We haven't got excellent social provision for failing families... so what this court case will also make sure happens is other adults will not get involved, they will walk away... because they know the Police and courts will back the thugs.

It would though. We’ve got loads of research to show it does.