Woman Gives Away Daughter for Drugs
In Pleasant Plain, Ohio, a woman stands accused of giving her 11-year-old daughter to Cincinnati drug dealer in exchange for some heroine.  She was indicted on 27 counts.  (3/23/15)  Believe it or not, cases of parents trying to sell or trade their kids for drugs are not that uncommon.

Reliving Your High School Days
In Madison, Wisconsin, an appeals court upheld the sentence of three years confinement in a mental health facility for a 33-year-old woman who enrolled in high school to try out for cheerleading. Wendy Brown apparently used her 15-year-old daughter’s name and social security number to enroll at Ashwaubenon High School in August 2008 to practice with the cheerleading squad. (USA Today, 7-8-2010, p. 9A)

Hiding Under the Bed to Spy on Your Children
A 35-year-old man was caught hiding under a bed at his children’s home in order to spy on them. He was sentenced to 5-years in prison for that and other crimes, including robbery and domestic battery. (USA Today, 10-3-2014, p. 6A)

Kidnapping Kids to Promote Child Safety
In Las Vegas, Nevada, a mother of four was on trial for kidnapping a 6-year-old boy in September 2008 in order to highlight the lax security at a North Las Vegas elementary school. The defense lawyer argued that she was merely a concerned parent worried about child safety. Crazier still: Another mother in the area was facing trial on similar charges. (USA Today, 5-28-2009, p. 7A)

* In Eric, Pennsylvania, a woman apparently swung her infant at her boyfriend during a 2006 fight. The baby suffered a skull fracture but has since recovered. (USA Today, 5-6-2009, p. 6A)

Shooting Your Daughter to Win a $1 Bet
In Sheboygan, Wisconsin, a 28-year-old woman was being held on a bail violation after shooting her daughter with a BB gun in order to win a $1 bet with a friend. She’s accused of shooting her 8-year-old in the thigh after drinking 10 to 12 beers and some vodka. (USA Today, 5-19-2008)

Creative Ways to Get Out of Child Support
In 1992, Bryan Jackson’s father injected his son with HIV infected blood in the hopes of getting out of paying child support. Jackson developed full blown AIDS when he was five, but beat the odds and graduated from High School in 2009. He’s since become an AIDS advocate; his father was sentenced to life in prison. (USA Today, 6-1-2009, p. 8A)

Minivan Mayhem
In Port St. Lucie, Florida, a woman who was fighting with her husband apparently tried to run him over at least 20 times using the family minivan while her baby sat in the back seat. (To her credit, the baby was buckled up; he came away unharmed.) She was arrested on charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and child abuse. (USA Today, 3-24-2008, p. 3A)

Take My Child Hostage!
In Indianapolis, Indiana, a 34-year-old woman was sentenced to more than 3 years in prison for her role in a bank robbery by arranging for one of the suspects to grab her 11-year-old daughter. The woman admits to helping set up the incident, thinking it would “add drama.” Armed robbers did indeed take Beth Moench’s daughter hostage at gunpoint on Sept. 5, 2009. (USA Today, 5-18-2012, p. 5A)

Attacking the Bus Driver for Disciplining Your Children
In Port Gibson, Mississippi, a woman was charged with felony assault after she allegedly boarded a school bus and attacked the driver who was dropping off her children. Clairborne County Sheriff Marvin Lucas says it appears that one of the woman’s children was misbehaving on the floor of the bus, and the driver made the child get up. The child’s older sister then called her mother on a cell phone, and she rushed to the scene and assaulted the driver. (USA Today, 5-9-2012, p. 7A)

Man Ditches Baby at Store
In Somersworth, New Hampshire, police say that when a man was caught shoplifting from a store, he left his 3-month-old daughter behind as he fled. When store management approached the father about the theft, police say Mathew Sordiff pushed his daughter’s stroller at the manager and ran. Workers took the baby and called police. (USA Today, 8-24-2011, p. l1A)

– Free parenting resources
(for perfectly normal parents, not just crazy ones)

Mother Robs Store While Toddler Waits In Taxi
In Bellefonte, Delaware, police arrested a woman who allegedly robbed a convenience store at gunpoint while her one-year-old daughter and an acquaintance were left waiting in a taxi.  Police tracked down the taxi and eventually arrested 29-year-old Amanda Paoletti on charges of 1st degree robbery, endangering the welfare of a child, cocaine possession and drug paraphernalia. Police say neither the friend or the Taxi driver had any idea of what was going on in the convenience store.  It’s just another example of how addiction makes people do strange things. (1/22/2015)