Young says still many things to consider regarding Caley’s law

There is a nationwide push for a new bill called Caylee’s Law. It’s creating a buzz in state capitols around the country.

It may be the most telling piece of evidence when Casey Anthony failed to report her missing daughter for more than a month. Now, people across the country want to make that a felony offense and state lawmakers are listening.

The images of Casey Anthony partying in the days of Caylee’s disappearance and this week’s surprising verdict have people asking for a change.

Rep. Tom Young Jr., R-Aiken, said he’s received emails from people in his district that have asked him to consider Caylee’s Law.

This law would make it a felony if a parent or legal guardian fails to report a missing child within 24 hours or a child’s death within an hour.

“That’s the proposal I’ve received by several folks in the wake of the verdict, and the question is if that will that be filed in South Carolina and if so, when?” Young said.

Young said there are still many things to consider.

“Does it apply just to children who are under the age of 10 or does it apply to children who are 16, 17, 18 years old who may run away from home, who may be away for a long period of time. Do you go and prosecute the parents?” Ford asked.

Some argue that we may not really need another law like Children’s Place Executive Director Peggy Ford.

“I just think we need a minute to look,” Ford said. “Do we need more laws before we think we need another law? Were the laws not applied in this particular case? Could they have applied them differently?”

As the director of a nonprofit group, Ford sees this often. She thinks what was done was neglect, and acts of neglect and abuse are already against the law.

“There is a law, it’s just not a law specifically about reporting,” Ford said. “It’s a law about taking care of your children and knowing where they are.”

People are signing petitions online for a federal and/or state law.

Some of these websites like Change.org have seen hundreds of signatures for a Caylee’s Law in a matter of minutes, resulting in a national campaign.

Support it or not, if we were going to see anything in Georgia or South Carolina, the new session doesn’t start until January so it would be several months before a bill could even be filed.

Some Florida lawmakers are drafting a version of Caylee’s law. Representatives in Oklahoma, New York, and West Virginia have also announced they will be proposing a similar bill.

Courtesy of WRDR.com