My Son is Also a Customer, Barnes & Noble

I work at a Barnes and Noble store in the children's department.
Parents often leave their children unattended for long periods of
time. Some of those children sit quietly and look at books, some play
with Thomas the Train.

Others play chase, take the stickers out of books, knock things over,
create havoc.

Occasionally, a child will wander off in search of his or her parents,
and we'll announce a "Code Adam" - immediately, we'll block the exits,
send workers into the restrooms, and every other employee will stop
what they are doing and begin a search for the missing child.

We don't know what was going on with the child in question - Was his
misbehaving, did he look lost and the employee was being helpful. I
don't know.

I do know that I consider it part of my job to keep an eye on these
kids while they're in here. If they're creating a ruckus, I reprimand
them; if they are opening packages or taking stickers out of books, I
make sure the parents pay for them; if they pull out piles of books, I
politely say, "Do you remember where those go? Let's see if you can
put them back."

Now, if I could just get the parents to quit dumping off their books
and magazines in my section and leaving their coffee cups everywhere,
I'd be happy.

Under the Juvenile Court Act, it’s child neglect to leave a minor
under 14 years of age “without supervision for an unreasonable period
of time without regard for the mental or physical health, safety, or
welfare of that minor.”

Why is this such a difficult concept for you to grasp.

Does something drastic have to happen before you realize ther risk you
are taking every time you do this.

I'll bet Borders has similar policy and if you make a habit of
neglecting your child there they will politely as possible, tell you
about it too.

It is NOT YOUR CHOICE. You put your child and that bookseller at risk
and you DO NOT HAVE A RIGHT TO DO THAT.
Ignorance of the law does not excuse you from it. You should Thank
that bookseller and APOLOGIZE. While your rant made you feel better
for your embarrassment you adversely affected that bookseller and that
store. And you should be ashamed. While your neglect resulted in
lovely fodder for your stupid rant I assure you that bookseller was
very upset by their ordeal and they do not get paid enough to cope
with parents like you.

At the very least you should have asked that bookseller for
permission, and given them the opportunity to decline. Just passing
the supervision off on them without even asking is NOT making
reasonable provision for his care.
Not even if you blog about it everyday for years.
You are still Wrong.

Child abuse and neglect are defined by Federal and State laws. The
Federal Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) provides
minimum standards that States must incorporate in their statutory
definitions of child abuse and neglect. The CAPTA definition of "child
abuse and neglect," at a minimum, refers to:

"Any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or
caretaker, which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm,
sexual abuse, or exploitation, or an act or failure to act which
presents an imminent risk of serious harm"1

So you're ticked because she was concerned. Wow. just wow....

My advice? Get over it. There are freakies all over the places
waiting to snag a kid for their own disgusting pleasure and a
bookstore is a VERY easy target to do this.

8 years is too young to be let to wander alone in any store. Plus the
upside to keeping the kid by your side is when you are ready to go,
you don't have to go looking for him/her. I used to get really
frustrated with my daughter because she always let her kids roam all
over stores. I hate shopping when kids are running all over
unsupervised. Even yet, with her kids being teenagers and nearly
grown, when we go shopping together, the adults are always done first
and then we have to have the kids paged and wait for them.

I am a retired probation officer who supervised child molestors,
rapists, and the worst of child abusers in my judicial circuit. You
have got to be out of your mind for letting your 8 year old child
traverse that store alone. That is exactly what child molestors look
for and many lurk in bookstore for that reason. you owe the Barnes
and Nobles clerk a debt of gratitude for caring. Besides, she may
have known a customer in the store was a sex offender and was not
allowed to acknowledge that. i checked my local book stores
religiously before I retired and when I found an offender in the
store, I introduced them to the store management so they would know
what obstacle they were up against.

Your child may be a customer of Barnes and Noble, but he was also
protected by the Barnes and Noble staff!

Cudos to Barnes and Nobles' for their employee's action(s)!!!!!!

I thought this rule was present in all stores, you know? Something
unwritten, but everyone understands.

It's just dangerous to leave an 8 year old alone in the store and the
employee was just concerned. Although I do think it would've been
better if she didn't explain to you "loudly" so you wouldn't have been
as embarrassed.

All these replies and the message still has not gotten through. You
may know everything there is to know about your son. That has nothing
whatsoever to do with the other people in the store. Some psycho
could grab your kid and be gone in the time it takes to say "Where's
Timmy?".
It does not matter if your child is Doogie Howser, Stephen Hawkings
and Einstein reincarnate, YOU DO NOT LEAVE YOUR CHILD ALONE, OUT OF
SIGHT AT ANY STORE FOR ANY REASON. It does not matter if he spends
$100.00 a day, everyday of every week. He can be the best customer
they have. He is still a child and potential target.

Almost all types of stores have a child policy. Many do have them
posted but It has been my experience that most people don't pay
attention to posted signs anyway. I see no fault from the B&B here,
only fault from the parent.

Now your child may be responsible enough to shop on his own, your
neighborhood may be super safe and nice, you may be the best parent in
the world, and maybe nothing bad could have happened in that store.
But the employees have no way of knowing any of that. They are paid to
follow the rules not bend them "just because" Most places have the
general rule of "Children under the age of 12 must be accompanied by
an adult" and every one must follow it. The employees do not have time
to baby sit everyone's children, nor should they have to, if you bring
your child into a store be prepared to stay with him the WHOLE time,
Even if you have to stand there waiting for him to pick out a book for
30 min. He is your child and there for you have a responsibility to
watch him.

how long do letters stay on this 25 list?

oy

And as so many have stated, You would be the first in line to blame
them had some jackass abducted your child. You would be there
screaming that they didn't do enough to protect your child.
Sorry, you are dead wrong here.
I suspect you are more angry that there was a scene, and that people
thought your child did something wrong. Nope. It was you. You left
your 8 year old child unattended. Perhaps you would have preferred
them havng a sign stating they would call the police for parents who
left their minor children unattended?
They simply brought your child to what they believe was safety.

Regardless of whether an 8 yr old is considered a "paying" customer -
in this day and age, letting your son wander the store unescorted by
his parents is not an acceptable practice to get into. I don't think
B&B should be punished, I think they should be commended for doing
what is right.

They don't know if he's a "paying customer" or not. Apparently not,
since he didn't buy anything.

I don't let my 7-year-old son out of sight.

Plus there are way too many parents who think that employees' job is
to baby-sit, and too many who don't mind their children taking off and
destroying stuff.

Are we still beating this horse?

Wow! Tons of posts... I just wanted to say that whether or not B&N
wanted to protect the child I'm sure they want to protect the store.
If a child really was abducted there's a risk a parent might want to
sue them.

It's up to you whether or not you want to leave a child
unsupervised... and obviously you can choose not to shop there any
more if you feel their actions were inappropraite. But I believe the
company has a right to make rules that limit their risk.

For example, my family is going tubing on a river this weekend. We'll
have to sign waivers that we won't sue the company if we drown. B&N
doesn't make you sign a waiver that you can't sue them if your child
gets abducted in the store (of course not, imagine how much work that
wuld be), but they can try to make sure it doesn't happen by
encouraging parents to stay with their kids. It's just common sense,
like asking customers at Home Depot not to climb on ladders.

I also think it's important to remember that people whose children get
abducted aren't always "bad" parents. I wouldn't personally let an
8-year-old go off without at least an older sibling accompanying him
or her. But that doesn't mean that my vigilance will prevent something
terrible from happening to my kids. Nor does it mean that if you truly
are a negligent parent that something's automatically going to happen
to your children.

While I like to think a little extra care makes the difference, I
think all this discussion could have the unintended consequence of
demonizing people whose children have been victimized (when there was
nothing they could have done to prevent it).

made and I confused the two.

"My son can also take FOREVER to pick out a book. Sports or famous
people in history? Martin Luther King or Juan Ponce De Leon? The last
time that I stood their waiting for him to pick out a book, I was
ready to strangle him by the end of it. "

This says it all for me right here. regardless of the intentions of
the employee asking that he remain by your side.

You were upset when the employee not only followed the policy (which
is what people are paid by employers to do), but that you had to be
with him for the above stated reason.

I would love input on this.

At 8 years old your son is far too young to be shopping by himself.
There are thousands of child sexual predators out there just waiting
for a parent like you to not realize their presence. Please consider
the safety of your son. I've even heard on the news of children being
raped in public bathrooms. This is a scary world, and your son needs
your protection.

8 years old is too young to be left unsupervised in a store by a
parent. You stated you went your own direction, which is essentially
leaving him alone.

Had you left him alone in your house at that age alone, you would run
this risk of being in trouble with authorities.


I was watching ET for some odd reason a few weeks ago, and the mother
left the little blond haired girl home alone. I didnt think of
anything of it when I saw it when it came out, but when I saw it, I
was like, man you do that now, and you are in trouble!

Also the brother was dressed up like a "terrorist" for his halloween
costume.


Point being, times have changed, and we cannot leave children alone,
unsupervised. Bookstores and libraries are common place for predators
that prey on children.


Good Day

I have stayed out of the discussion here for the most part, but after
reading all of the comments, I have come to a conclusion.

Even though there is a loose policy in place, I think that the
employee was possibly combining it with her own personal beleif. She
has an opinion, and maybe she has a strong opinion on this such as the
commenters here like Venice and Teresa to name a few. She could have
shared their fears, and thought it was in the best interest of Sio's
son to not be in the store alone.

Maybe the store had trouble recently with unaccompanied children being
disruptive or stealing, so the management instructed employees to
crack down on all kids by themselves, causing trouble or not, and
enforce the policy mentioned by corporate in the email mentioned
below.

And finally, everybody who is calling out all the what-ifs, you most
likely have never been to this bookstore, or the surrounding
community. And you don't know Sio's son. You simply cannot comprehend
all of factors, therefore you cannot comprehend the magnitude of the
safety risk involved.

First, I think Sio is a fine mother. If she feel comfortable leaving
her son for a few minutes while she goes to get drinks, then it most
likely is fine. If the store were shady or were the neighborhood, or
even if she felt somewhat uneasy about it at all, then I bet she would
stay with her son. That is instinct. And I highly doubt she would
simply ignore it.

But even in a safe neighborhood, and pedophile can swoop down and kill
him, right? Yes, this is a chance, and the odds are very low. It could
very well happen, yes it could. But like I said, the odds are very
low. We hear of these incidents now and then, and of the many children
left alone for a few minutes, nothing ever happens. Like Sio's
philosophy, why should the possibility of what could happen put a
damper on your activities? Yes, there is a risk involved here. Yes,
something bad could happen. But the odds of it happening are so slim.
And she understands this risk. This leads me to my next point.

Nobody here has ever met Sio's son except for Sio. Only she knows how
mature she is. This simply cannot be sufficiently conveyed through
comments or the original letter. If her son was not mature enough to
handle himself, this would lead back to point one. She would feel an
instinctual level of uneasyness. If her son is mature enough to
comprehend the fact of life that pedophiles and murders exist, along
with the fact that he should never talk to or go with anybody, no
matter the circumstances or how convinving they seem, then I think he
will be safe. The person preying on him relies on the naievety of a
young child. If Sio's son can comprehend that these people exist, and
the risks involved with speaking with any stranger, then I think he
can be safe. And if taken by force, surely he could kick and scream
and attack back and casue a scene.

Based on these points and how they lead to one another, and since one
simply cannot know all of the circumstances in this situation, then it
leads me to beleive that leaving her son for a few minutes is
generally safe. Sure, he could be harmed at any moment. But the odds
and his maturity are in Sio's son's favor. So if B&N is going to
prohibit it, and if this is the way Sio would like to live her life
and parent, the GOOD FOR HER for speaking with her wallet and
switching to Borders.


Good Day.

You said, "The truth is that peoples judgments are clouded by their
personal feelings on the subject."

I actually think your personal feelings are clouding your judgment.

"I am a young Mexican mother, and the Caucasian associate singled me
out for something that wasn't even a policy, but a preference."

It took quite some time, but I finally received a response to my
email:

Thank you for contacting us.

We apologize for the delay in responding to your email. It is
certainly
not reflective of the significance with which we regard your inquiry.

At Barnes & Noble, we take the safety and security of our customers
seriously, and therefore during peak business hours our Booksellers
may
ask parents not to leave their children unattended, or to remain
accompanied by an adult.

We value your patronage and we hope to see you in our stores again
soon.

Sincerely,

Customer Relations
Barnes and Noble Customer Service
customerservice@bn.com


We've come full circle. I think this is a very reasonable and
flexible approach on behalf of the store, and I still fail to see a
reason for never stepping foot in the store again simply because an
employee was following procedure. I'm not really looking for any more
explanations because this is something I will obviously never
understand. I just wanted to share the email response.

I have performed child predator investigations. One incident, a man
went into stores like Borders, Toys R Us, and the mall with a hidden
camera. In Borders bookstore, he approached an 11 year old girl who
was sitting alone on the floor reading a book. The man first spoke to
her about how his kids love that book. The man then progressed into a
sexual converstaion with her and that was horrific. In Toys R Us, he
would find little girls with dresses on walking only a short ways from
their parents or even standing next to their parents. He would then
prey on them and film up their dresses.

I don't believe the bookstore was belittling your parenting skills,
the trust you have in your child, or attempting to call you out and
embaress you. I would call their actions a community care-taking
responsibility which we all share in protecting our young ones. Open
your eyes to the evil in the world and thank the employee for helping
to keep your child safe. It only takes a fraction of time while a
person turns their back to buy a latte for someone to take that child
- forever.

I want you to know why I feel so strongly about this. Why I have
never allowed my kids to wander off.

I was 13 years old in 1979. I lived in a small West Tennessee town,
nothing ever happend in Weakly county. Not until Sept 1. On that
day, Carrie Ann Medlin, age 8 and her little brother were out riding
bikes near Greenfield, Tn. Not far from where I grew up. My dad and
Carrie Ann's step dad were friends. That day a monster pulled up to
Carrie Ann and got her into his car. She was raped, murdered and left
on the side of the road like a piece of trash. Her monsters name?
Robert Glen Coe. That name mentioned in any part of West Tennessee
will get you the entire horrible story. I remember going to the
house, like Southerners do when some one dies. I remember sitting out
side with her brother and her cousins, while the adults whipered about
what had happened. I will never forget it.

Thankfully that monster will never be able to hurt another child. He
was put to death on Ap 19, 2000. What truly unbelievable is that he
is mentioned in Wikipedi.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Glen_Coe

I know you love your son. I can see that. But you have to understand
that he is a child...not a small adult version of you. Maybe next
time you go to B & N, you can grab your drink, find a book to read and
then take your son to the kids department and find a place to sit and
read. That way, you are relaxing and letting your child have some
freedom. You can see who comes and goes in that area.

Please consider this. I know you know your son, but you dont the
Robert Glen Coe's of this world. They dont have the word Pedifile or
Pervert written on them. They look just like you and me. I just dont
want to see another child end up in the news, missing and found dead
in a suit case.

Whether your son is a "paying customer" or not, he is a minor child
and should not be left unsupervised in a store. Management was right
to bring him over to you. This is how children "disappear".

You are lucky it didn't happen the other way around.


Two days ago, I was in Home Depot with all four of my kids. I had my
16 month old on my hip and my 4yo by the hand. My 11yo and his 7yo
brother we complaining that they had to go to the bathroom. So we went
to the restroom, but my arm was getting tired of holding the baby, so
I told them to wait there while I grabbed a cart. After all, I was
almost my oldest's age when I started babysitting, right?

Well, they didn't listen, so I traipsed back to the paint department,
and an employee asked how I was doing. I groaned and told them I was
looking for my disobedient children who didn't wait by the bathrooms.

They called a Code Adam.

No kidding.

I asked them not to. One guy asked for a description and said "What
are they? 4 and 5?". I told them no, the oldest is 11, and going into
Jr. High and his brother never leaves his side. It didn't matter. They
were minors and admitted I was looking for them. It was embarassing
for me and my kids, especially when they didn't know why I was so
pissed at them when they caught up to me a few aisles from the paint
department.

You are lucky you didn't decide to go tell you son his drink was ready
and then have an employee find out you were separated from your kid. I
guess they are required by law to call a Code Adam when a parent and
child are separated.
It's a good thing I've never lost track of my husband, LOL! "Attention
Home Depot shoppers! We have a LOST HUSBAND. Please lock down the
power tool aisle!"

i hope you will listen to me when i say that letting your eight year
old roam around without you by his side is an engraved invitation to
child abduction. please, please, please don't continue to let your
child wander around in public ANYWHERE without you being able to see
him. i have no desire to hear another horror story on CNN.

I am sorry, but in this day and time there is NO WAY IN HELLO that I
would allow my 8 year old (I dont have one anymore) away from me in a
store. You never know what freak is just around the corner, waiting
for the perfect opportunity to snatch his next victim.

To me, you should be praising the actions of the store NOT
complaining. These stores are NOT a daycare. The kids you bring into
them are your responsiblity. Keep your kids with you or leave them at
home.


Things like this anger me so much. I see all those little ones who
have been kidnapped and will never come home. The one found in the
suitcase really got me. These kids are TOO young to be left to their
own devices.

Times have changed our world and not all the time for the better. Our
children are now prey, more so then ever. We as parents have to learn
that they are our first responsibltiy and that we must do everything
in our power to protect them at all times and all places.

You mentioned below that this wasn't a policy of the store as a whole,
but something that particular store did every so often.

I've been to this particular location and I have an idea as to why
they might want to discourage tweens, teens, and younger kids from
wandering around without their parents/guardians. The store is right
next door to a movie theater. They've probably had problems with kids
hanging out in the store before/after movies and causing a ruckus.

I have no real opinion either way concerning the employee's actions or
your reactions, but just wanted to offer an opinion as to why this
particular branch would have a policy like this when it wasn't a
nation-wide rule.

Wow, the OP was lucky the store employee didn't call the cops
reporting an unattended child. At that hour especially, I would be
watching my kid like a hawk. His personal freedom ends where Mr
Pervert's desires begin and what a better place than a children's book
section.

Sadly, this seems indicative of many parents; let The Village watch
the kids because they, the parents, don't have the patience. The kid
takes a long time to pick out a book? Well it only takes a second for
someone to snatch him up. Isn't it worth the wait to be sure the child
is safe? Or better yet, tell the kid he has a certain amount of time
in which he can pick his books and after that he looses out until the
next time.I bet he will speed things up.

I doubt if the store employee spoke loudly to be rude. She probably
just wanted to be heard since she and the parents were some distance
away. Anyway, better a rude employee than a kidnapped kid.

That is what your very young son is going to be if you keep leaving
alone with hundreds of strangers.

1. An emergency in the store- fire breaks out- do you want to evacuate
with your child, run about the store looking for him, or face
evacuating without him, and hope he comes out alive?
2. You get an emergency phone call and need to leave the store
quickly- do you want to waste time searching high and low for him, or
react to whatever situation has arisen?
3. Sweet little Timmy gets bored and leaves the "safety" of the
childrens' corral and he finds-
The erotica section and reads some risque stories with graphic
descriptions of sexual intercourse.
The self-help guides on sexuality with illistrations of sexual
positions or even photos thereof along with graphic descriptions.
The empty chair where a dishonest patron has left an open copy of
Playboy.
4. As mentioned, he can't reach the top shelf and is severly injured
or killed trying to climb the shelf. How would you explain to your
paralyzed child he'll never walk because the shelf fell because you
weren't there to assist him.
5. This is a stretch, so came last- an armed robber comes in the
store, or a gunman intent on violence, would you rather lay on the the
floor of the cafe and pray your son is safe, or be at his side?

So I guess what it Boils down to is you want your kid to have free
reign of the store and not be hemmed in or constrained in any way, ok
i'll grant you that but why not stay near him? is there something
wrong with perusing the books with your son? he is eight right? I
would think that a responsible dedicated and loving mother like
yourself would enjoy spending time with their eight year old. perhaps
instead of getting a drink and reading a book while the
store/society(the other shoppers in the store) watches your son just
perhaps you could take an interest in your kid an see what sort of
books he would like to read. hey just a wacky idea but maybe once you
have both chosen one you could each get something from the cafe and
then read your books enjoying the company of each other. or you could
just let you kid wander the store. the negative outcomes in the
second scenario are less appealing then the first one but its your
choice to raise your child the way you see fit. From the other Replies
I gather that you understand that not everyone in society can be
trusted but take a look at it from a different angle. you know that
the book store could possibly have books that he shouldn't be reading
at his age, pictures or no pictures there is definitely something to
be said for monitoring. Not so much censoring but at least take an
active role in his life.

If you don't want your child to be safe, then let him wander around.
I guess not all parents can be super, like you.

Honestly this is just the kind of complaint letter that just makes you
shake your head when you are on the receiving end of it.

First of all, since you were not with your son, you have no way of
knowing if he was in fact disturbing others or acting in any way that
you would not approve of. Based on my retail history, I would
comfortably go out on a limb and say that something drew attention to
him - it may not have been any big thing, but something made the
employee realize that he was alone.

Frankly I am amazed by some of your responses. No matter how great
your child is and no matter how mature, he is still your
responsibility. I don't understand why you couldn't have chosen your
book and even settled into the childrens area while he looked for his.
The employees are not there to look out for your child, and
regardless of what you think, you put them in a position where they
had to.

Seriously, can you imagine the number of signs that would have to be
posted for every situation to be covered?

C'mon people - common sense please.

I haven't ever shopped there for that reason. Screw them i rather buy
from walmart

I just got off the phone with B&N, and they informed me that there is
no policy that says that children and their parents have to stay
together. When I asked about minors in general, they said that minors
can shop there even without their parents.

She said that if a child is being disruptive or causing damage,etc...
that a manager and not an employee can ask that they stay with their
parents. (I have no idea if the person that spoke to me at the store
was a manager or employee)

So that would be why they have no sign, because its not a policy.

**I submitted my question online at B&N.com. They emailed me back
telling me to give them a call, and they gave me a case number. When I
called, this is what they told me.

He may be a good kid but it only takes a second for something to
happen. Wasn't Adam Walsh around 8 years old?

It only takes a matter of minutes for a child to get injured. I
work in a B&N. One night a little girl (6-8 yrs old) was left alone
in our children's dept. She was trying to reach a book that was too
high for her and pulled over an extremely heavy book display. If this
display had fallen on her, she would have had serious injuries. Her
father had no idea what she was doing because he was off shopping. We
had to track him down.
We want our customers to be happy and feel safe in our stores, but
it is not our responsibility to make sure your child is safe. I
personally do not want the liability of watching anyone elses child
except my own. I know what anguish parents feel during the times we
have had to call Code Adams in our store. It isn't even my child
missing and my heart aches. Fortunately the child has always been
located.
Then there is the costs that B&N incurrs while parents are not
watching. All those pages torn out, stickers removed, pop-up books
torn apart, sometimes while the parent is sitting right there so
absorbed that they have no idea what their child is doing. Of course
there is never an offer to buy the product, which is now unsaleable.
We find damaged product hidden (guilt but not enough to buy it) and
put back on the shelf for the next paying customer to find.
Your child may be a paying customer but in the big picture, he
can still be a paying customer, safely and responsibly by your side.

After reading the letter writer's comments here, I have to ask...

Is this really such a big deal? So, you've done the same thing
hundreds of times with no problem, but now you find out there's
actually a policy about leaving children unattended. So, you bought
some drinks and settled in, but you were interrupted by an employee
asking you to accompany your child. Sign or no sign, what was wrong
with simply complying with the rules?.. rules that apply to everyone
in the store. For all you know, Borders has the same rule and you've
managed to escape it in the past. What are you going to do if on your
next visit to Borders you are asked to stay with your child?

This policy may be to discourage people dropping their kids off at B&N
while they go elsewhere. This used to be a big problem when I worked
at video store. we would end up with a bunch of kids and no parents.

Even if there was a sign, people wouldn't follow it anyway.

Just today at work, I had to tell two morons moms not to take their
strollers with their kids strapped into them on the escalator. One of
them rudely snapped, "Where's the damn sign?"

And I pointed at the large 24'' by 11'' sign right next to the
escalator and then told her to use the elevator. The sign itself is
bright yellow and one of the pictures has a stroller with a line
through it and it states "no wheeled vehicles."

Everyone always harps on signs...common sense shouldn't have to have
signs.

Does your son look younger that eight, by any chance? Maybe the
associate thought he was much younger.

I think it's a little harsh to completely forego a store just because
they are acting in the best interest of your son.

Legally children under 13 are not supposed to be unattended. This is
not a criminal law, but from precedents in family law both the venue
and the parent have civil liability if any harm comes to or from the
child.

Since the venue has deeper pockets, even if the parent was 99% at
fault, the venue could face 100% of the actual and punitive liability
for any harm to or from the child. For example if your child ran into
a elderly women and she fell and broke her hip - the venue could be
liable for 100% of her medical costs.

If you child pulled a display down and hurt himself, YOU could sue the
venue (and many parents would) even though you where mostly at fault.

There are millions more lawyers then pedophiles, and corporations need
to protect themselves from these predators (the lawyers).

They should put up a no pedophiles or creepers allowed sign.

To the OP, read this case, might give you a reason to keep your child
nearby.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_James_Bulger

The kid in that case may have only been 2 and the boys 10, but ramp
that up 7 or 8 years...

Seriously, what is wrong with people these days? Do we really need to
have signs telling us what to do, what not to do? What happened to
common sense?

"Signs signs everywhere a sign" "Do this, don't do that can't you read
the sign". Too many signs posted create ambivilence. How about good
old common sense. Parents must keep their children close, even if they
take a long time to pick out a book. Use those precious minutes(half
hour) to enjoy each others company.

Even though you were comfortable letting your son have the run of the
store, the employees clearly were not. If he gets hurt, if he gets
snatched by some kook, what do you think is gonna be the first
headline we see here on PFB?

"BARNES & NOBLE DOESN'T DO ENOUGH TO PROTECT IT'S CUSTOMERS!"

They don't need to post a sign to tell you this. Him being a paying
customer is irrelevant, he is still a minor child. In this day and
age it's just not safe to let any child go unattended in any public
place. There's too much that could go wrong and B&N has every right to
enforce this rule to reduce their liability.

It seems kind of unfair for you to stop frequenting them over this
when they were only trying to look out for your child's safety, but
that is your right as a consumer.

My younger brother is 10 years younger then me and once at a movie,
his friend was having a birthday party and I was there to see a movie
with another friend (he was 8, I was 18) there were 6 8 year olds and
two parents and the theatre still demanded that I be present with him
at the movie because I was his guardian not the other kids parents.
I asked the theatre about the policy and found out that they had been
extremely busy and since my movie ended more then 30 minutes after
his, they didnt want him left behind if he didnt have to be.

I went saw the movie with him and had a great time. You never know who
is out there, even the employees aren't always trustworthy.

I am..I know it has nothing to do with this either..but you cannot
leave young children unattended to wander by themselves ANYMORE,
ANYWHERE. Come on Mom, get with the reality of the situation.
Pedophiles are EVERYWHERE.