Police reportedly arrested a mother in Georgia on Oct. 30 after her 11-year-old son walked less than one mile into town away from his home.
Brittany Patterson, a mother of four, donned an orange jumpsuit after police handcuffed her during dinner at her home, fingerprinted her and took her mugshot at the station in Fannin County, according to Reason, a Libertarian publication. A female sheriff reportedly found her son, Soren, strolling downtown Mineral Bluff without an adult.
Mom Jailed for Letting 10-Year-Old Walk Alone to Town https://t.co/9ORvKPkfWx via @reason
ParentsUSA is defending this Mom against criminal charges . . . because her son, days away from turning 11 years old, walked into town – population 370, along a stretch of road with speed…
— ParentsUSA (@NatlAssnParents) November 12, 2024
Patterson initially thought her son was playing in the woods when he was not home to join her other child for a doctor’s appointment, the outlet reported. The 11-year-old was already walking around the nearby town of just 370 people, where he was spotted by a woman who called the police.
A female sheriff brought Soren home to his grandfather before Patterson returned home, Reason reported. (RELATED: Feds Raid Home Of Trump-Supporting Farmer, Businessman)
Patterson’s family lives on 16 acres of property with her kids and her father.
“The mentality here is more Free-Range,” she told the outlet.
“I was not panicking as I know the roads and know he is mature enough to walk there without incident,” the mother said. The sheriff disagreed.
The female sheriff arrived at Patterson’s door with another officer around 6:30 p.m., according to the outlet. The officers ordered the mother to put her hands behind her back and then placed in her handcuffs, Reason reported.
“She kept mentioning how he could have been run over, or kidnapped or ‘anything’ could have happened,” Patterson told the outlet.
Patterson was released the next day on $500 bail, the outlet reported. A case manager from the Division of Family and Child Services (DFCS) assessed her home, went to her eldest son’s school for an interview and presented the mother with a “safety plan,” according to Reason.
DFCS’s “safety plan” reportedly required Patterson to delegate a “safety person” to watch over her children whenever she leaves the home. It also demanded she download an app to monitor Soren’s location, which she rejected, according to the outlet.
“I will not sign,” the mother made clear after contacting her attorney, according to Reason.
