Parents arrested for locking boy, 5, in car boot

A US couple locked their five-year-old son in their car boot during trips to resolve his fear of the dark, they said.

The couple from the US state of Pennsylvania was arrested and charged with child endangerment and reckless endangerment for locking their son in the car during three trips to an amusement park in July 2013, reported the Pittsburgh Tribune Review.

They had given their son a torch and told him to look for sweets before locking him into the boot.

The park is about 15 km from their home.

ON PROBATION

Jeffrey and Danielle Lenhart were granted probation last week, court officials said.

They were accepted into the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition programme, said Danielle Lenhart's lawyer, Ms Deborah Jackson. "She recognises the serious nature of what has happened and I don't think we will see her in court again," Ms Jackson said of her client.

The incidents came to light when one of the couple's children was interviewed by child welfare officials for undisclosed reasons. The boy and another sibling, who is four, have been staying with relatives following the charges, but will be returned to the home, court officials said.

A younger sibling, one, has already been reunited with the parents.

This article was first published on July 29, 2014.
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