Yet another reason people should have to get a license to have a kid.

First waterboarding, now this! What is our country coming to??

Typical corporate lawyer. Any hint of contentiousness and they're out of there. Only litigators should have children.

More kids need this done to them - modern parenting is nightmarish and kids incredibly fucked up because parents get arrested for actually trying to discipline them.

You can't spank them, you can't kick them out of the car, you can't do anything but ask them to be good, and if they refuse, well, you're just fucked.

Who wants to have kids when you get arrested for trying to control them (let alone teach them a little manners)?

This story reminds me of Latham. They also kicked their youngsters out of a moving car and left them to die by the side of a road with 6 peanut butter sandwiches.

*sleeps on a park bench*

-suicidal laid off Latham 1st year

Am I alone in finding this a little bit funny? Perhaps as a parent I can see being driven (no pun intended) to doing such a thing.

you should give a hat tip to the guest poster that did your job for you, lat and elie.

Didn't this happen on an episode of "Desperate Housewives"?

*sleeps on a park bench*

-suicidal laid off Latham 1st year

At least she didn't fly them to Nebraska and leave them there.

#6 -- 180

6,
Wow, I laughed out loud at my desk.

I would still rather work for this lady when for Latham. At least I know what to expect - meritocracy. If she would kick her own child out of the car, she is all about merits.

The 12 year old should be punished for leaving behind her 10 year old sister.

Nothing wrong with this. It's like telling your kids "good luck" when they pack a pillow case and claim to run away.

I was such an awful mother . . . What if you had a mother like Joan Crawford or Lana Turner?

lot easier than sending them to summer camp and then selling the home and moving...especially in this market

When we were 5 or 6, my mom kicked my twin brother and me out of the car, on a dirt road, in front of a cemetery. My brother and I just threw rocks at each other until my mom came back -- no big deal. She is still the best mom in the world.

Charging a parent for child endangerment is likely to have a far more detrimental result on the kids (especially if the state wins and the kids are taken away from mom).

As a good negotiator she just had to make good on the threat after the girls called her bluff.

We should applaud this lady. Did she 'endanger' her kid? Not a chance. Come on...a ten-year-old walking down the street is endangerment? Geez.

Now, about that kid letting some stranger buy her ice cream...that's creepy.

Agree with 5. How awful were these little brats that they both got booted? And you can see how the fights go down! The 12 year old is aggressive and pokes and prods the littler girl constantly. The littler girl whines and sobs every time. Sounds very tiresome indeed.

The kids these days are awful, entitled and have no discipline. I was never left on a street corner, but I also never acted up so badly to be left on a street corner. My parents would never have let it get that far...

I don't condone what she did, but I understand

C'mon Elie! You couldn't have posted this loldog? http://ihasahotdog.com/2009/04/20/cute-puppies-pictures-mama-awake/

Dude, she's hot ! (sarcasm)

I'm pretty sure she left her kids on Mamaroneck Ave in White Plains, not in Scarsdale, where she lives. Mam. Ave. isn't the Bronx or anything, but it's also not Scarsdale.

I'm pretty sure she left her kids on Mamaroneck Ave in White Plains, not in Scarsdale, where she lives. Mam. Ave. isn't the Bronx or anything, but it's also not Scarsdale.

9 - I emailed this to tips at abovethelaw last night. I deserve the credit.

The NYTimes today had a review of a play in which parents sold their kids:

http://theater2.nytimes.com/2009/04/22/theater/reviews/22ging.html?ref=theater

So I think the problem here is that the Kaye Scholer partner did not realize that she could have gotten some money out of this.

Insurance Company Challenges Latham's Fees in Toxic Tort Case

Additionally, Century asserts that Latham did work that was unreasonable and unnecessary. "For the most part, the team of 15 attorneys and 11 staff spent their time reviewing the same things and then billing to confer among themselves about what they had reviewed," the petition says. More than $330,000 was allegedly billed for internal communications and memoranda.

Among Century's other claims: in January 2006 a "bar pending" law graduate billed 137.1 hours at $450 an hour for a total of $61,695; Latham billed out a "banking, finance and real estate" associate who worked on the case at the same rate as associates with toxic tort litigation experience; and multiple "timekeepers" met with a single expert over a two-day period for a cost of $104,402.

does elie even bother to read his own posts? the kids were abandoned in white plains, not in scarsdale, which is depicted in the map. it's amazing she would leave a 10 year old girl miles from her home. she's ill equipeed, clearly.

All you losers who are whining about this mom kicking her 10 & 12 year old kids out of the car probably voted for Obama. Sob stories.

Wow. Evidently any whack-job can become a lawyer today. I'd fire the bitch just for the police mug-shot--I mean, she's just flat-out ugly. Does kaye Scholer have *no* aesthetic standards?

Dude, she's hot ! (sarcasm)

I just sent Madlyn Primoff an e-mail offering to adopt her daughters. I'll let you know what she says.
--Madonna

15, are you referring to a certain incident involving the layoffs, a bar failer, and nepotism? hope you get my drift but i don't want to say too much on here.

34 to EIC

This is great for her professional reputation. Shows she is a total BADASS. Mess with her at your peril.

Thanks for warning us about admin professionals day, jerks.

My dad totally did this to my brother and I when we were kids. It scared the crap out of us, but he came back and that was the end of our backseat bickering -- at least for that road trip!

Looks like the White Plains thing has been corrected:

"Ms. Primoff received her law degree from Columbia, but it's not like she left her kids in Morningside Heights. She dropped them off in downtown White Plains, the county seat of tony Westchester County."

"Take a look at Primoff's 3,500 sq/ft home and surrounding neighborhood, in upscale Scarsdale...."

Thanks for warning us about admin professionals day, jerks.

Well, the article doesn't say how long the 10 year old "wandered" before being found by the good Samaritan. I wonder if the mother tried to find the girl after X amount of time.

Also doesn't say how far she wandered. I do note that the family apparently lives in Scarsdale, but the children were booted out in White Plains. I'm not from NY, so I don't know the distance between these two. Are we talking a couple of blocks or several miles. Certainly if it was quite far from home in an area the kids were unfamiliar with, I would consider it pretty bad of the mother to boot the kids out of the car alone.

My mother did this to my brother and I when I was 13 and he was 10. We were bickering in the car and she said if we kept it up she was going to stop the car and kick us out. We didn't stop bickering and she dumped us on a rural road about a mile from our house. Not horrible, but not something she would have done 3 miles from home.

So Madlyn Primoff has a 3500 square foot house.

Does she also have a fat wife and a Lexus?

I heard that it was actually Somali pirates from Yonkers that took the kids hostage after boarding the car.

This is retarded. They were 10 and 12, and only 3 miles from home. My parents would have been locked up dozens of times under these standards.

Whoever asked what is world coming to is right, but it's the criminalization of parenting that is the problem.

I like this old-school style of parenting. My parents used to do this kind of stuff all the time, and I turned out fine.

Agree with 5.

37, 15 here. Not sure about that exact case, but sure reminds me of Latham. What's the name of the associate in question?

She was only three miles from home - you mean she couldn't make it the 5 minutes til she got home, and then grounded her kids, taken away all tv privileges, etc.? My parents once took away my tv privileges when I was 11 - most effective punishment ever, and we didn't even have cable!

Good for her. She should have just beat them. That'll shut those kids up.

"...where a good Samaritan spotted her in tears about 7:30 p.m., bought her ice cream..."

she didn't even arm the kid with the knowledge that she shouldn't talk to stranger PRIOR to dropping her off on the corner?

She's a bankruptcy lawyer. Here's her firm web bio:

http://www.kayescholer.com/professionals/primoff_madlyn

man, the aughts have not been kind to kenny g.

Yo, anxious former Lathamities. Please take advantage of the psychiatric health plan offered to you free of charge by Latham. You have till August 31st. Stop telling the truth here and don't come May 1st. There are more of us left and we will kick your ass.

Superior (thus remaining) Latham associates

As a parent of 3 year old twins, who don't just bicker but physically abuse each other in the back seat of our car (they can barely make it the 5 minutes from their preschool to our house without someone crying or getting pinched/bitten/seatbelt wrapped around his neck) I can totally understand where this mom is coming from. While I probably wouldn't dump them out of the car at this age, since they would surely run into the street and get run over (running into the street = their favorite past time) I'm pretty sure in 7 years they will be getting dumped out of the car if they are fighting.

Hey kid.

Snitches get stitches.

"Your honor, they were not kicked out of the car...in this climate, they were laid off...."

This is not surprising behavior from a CLS grad.

My Mom and Dad used to just turn around in the car and beat us with their shoe. Ahhh, the good old days,

I live in White Plains, and mamaroneck ave is the major strip in the town (bars, restaurants, stores, etc.) It's really not a good place to drop off a 10 year old little girl all alone. Mostly just outside seating for bars and then some shady $1.00 stores, ice cream, fast food places mixed in. It's busy and crowded with a 4 lane you have to cross and nothing but perpendicular streets leading you to all the major highways. A very bad place to drop off a 10 year old girl and drive away.

57, activism in response to mistreatment is a symptom of a mental health condition suddenly? i thought expressing yourself was a normal part of being an american. i don't think you'll find this listed as a disorder anywhere but the DSM in China.

A mother should never do this? How about a PARENT should never do this? Or a babysitter or anyone in charge of minor children. Just because they were left in an affluent area doesn't mean they couldn't have been kidnapped and molested or killed. Rich people can be sexual predators, too.

This shows the partner's lack of judgment and inability to handle stress. "Oh, this deal just got to heard so I will just throw my hands in the air and walk away."

Her kids probably have a valid Section 90 claim.

You can hire your own kid at Latham? Who knew?

One poster said she looks like Kenny G.

I am thinking more like Richard Simmons.

from the mug shot it looks like she was charge with possession of meth.

just sayin...

This was a "performance-based dismissal."

48 has it exactly right. There was no crime here.

63, depends on which part of mamaroneck ave. your bloviating is about as legitimate as this endangerment charge.

All those Kaye Scholerttt Attorneys doing pro bono work on behalf of children must be very proud of their firm's very own Madlyn Primoff.

I agree with 48. Hell, each daughter probably had a $300 cell phone. This country needs to toughen up; ever think maybe the little brats deserved it? Lesson learned.

Was she driving an American car, such that a 12 year old could outrun?

Was this a bad place to drop off a 10 year old girl?

(At least Mystal wasn't there. He often snacks on lost children.)

Come on, the kids were 10 and 12. I wouldn't drop my 5 and 3 year old kids off, but if kids these ages cannot hack it for a minute while mom scares them, they have other problems.

Anyone saying this woman isn't fit to be a mother doesn't have kids and severely underestimates the survival skills of 10 and 12 year-old kids.

69,

I agree, a bit intense looking. At least the 10 yr old got ice cream, I don't think she did when getting dropped off for the mug shot.

I am not outraged by this. I know downtown white plains. There is a quint little main street and a mall. I would let a competent 12 year old go there by herself.

I grew up in a small town where anything's 3 miles away at most, so maybe we had different values, but my mom would routinely just leave me if I was acting up. I thought it was a bit harsh, but not entirely crazy.

She'd sit at home waiting and, as soon as I got home she'd ask, so, did you think about what you've done?

Ah, this post probably dates me. Gen Y has been coddled to the point that this is something like criminal child abuse now.

I thought Kaye Scholer was an upscale jewelry store.

White Plains is no Scarsdale. I wouldn't leave my kids on the street in downtown WP at that hour, even if it's light out. PS - I work in White Plains.

How does a woman who just leaves her kids by the side of the road get Lawyer of the Day over this Brooklyn Law grad that murdered his whole family?

http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202430096946

Kaye Scholer LLP hereby emphatically denies firing any staffers or attorneys as retaliation for reporting child abuse by partners.

It's Bush's fault.

-- Obama official

10 and 12 year olds have limited geographical knowledge. Unless they're very close to home, they probably have only a vague idea of how to get back.

Kaye Scholer LLP hereby emphatically denies firing any staffers or attorneys as retaliation for reporting child abuse by partners.

B. Willner, Chairman

A parent should never abandon their kid like this. To much risk of other things (e.g., hit by car, kidnapping)happening to the child. But clearly the kids deserved a good spanking. And, no, contrary to the garbage the ACLU puts out, spanking does not amount to "torture" or contravene any international treaties. Spank away.

"A threat doesn't carry much weight if you're not willing to back it up, right?"

nice line, it must have been Lat's

also, by any chance does the owner of that 3500 sq ft. house have a wife?

Wow, from the comments, it looks like lots of our attorneys and future attorneys have had this same thing happen to them.

Coincidence? You decide.

20 - you were way safer in front of that cemetery than on the streets of downtown WP, believe me.
-83

84- By laws just amended in emergency meeting, haha.

83- because we would not want to harm the reputation of the legal profession or anything now would we.

"I live in White Plains, and mamaroneck ave is the major strip in the town (bars, restaurants, stores, etc.) It's really not a good place to drop off a 10 year old little girl all alone. Mostly just outside seating for bars and then some shady $1.00 stores, ice cream, fast food places mixed in. It's busy and crowded with a 4 lane you have to cross and nothing but perpendicular streets leading you to all the major highways. A very bad place to drop off a 10 year old girl and drive away."

...and we wonder why attorneys have no street cred.

I'm with #5. For all of those that thinks this is child abuse, just wait until the generation of kids currently 10 and younger are in charge of this country....we're doomed. Too much coddling.

I totally understand a parent doing this. The older one knew mom wasn't serious and caught up to the car. The younger one wandered off instead of waiting for mom to come back. Or using her $300 cell phone to call a friend and complain.

Moral of the story: Stop fighting in the car. And that includes all you new grads arguing about which firm is more prestigious.

I'm with #5. For all of those that thinks this is child abuse, just wait until the generation of kids currently 10 and younger are in charge of this country....we're doomed. Too much coddling.

Yeah, whoever is saying Mamaroneck Ave is affluent has clearly never spent time there. I have, I lived there. It's 2 blocks from a mall where someone was shot and killed last year. And i lived in the Bronx for 4 years so I know worse areas, but the little girl was 10!!! It's nothing like Scarsdale where the kid lives either so it's not as if the child was used to the area.

It's not the worst area, but if you would drop a 10 year old on Mamroneck alone on a Sunday night when it was getting dark, then you clearly should not have children.

Never abandon their kids like this? What the hell is everyone talking about? I walked or rode my bike home from the sixth grade until I got a car in my senior year of high school. For those of you keeping track sixth grade is 11 years old. My house was over 2 miles away from school. Kids are outside of their parents supervising ALL the time. Would anyone be up in arms if this woman told her kids they would have to walk home from school instead of getting a ride as a punishment for acting up? it seems some people are squabbling about the exact neighborhood they were dropped off in, but it seems like no one is saying this is actually a bad neighborhood. This is ridiculous. For the record, I am 23, so my experience wasn't all that long ago.

the cops seriously need some more to do up there than charge this mother. it's illegal to tell your 10 year old kid they have to walk home if they are being obnoxious in the car? absurd. Is it a crime to not give your kid a ride to school now too?

When I was 13, my Dad took me and my 10-yr-old brother on a business trip to DC. While he sat in meetings all day, we rode the subway all around the city to the different sites. Inadvisable? Maybe. But if this woman committed child abuse, then so did my Dad. And I'm not buying it. The police should be ashamed.

I don't get it. Do people think it's a crime to leave 10 and 12 year olds unattended under any circumstances? Or was it a crime to kick them out of the car in this instance and then drive away?

I'm just trying to get a handle on what constitutes "endangering the welafre of a child" in this new era where all children are apparently spineless pussies.

I see that Attorney Richard Primoff of the SEC has excellent taste in women.

79 - Main St. is deserted and seedy after hours, and if the quaint little mall is the Galleria, I've heard of people getting mugged in that pit. She deserved to be arrested.

100: was it also snowing 12 months out of the year and were there rabid racoons you had to avoid?

The point of booting your kids out of the car is to show you're ready to make real on your threats if they don't stop fighting. Once you've done it and the younger one becomes hysterical and the older one caught up to your car and is back in, IT'S OVER! The younger one is not going to taught a better lesson if she has to spend the night sleeping under a bench because she can't get home. Once you've popped the cherry of fear, the game is over. She's an idiot for not going back to get the younger one.

94/96/98, that sentiment has been uttered generation after generation. Be more original.

OK. this is not the suburbs where she left the kid. My dad did it to me, I had to walk home. But I lived in the suburbs. For those of you saying this kid should'[ve walked home. . . she'd have to walk the shoulder of a major highway to get home. It's not coddling. . . it's like dropping off your kid in Newark when you live in Hoboken (except there's no Path the kid can hop on).

It is not funny to joke about Mystal's penchant for devouring lost children.

I guess folks today would object to my having used jumper cables on my kids to enforce the "clean your plate" rule in our house. What's the world coming to?

Back in my day, a parent would simply munger the child and be done with it. A little mungering never hurt anyone.

This would never happen in Dallas.

@12 - I assure you that if they were left in Nebraska they would be much safer than in White Plains. They would be bored, but much safer.

Is anyone else wondering if the 10 year old had a cell phone? Wouldn't that make a HUGE difference?

46 - You mean "a fat wife and a Lexis [sic]".

I see that Attorney Richard Primoff of the SEC has excellent taste in women.... Yeah, but the bitch sure can earn.

What are kids?

98 - it's seedy after hours. It's not walkable or even bikeable from where the kid lived.

the behavior of the girls started early & tollerated by the parents. no parent in their right mind would allow their children at an early age to fight one onther. Children only DO what theri parents ALLOW them to do at that age. So often parents allow their children at a young age to be disrespcetful thinking it is cute...they forget that what they allow to happen as toddlers...turns uncontrolable as they age. WHY would shows like Suoer Nanny even be on...if parents didn't allow the bullshit in the first place....so yees BOOK HER ASS.

Hey Kaye Scholer associates --- what's it like to work for this lady?

This woman is a hero. If more parents did this, we wouldn't have so many whiners on here complaining about actually being expected to work in order to get a bonus.

Anyone care to predict how the criminal case will be resolved?

Too much coddling in this day and age? Yes.

Too many sexual predators looking to prey on abandoned pre-teen girls? Yes.

"Not abandoning your daughters on an unknown street" is not the equivalent of "not coddling."

If you have kids, you understand why this was completely unacceptable in this day and age.

I would have punched the 10 year old first, and then kicked it out of the car.

God damn Mongorians

I'm betting her husband will leave her. She's ugly and a bad mother. FINALLY a way out I bet.

I don't understand how this woman made partner if she took time to have children. That shows a complete disregard and disrespect to the profession. I'm sure if that old windbag Partner Emeritus were here, he'd agree.

You know what I got for Christmas this year? It was a banner fuckin' year at the old Bender family. I got a carton of cigarettes. The old man grabbed me and said "Hey. Smoke up Johnny."

- John Bender

I wouldn't count on Rich Primoff to leave. As a KS partner, she probably earns ten times as much as he does.

Cha-Ching$$$$!!!!

Primoff Family Psychologist

Kenny G, Richard Simmons...... or Pauly Shore?

104,

Not 100 but my Dad has stories of my aunt where my grandmother would leave her off on the trolley to got up to my great aunts so my grandmother would go to work. She would ride the trolley about 1 mile by herself - She was 4 Years old at the time.

Any person on here that was never kicked out the car and their parents goosed the car forward a little to scare them were raised by helicopter coddling parents.

This country is a bunch of pussies.

Hell, the 12 year is 6 months away from turning tricks on Mamaroneck Ave.

127 - Maybe he'll get half, and obviously custody and child support. She aint gonna get custody of the kids after this.

Is the 12 year old hot?

Curious at Cravath

For $1.5 million a year should could maybe get some plastic surgery, then she'd be do-able, don't you think? Or is she beyond hope?

I'VE ABANDONED MY BOY

I'VE ABANDONED MY BOY

I'VE ABANDONED MY BOY

I'VE ABANDONED MY BOY

I am just shocked that she didn't ship them off to India with her firm's legal work.

(Correction) For $1.5 million a year she could maybe get some plastic surgery, then she'd be do-able, don't you think? Or is she beyond hope?

Um, hello? Who's the smart kid here? The one that rushed to jump bck in a vehicle with the crazy lawyer, or the one that ate ice cream and got mom arrested? The future associate should be the 10 year old!

It sounds like Mr. Primoff is standing by his (wo)man:

"Her husband, Richard, at the door of the home yesterday evening, said, 'We have daughters sleeping here. Why don't you guys knock off for the night?'"

http://www.nypost.com/seven/04222009/news/regionalnews/mother_chucker_165622.htm

She probably has a Meth lab in the basement of her home. Using her own product is what brought her down. First the hair, then the teeth are next to go.

http://www.wtopnews.com/?sid=1657033&nid=25

David Lat's parents would drop him off on the side of the road any time he expressed interest in women's fashion or Barbie dolls.

133- not beyond hope, but certainly beyond just a six pack. maybe after a dozen or so beers, plus a viagra, and if she brought along a hot friend and sat in the corner.

137 - HAHAHA, great comment.....

The 12-year-old is the future associate; the 10-year-old is the future PARTNER.

Whatever happened to just beating the shit out of your kids? My mother used to whack me with a wooden spoon whenever I was being a little asshole and my dad had a backhand to the back seat method that usually stopped me and my sister from fighting. It may have hurt but there was little chance of any permanent damage (e.g. getting hit by car, picked up by stranger, etc...)

Maybe if this mom were around to, oh say, discipline her kids instead of futzing around with the real men of BIGLAW, she wouldn't have had to resort to such extreme measures. just saying...

Background for 132's comment:

http://abovethelaw.com/2008/07/james_colliton_sues_amex.php

This shit makes me laugh. I'm from Gen Y (I'm 26 and just finished my last law school class ever) and I am amazed at the lack of discipline children have today.
-Oh my they had to walk on the shoulder of a major highway.
The future drop outs need to learn their lessen sometime or they will continue to disobey. You think that these actions don't foreshadow problems with authority in the future? My dad spanked me when I was young and would routinely drop people off on the side of the road to make them learn a lesson. (He dropped grandma off one time.) And I am nearly finished with law school. I have A LOT of friends who were never spanked and/or dropped off but COMPLETLY coddled and they don't even have bachelorette degrees. This woman being charged with a crime is OUTRAGIOUS, and I voted for Obama. I will spank my children (when my future wife has them) and drop them off to teach them lessons. I will also show them....

--LOTSALOVE

what gets me the most is that after she left her daughter(s), she called the police to report that her daughter (the one that did not chase the car down) was missing. She would not be missing if this woman had NOT left her.

http://www.wtopnews.com/?sid=1657033&nid=25

Allowing your kids to ride the subway on their own or bike home from school is not the same.

And those who say "my parents did this to me" don't get the difference. Your parents were likely around when you were growing up and established a trust with you --- you knew that they would never intentionally put you in danger. Plus, your parents apparently knew that you could handle it.

Dollars to donuts says that this woman works all the time and doesn't have the same bond with her kids that our parents had with us. Her kids obviously could not handle it, and she should have realized that.

THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: "Get Premier Kissoff -- err, -- Attorney Primoff on the line !"

President Merkin Muffley, er, Barack Obama

Holy cow, kids these days squabble? What little shits.
Come on! Me and my siblings used to raise hell in the car and everywhere else. Kaye you need some cahones (even though you look like you've already got some) and learn to suck it up. How old are you that the only way you can deal with 10 and 12 year olds is to leave them on the corner when things aren't going your way. Kaye, you are the spoiled brat here.
Your kids aren't on the partnership track and aren't going to kiss your @$$ all the time. They are kids. Deal with it.

Chicago grads win a trillion dollars on Jeopardy, while CLS grads get thrown in jail.

Things are back to their normal order.

141 - Lat preferred My Little Pony to Barbie as a child:

"[W]hen we were little, we commandeered our sister's My Little Pony collection to convene a "Pony Parliament." In the end, the tenuous governing coalition assembled by Pretty Parasol fell apart after a vote of no confidence."

http://abovethelaw.com/2006/10/atl_caption_contest_winner_sch.php

MADLYN PRIMOFF IS MY HERO.

Police/prosecutors are way too overzealous today. In the past, this would have been a private family matter, once the cops turned the kid back over to the family.

These were not infants or toddlers. What is wrong with a 10 or 12 year old being by themselves in an upscale suburb? Are they not allowed to walk to a friend's house?

Is it a crime in NY for a 10 or 12 year old to be left by themselves anywhere? If not, what's the issue?

This is not a criminal matter and it will eventually be dropped. It sux being a parent today.

This just shows how economically stupid Kaye Scholer partners are: she just abandoned a perfectly marketable young girl even though Cravath partners would have paid thousands a month for her.

With all the money she makes, she should have hired SUPER NANNY!!!!!

Who's the hotter woman, Ms. Scholer or Ms. Primoff. Are they lesbian lovers?

Police/prosecutors are way too overzealous today. In the past, this would have been a private family matter, once the cops turned the kid back over to the family.

These were not infants or toddlers. What is wrong with a 10 or 12 year old being by themselves in an upscale suburb? Are they not allowed to walk to a friend's house?

Is it a crime in NY for a 10 or 12 year old to be left by themselves anywhere? If not, what's the issue?

This is not a criminal matter and it will eventually be dropped. It sux being a parent today.

she could have used j walter weatherman...but the kids killed him when they left the door open with the air conditioning on.

Nice 134! Very nice.

Personally, I'm very suspicious about this so-called "good samaritan." If I see a lost child in the street, I think I would try to guide the child back to the last place they saw their parents. I'd call the cops from my cell while standing with the child by the side of the road. Under no circumstances would I take the kid indoors for any reason, at least until the cops came. How is the child's parent supposed to relocate the child if they are inside getting ice cream?

For all we know, the mother doubled back the moment the 12-year-old showed out without her little sister. But the 10-year-old decided to go on a walkabout, and some stranger took the kid to still another location.
--Elie

I'm going to send Primoff a Mother's Day card!

hmmm.... well, if the person who bought the kid ice cream hadn't been cool, this could have turned out to be one of the "please bring my little girl back" kind of stories that ends with the kid stuffed in a suitcase somewhere. Didn't catch that did you? the kid went away with a stranger who promised her ice cream... that's why you don't abandon them in strange places...

she could have used j walter weatherman...but the kids killed him when they left the door open with the air conditioning on.

Elie, well done.

63, 97, 117 etc: I think you may have forgotten about the Ritz-Carlton

hmmm.... well, if the person who bought the kid ice cream hadn't been cool, this could have turned out to be one of the "please bring my little girl back" kind of stories that ends with the kid stuffed in a suitcase somewhere. Didn't catch that did you? the kid went away with a stranger who promised her ice cream... that's why you don't abandon them in strange places...

To make it worse for Kaye---her husband is an incompetent SEC attorney. These poor kids...

So this is the kind of talent they have running KayeTTT ScholerTTT. Nice! Does KayeTTT ScholerTTT do any family law?

duct tape

I would have been surprised had it not been a partner/lawyer. I hope this resonates with all you BigLaw cheerleaders who think your firm loves you. The firm is not a separate entity, it's made up of a bunch of selfish partners who bicker amongst themselves and use you like pawns. They don't even love their own kids. They don't love you.

I hope you all have a plan B.

www.laidoffdiary.wordpress.com

154,

Good catch on the My Little Pony.

In my experience when I was 8 or 10 or 12 years old, you know, we did take our clothes off once a day. We changed for gym, O.K.? And in my experience, too, people did sometimes stick things in my underwear.

The kids were 12 and 10. This is not a crime. I fucking walked home from school when i was ten and it was more than 3 miles.

Get off her back - she is trying to teach two kids a valuable lesson.

Have to wonder what kind of judgment she brings to the table as a lawyer if she cannot handle driving two kids in her car.

156 -it is NOT an upscale suburb. On a Sunday eve it is a seedy, deserted pit where I have felt nervous walking with my 14 yo and her friend!

170 -

Quick clarification: Madlyn is the name of the attorney. Kaye is the name of the firm, or possibly, it has been suggested, the name of the lesbian lover.

She's a Klingon. Klingon mothers abandon their children all the time. No problem.

176, do you honestly not see the difference between walking a set route at a set time every day and being chucked out in an unfamiliar area?

This isn't so bad, I assume she stopped the car first.

179,

I would call you a nerd, if I didn't chuckle at the joke... and think the same thing when I saw the photo.

Maybe she was a little over the top, but what parent hasn't toyed with the idea. I, the king of empty threats, once followed through with the threat of pulling the car over to the side of the road an beating the little bastards to death. When the car came to a skidding stop, both boys suddenly thought, "Sh*t, the old man snapped!". I stopped short of beating them to death (too many uncomfortable questions later), but both, now successful and happy adults, laugh about that day.

Why has nobody commented on her appearance? That's the funniest part of this story. Was she also drunk and/or on crack when she was arrested? Her photo looks like a mug shot from a DUI or drug bust arrest.

Was this a part of the R'uustai ceremony then?

Fighting in the backseat of the Family Truckster? You better believe that's a paddlin'

There have been extensive comments on her appearance (including discussion of whether she most resembles Kenny G, Richard Simmons, or Pauly Shore).

Seedy, dark, strange area on busy semihighway miles from home.
4th grader.
Yes, that's felony child endangerment.

Downtown White Plains may not be Morningside Heights, but it ain't Scarsdale.

30 - Any KS partner knows the value seriously dips once they're potty trained.

Just read the Post article. this negligent mother went all the way home, leaving her DD in the pit that is downtown White Plains on a sunday night, and didn't call police till then.

Whatever happened to threatening to turn the car around?

CLS grad abuses children.

Chicago grad tells Jeopardy that it isn't as challenging as Helmholz's class.

The world rights itself.

You people are such haters. Madeleine Primoff is a successful and rich lawyer, who managed to make partner at a major firm, while raising two children.

So she is a disciplinarian. Big deal. Maybe if more parents disciplined their kids like this, we wouldn't have so many rude adults (like in the comments of this blog).

To those saying this was acceptable parenting: I hope and pray that you are all sterile.

Extreme prison makeover for Madilyn!

I see corn rows and penciled in eyebrows, and maybe some mocha lipstick.

Kaye Scholer LLP Official Firm Statement:

Today the firm is standing by the actions of Madlyn Primoff in throwing her children out of the car. Attorney Primoff's actions were clearly necessary in order to preserve the "work-life balance" that is so treasured by this firm. We at Kaye Scholer LLP hope that all of our Attorneys will work diligently to emulate the fine example set by Attorney Primoff.

Sincerely,

The Executive Committee

193 is right.

There is extreme bias against professional women who try "to have it all" - a successful career AND a family. That is reflected in all of the vitriol in these comments.

Of course the kids are awful. Mom is never around.

126 -- Breakfast Club? Do people still watch that?

196, LOL.....

Maybe she was a little over the top, but what parent hasn't toyed with the idea. I, the king of empty threats, once followed through with the threat of pulling the car over to the side of the road an beating the little bastards to death. When the car came to a skidding stop, both boys suddenly thought, "Sh*t, the old man snapped!". I stopped short of beating them to death (too many uncomfortable questions later), but both, now successful and happy adults, laugh about that day.

She looks like Sammy Hagar! Awesome!

I grew up in White Plains, and it seems that the route these kids would have been most likely to try and walk home would have put them on a portion of Post Road after dark (the sun would have set as they were walking) with no sidewalks where people drive about 45 MPH. They'd have also had to go through a high traffic area, past what I think is still a construction site, and through a sketchy area of town. Worse, the mother would have known this. Moreover, if your kid's bawling on the street corner until a stranger shows up, regardless of her age, she's too immature to be left on the side of the road.
The "leave us alone, our daughters are sleeping" bit is priceless. After all, they did have a very long day.

Re: the poll:

I don't know if I want Madelyn Primoff as my mother. But I certainly want her as my attorney!

Latham word of the Day: meritocracy.

Meritocracy is when you tell people that your decisions are based primarily on merits of the situation and when act based on nepotism, politics and fear.

I love that she let the 12 yo get back in the car, but left the 10 yo by the road. Who DOES that?

Elie, you hang out in ice cream parlors with lost children?

192 - "leaving her DD in the pit that is downtown White Plains on a sunday night,"

If a stranger could get her ice-cream in downtown White Plains, then I am sure the tyke could have easily made her way over to the nearby Ritz Carlton and Trump towers on Mamaroneck Ave. Let's not forget the Westchester Mall where somene at Louis Vuitton, Neiman Marcus or Barney's could have helped her out.

Yes, White Plains is not Scarsdale, but it is hardly Beirut.

Say what you want about Mrs. Primoff, but you better believe that those little girls are going to behave like angels from now on.

What was the 10 year old wearing?

Curious at Cravath

On the other hand, I'm guessing those kids were real quiet in the car today.

1-209=racist.

She was arrested for reporting her daughter "missing." For a partner to "miss" her child is indeed a crime.

What ever happened to predictibility?
The milkman, the paperboy, evening TV.

Everywhere you look , everywhere you go (there's a heart).
There's a heart
A hand to hold onto.

Everywhere you look , everywhere you go.
There's a face
Of somebody who needs you.

Eveywhere you look,
When you're lost out there and you're all alone,
A light is waiting to carry you home,
Everywhere you look.
Everywhere you look.

Just stay alive,
no matter what occurs,
Stay alive,
I will find you...

Kaye Scholer LLP hereby emphatically denies firing any staffers or attorneys as retaliation for reporting child abuse by partners.

Could someone please explain the Latham nepotism allegations?

I suspect every parent has wanted to kick their kids out of the car at some point. I know my mom wanted to because she kept threatening to do it. Luckily for me, she's not a heartless lawyer so she never actually did it. And because of that, when she gets old I'm going to take care of her instead of putting her in a home.

To those claiming that this is acceptable parenting: I hope and pray that you are all sterile.

Everyone who walked miles to school when they were kids should give it a rest. We all did. It would be completely acceptable if these kids were required to walk to school each day. That is 100% different than dropping your kid off in an unfamiliar location without giving them a plan on how to get home safely and without thinking rationally about whether you are making a decision that is in the best interests of the child. Getting really frustrated with your kid and ditching her by the side of the road on a whim is not discipline. It is just a parent losing it. If the point was to teach the girls something by requiring them to walk home, then the 12 year old wouldn't have been allowed to get back in the car. This was a parental flip out and if you don't control your emotions and end up making a decision that puts your kid in harm's way, then the reality is that there will be a consequence. Totally fine to punish your kids but not fine to act like a petulant child yourself. It is the parent's job to be the adult. Period. (And yes, my dad stopped the car to spank me when I was a kid. And he washed my mouth out with soap when I said a bad word. And he imposed all sorts of other punishments as well. But he never put me in physical danger or left my fate to the benevolence of strangers, which I see as a clear dividing line between acceptable punishment and unacceptable treatment of a child).

192 - those pockets of luxury in WP are interspersed wih check-cashing places, the grimy Galleria, a well-trafficked bus stop. It's OK on a nice weekday, but at Sunday at 7:30 pm it is no place for a 10 yo girl to walk alone. And she was a far walk from the Westchester mall, which was closed by th time anyway.
-192

208- those pockets of luxury in WP are interspersed wih check-cashing places, the grimy Galleria, a well-trafficked bus stop. It's OK on a nice weekday, but at Sunday at 7:30 pm it is no place for a 10 yo girl to walk alone. And she was a far walk from the Westchester mall, which was closed by th time anyway.
-192

Holy cow, kids these days squabble? What little shits.
Come on! Me and my siblings used to raise hell in the car and everywhere else. Kaye you need some cahones (even though you look like you've already got some) and learn to suck it up. How old are you that the only way you can deal with 10 and 12 year olds is to leave them on the corner when things aren't going your way. Kaye, you are the spoiled brat here.
Your kids aren't on the partnership track and aren't going to kiss your @$$ all the time. They are kids. Deal with it.

Does the 12 year old have a cell phone?

Curious at Cravath

206: That's the part I found most horrifying. I supposed if the 10-year-old had been snatched, raped and murdered, mom would have felt she got what she deserved? What an awful, awful woman. What surprises me is that this is only a misdemeanor. What happened to felony child endangerment?

Eh, I have no problem kicking a kid out of the car, making them think I left them. But leaving your kid to wander through a city, that's taking it a little far.

Primoff's husband, Richard, is an attorney for the SEC and a graduate of Harvard Law School. He wasn't in the car when the incident occurred.

Knew it -- if he had been in the car, he'd have seen to it that they had driven off a LOT faster. That 12-year-old would be pulling her own weight. If not, there are plenty of associates out there who would LOVE to get free food from a partner.

I can see why the woman would be upset. Her husband worked for the SEC, which failed to prevent Madoff's and several other ponzi schemes, as well as enabled the global economic collapse, and SHE'S the irresponsible one?

This thing happened to us when we were little, except my dad was driving and he got out of the car, left us there and started thumbing! She should have at least given the kids some shelter and a radio like my dad did. He was kind enough to leave us the keys, too!

What's newsworthy about this? Shouldn't you know that Biglaw partners are allowed to do whatever they want?

197 - what comments are you reading?
Most of these say it's perfectly fine to boot the kids out in a strange place at night.
In fact the comments are far more anti "bratty kid" than anti-woman.
The real point it she lost it bigtime here, and that can happen to overworked overstressed parents.
You have to sense it happening and step back before you endanger your child.

I will admit it. My mom use to make this threat all the time and she carried out the threat a couple of times with my older brother.

This happens all the time, in trailer parks in Florida.

225: You are either a racist or don't know White Plains. While the new mall is not the W, it isn't the ghetto mall either.

I worked on a deal with this person once (a few years ago). This chick is looney tunes.

112 - Try keeping up with current events.

Which intersection was this again? I need to know where to park my van.

Curious at Cravath

This one time, Rowan left her cat alone for an entire week. She should get the preftigious mug shot treatment too...

104,
No, I didn't have to run through snow and rabid racoons to get to school when I was a kid. I DID, however, walk 12 miles through the snow to get to your mom's house.
-100

Paul Hastings makes all mothers do this prior to joining the firm.

what kind of law does she practice? I hope it is not family law?

The unfortunate part of all of this is that the standard punishment for getting mommy arrested is getting kicked out the car. Its a viscious cycle.

I think she is just their pimp and was dropping them off to work.

God, I am so horny right now.

J. Colliton

All you people talking about walking more than 3 miles to school, are you for real? I'm not saying a 10 year old can't do it, but it seems like a long walk. Especially on stubby little-kid legs. Didn't your school district have buses?

Kaye Scholer LLP Official Firm Statement:

Today the firm is standing by the actions of Madlyn Primoff in throwing her children out of the car. Attorney Primoff's actions were clearly necessary in order to preserve the "work-life balance" that is so treasured by this firm. We at Kaye Scholer LLP hope that all of our Attorneys will work diligently to emulate the fine example set by Attorney Primoff.

Sincerely,

The Executive Committee

Because I was a badass in 5th grade, I rode my motorcycle to school.

Kelly Leak

Yes - she does look like an ugly Sammy Hagar!
I bet Van Halen is looking for a new lead singer.

192/221 "[F]ar walk from the Westchester mall, which was closed by th [sic.] time anyway."

Hardly. The tykes were ousted on Post & Broadway, conveniently located on the same block as The Westchester mall. Wouldn't be surprised if mom and brood were en route home from a shopping trip at Tiffany's. Closed? Not quite. The mall building is open after hours and there is always foot traffic around closing time on a Sunday night.

Pre-teens who can't find their way around, but take ice-cream from strangers, have bigger problems than a parent who puts them out of the car for misbehaving.

-208

This all makes a lot more sense once you realize she was wearing a pair of Bad Idea Jeans at the time.

Her husband is also a card carrying member of NAMBLA, where he clerked before going to the SEC.

I understand getting pissed at your kids, believe me, but leaving your 10-year-old freaked out and disoriented by the side of the road, no matter how "tony" the road is, is not the brightest thing ever, as proven by the fact that the kid was scared so shitless that she broke a cardinal rule and literally accepted candy from a stranger. Maddy Primoff can chalk it up to sheer luck that it was the police-calling kind of stranger and not the Amber Alert kind of stranger. Mothering fail.

234: You aren't seriously suggesting that a 10-year-old girl abandoned on the side of the road is only in danger in a "bad" neighborhood, are you?

I have seen the light and wholeheartedly agree with 220 now. Thanks
LOTSALOVE

All of the Latham people need to calm down. You were not mistreated you received SIX MONTHS severance. There are people who are actually suffering in this world and who do not have the luxury of receiving 80k+ to sit on their ass for six months.

How much for both?

Curious at Cravath

128--- LMAO. True.

I was killed three times in White Plains, so I know what I'm talking about.

Crazy Old CLS bat gets an ugly-ass mug-shot.

Chicago grad goes traveling to Europe with all the money he won for being a genius.

All is as it should be.

She can fire associates but she can't fire her kids. Look what happens when she gets frustrated. She can't control herself.

This is why Texas is better than y'all.

Depending on the flavor and size of the ice cream, the 10 year old may have come out on top on this one.

Is it bad that I can't stop wacking off to her mug shot?

Biglaw partners can't handle. Look how this one reacts? She should be ashamed of herself. Like any attorney, she will rationalize her childish decision.

Hey Mrs. Fro, learn to control yourself, and maybe your kids will learn how to control themselves as well.

If you've worked in biglaw, then you know this type of mother--preoccupied and uncaring. I don't know if biglaw makes women like this or if women who are like this natrually gravitate to biglaw. I'll never forget: a partner I worked for once brought her precious 3 year old boy in to the office on Saturday morning so she could grab some files. As they were leaving, the boy asked his mom if she was going to leave him now. That was his primary idea of his mom--someone who left him. Children need their parents to be there. A biglaw career prevents that from happening. No amount of money is enough compensation for abandoning your children.

I bet her nickname is MAD-DOG.

Sure we all walked to school when we were young, but were any of you so poor that you had to wrap your bare feet with barbed wire to keep from slipping on the ice like I did?

Didn't think so.

Two important questions:
1) Was the car a Lexis?
2) Does she have a matching 3,500 sq ft husband?

my brother & i were fighting once & my mom parked the car & walked away. she was halfway home before we found her. we felt bad & never did it again. this woman tried to punish instead of appeal to their sense of guilt. that's bad parenting.

my brother & i were fighting once & my mom parked the car & walked away. she was halfway home before we found her. we felt bad & never did it again. this woman tried to punish instead of appeal to their sense of guilt. that's bad parenting.

Every kiss begins with Kaye.

When I was 10 my parents didn't know or care where I was as long as I was home for dinner at 6.

Did she offer her kids 3 months severance?

Did she give her kids a negative performance review before kicking them out?

She was wrong to do this. She lost it.

But it's not a good use of limited child-protection resources to arrest, charge and try her. Every stupid/risky thing a parent does should not trigger a criminal action.

A severe mother is about the best you can do when it comes to children. I don't expect any future psychological problems for these girls.

208/249:

Even if the mall building is open, a mall with no open stores is not the place I want my 10 yo walking around. Sure PF Chang's is open, but it's not even in the main building. A closed Tiffany's Louis Vuitton and Norstrom's would be of no help if an attacker found this girl in the mall.

And what foot traffic is around the Westchester? No one walks in that area. Esp. when nothing is open.

192/221

Props to Kaye for standing up for its employee. I want to work for an employer who will stand up for me if I'm ever arrested.

I pity the associates that work for her. Has anyone on here actually worked for or with her? Comments?

I want to run my fingers through her hair.

C
U
N
Y
is a great school in New York.

I love how it's all the liberal, soft on crime Obama voters who are shocked that a mother would leave a ten year old on the street at risk from criminals. That's the kind of world they want us to live in - violent criminals should take over and roam the streets and the citizens get thrown in jail for not cowering from them in their cocoons. How about the cops focus on cleaning up White Plains so a pre-teen can walk around without her mom being charged with abuse?

282- Amen

280--You would never get them out again

A few years ago I was at a busy intersection in Atlanta when all of a sudden the door of the car in front of me flew open. I saw a man behind the wheel going berserk and the woman passenger stepping out while holding her small toddler. She stepped up on the curb and he sped off. The look of distress, embarassment, and confusion on the helpless woman's face was heartbreaking.

Everyone criticizing this mother is obviously racist for thinking that the girl was at risk simply because she was dropped off in a neighborhood that has a higher percentage of black people.

I once worked with a aspiring, third year associate on partnership track. A mother of an 8 month old girl with constant ear infections. Working so hard to become partner, she had no time to take the child to the doctor. Instead, she relied upon the caretaker to for the doctor visits and to administer medications. Even though her child was very ill, she took the child on a flight. The child screamed all the while. Upon their return he child required surgery to relieve the pressure of the infection in her ear canal. The surgery was unsuccessful. The grand finale: The attorney never received the partnership. Her reward for chasing partnership is a deaf child.

I once worked with a aspiring, third year associate on partnership track. A mother of an 8 month old girl with constant ear infections. Working so hard to become partner, she had no time to take the child to the doctor. Instead, she relied upon the caretaker to for the doctor visits and to administer medications. Even though her child was very ill, she took the child on a flight. The child screamed all the while. Upon their return for her work-related trip, the child required surgery to relieve the pressure of the infection in her ear canal. The surgery was unsuccessful. The grand finale: The attorney never received the partnership. Her reward for chasing partnership is a deaf child.

Although many, or even most parts of Westchester (where I grew up) are indeed "tony," I wouldn't be so sure about all areas of White Plains. Scratch that - most of White Plains. Lots of gangs. Lots of drugs. Lots of crime. And the same is true for parts of Scarsdale, believe it or not. This was incredibly bad judgment on the attorney's part. She needs counseling, or if she's divorced, to give up custody.

If this is how the woman demonstrates how she cares about her kids well being, I can't imagine how much she must care about her clients. Hope Kaye Scholer does the right thing to protect its image and brand, and fire her. What a liability to have on the books.

This story calls to mind the story of the Cooley Godward lawyer in DC who was doing business on her cell phone on the ride home, lost concentration, and ran over a child -- who had gotten out of her mother's car and was walking by the side of the road.

Eerie.

Black people are dangerouser.

287,

Really?

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88 is right. It's one thing to deliver a stern punishment, but by leaving your kid on the road you lose control over the punishment (and the kid). Who knows what could happen to a 10 y/o (let's not lose sight of the fact that she wouldn't be clear-minded after getting kicked out of the car) left to their own devices three miles from home? Three miles is a one-hour walk at grown-up speed. Bad idea. And I say this as someone who is presently childless and who grew up getting smacked by the 'rents every once in a while.

This is not the right circumstance for the "let parents be parents" crowd to rally in support. That said, it's a different question about prosecuting this as a crime. We'd all need to know more about it...

Man, you know what works? Soap washing out mouth. That's a real behavior modifier.

The kids were 10 and 12, and in Scarsdale. I walked home from school starting at age 7 in much less safe areas than Scarsdale. Get a life.

The kids were 10 and 12, and in Westchester. I walked home from school everyday starting at age 7 in much less safe areas than Scarsdale.

The cop in this case needs to chill out. If this is child endangerment, then every parent needs to be afraid of the police and social services. Get a life.

Am I the only one finding this story disturbing? Posting the mug shot of a person arrested so that everyone can have a good laugh is wrong. She has not been convicted of anything yet. Do we know what happened? Do we have to believe what the "cops said"? This woman has the right to be treated with dignity before judgment. You should be ashamed of yourself.

288, if my clients were acting like these kids I would throw them out of the car and make them walk back to the office.

288, if my clients were acting like these kids I would throw them out of the car and make them walk back to the office.

288, if my clients were acting like these kids I would throw them out of the car and make them walk back to the office.

Scarsdale Surprise!

F*cking HILARIOUS.

Unless she's a rainmaker, which I doubt, I'm guessing she'll be turfed outta there within a year.

Just enough time for the dust to settle and them whammo, she's out.

I was wondering what happend to Natasha Lyonne after she left teen movie fame for junkiedom. Now I know. Looks like she screwed this up too...

I was wondering what happend to Natasha Lyonne after she left teen movie fame for junkiedom. Now I know. Looks like she screwed this up too...

I was wondering what happend to Natasha Lyonne after she left teen movie fame for junkiedom. Now I know. Looks like she screwed this up too...

The issue here isn't necessarily th good/bad parenting that occurred in this incident. It's the 12 and 10 YEARS of bad (or no) parenting that produced kids that act this way. She has no one to blame but herself that her kids are out of her control. These are her chickens coming home to roost.

That said, do I believe she did the right thing? I don't know the details, but overall, I would say hell yes. The kids weren't in any danger, apparently, and they needed to be taught a lesson (that they should have been taught all their lives, but weren't).

Unless the kids were in the car with her when she was arrested, I think most people would agree that she seriously messed up. Will the bankruptcy court take this into consideration when ruling upon her next fee application?

298,

Write a letter to the editor of the New York Post.

295, washing out a child's mouth with soap, by force since many kids would not accept this willingly, is likely to be construed as child abuse and could get you thrown in jail just like every other kind of actual discipline (i.e., anything other than asking nicely) these days.

No, if you have a willful misbehaving child who will not comply with your demands (e.g., tell them to go to their room or stop fighting and they refuse), under current social morays evinced by many here, and current legal standards, your only option is to accept the behavior or surrender the child for adoption. No thanks - you'd have to be crazy to have kids under the watchful and vengeful eye of the nanny state, for whom the "parent" is really just a babysitter.

The kids deserved it. Surely, they broke a Commandment. Eye for an eye, biatch!

279, see 235 (who claims to have worked with her).

Kaye Scholer LLP Official Firm Statement:

Today the firm is standing by the actions of Madlyn Primoff in throwing her children out of the car. Attorney Primoff's actions were clearly necessary in order to preserve the "work-life balance" that is so treasured by this firm. We at Kaye Scholer LLP hope that all of our Attorneys will work diligently to emulate the fine example set by Attorney Primoff.

Sincerely,

The Executive Committee

Social morays, 310? Like a gregarious eel?

Partner/mom gets pushed out of the firm. Family has to move from $2M house and live on husband's SEC salary. Wife and husband get divorce, fight over assets, fight over custody, and it's all the kids fault. Kids grow up to be hookers on the street, not the expensive kind. They land in jail, where they learn the joy of jailhouse sex. They finally get released, then they hate parents for rest of their lives. Being parents can suck sometimes. Being attorneys sucks most of the time. Working at Kaye Scholer sucks all of the time. Kids are priceless.

197--screw you and your phony indigination. I don't care if she has none, some or all. A shitty parent is a shitty parent and she fits the bill.

NY Post said
"A temporary order of protection has been issued, which bars her from having contact with her daughters"
So Dad has custody? Were they actually sleeping in the house after their "big day" when he chastized the reporters for knocking?

http://news.google.com/news?pz=1&ned=us&hl=en&q=%22Madlyn+Primoff%22

392 and counting.

Good for her! all the kids today have become unmanageable. You can't even spank your own kids today in this country -- this is outrageous! This is why things are so fucked up today, and will get worse.

As a parent of a 14 y.o., I see nothing wrong with putting a 12-year old out of the car 3 miles from home and telling them to hoof it. I bet that child had wandered farther from home on her own before.

However, the 10-y.o. is a very different story. That's still too young to be on your own. Most children that age are just getting to where they can be trusted to cross the street by themselves. Suppose the kind stranger who bought her ice cream had been a predator?

I'm failing to see the endangerment here. She dropped them off in a downtown business district a few miles from home during daylight hours, not in the woods in a snowstorm. Unless the kids are developmentally disabled, they could find their way home. The 10-year-old didn't because continuing her tantrum was more important to her. If the good Samaritan had any sense he would have told the brat it was probably time she started walking home.

321 - I guess you don't have kids.

Those of you who claim your parents did this, or it's no big deal, etc. If it's no big deal, why did complete strangers find the 10-year old? Why did they feel the need to call the cops?
This doesn't sould like some stressed out mom dropping the kids in a safe place as a threat. Maybe she just intended to drive around the block and pick them up again. But, if so, then how did this get to the point of strangers picking up the 10 year old and calling the cops? And, when the 12 year old gets back in the car, why does mom drive off and leave the younger one there by herself? Doesn't that increase the trauma by about 1,000 percent?
Sorry, this isn't just tough love. There's something disturbed about this woman.

She is a former Paul Hastings partner (NY office). Congrats Madlyn! You've demonstrated the "good ole PH ethics."

She is a former Paul Hastings partner (NY office). Congrats Madlyn! You've demonstrated the "good ole PH ethics."

322, I have a daughter that I adore and dote on. This is not child endangerment. It's also probably not great parenting, but it's not neglect. At age 10 I would have been able to deal with this, no problem. As for those saying that times have changed, they have. These days kids have cell phones. But there is no rising wave of crime against children no matter what you may think you heard somewhere. The overwhelming majority of people look out for children they don't know and only a tiny group of deranged people look to hurt them. Your child is 100 times more likely to die from being a fat blob because your over protection prevented him or her from playing outside without supervision than from anything any stranger would ever do.

321

For those who care about facts, what I read in another article suggested that the mother drove off, the 12-year-old caught up (i.e., the mother was bluffing and didn't drive far) and when the mother went back the 10-year-old was gone. So, she went home. She probably figured the little shit would walk home or call her. When she didn't show, she called the police. Perhaps she overestimated an unusually immature 10-year-old. Perhaps she demonstrated poor judgment, but (again) there is no crime here. The police should be sued.

321 & 326

They were probably bickering in the back seat because she hasn't bothered to raise them for the past 12 years.

I once heard a story about a female biglaw partner who was signing opinions while on the birthing table in the maternity ward.

I once heard a story about someone who was really gullible. I signed opinions as a first year when the partner was two doors away. As long as the partner signs off on the opinion, anyone can sign it.

330. The story is true. It comes from the associate who worked for the partner.

327- no crime here. It's it 4/20 where you are?

331 - All bullshit stories have to get made up by someone, right? Or maybe this associate wasn't sharp enough to be trusted to sign the firm's name.

333 - So NO partner in the history of biglaw EVER signed an opinion??? You are incredible.

I bet she has a PR team spinning the story.

She is teasing me with that look. Time to rub one out on that photo.

Good going KHUNT!!!!!

Life's a bitch when the nanny takes a day off, eh??

Good going KHUNT!!!!!

Life's a bitch when the nanny takes a day off, eh??

a mommy partner at king and spalding told me that, when her kids don't eat all of their dinner, and later ask for a snack, she tells them to eat the uneaten food in the garbage can - nice

same mommy partner also, when her kids play sports, acts so badly, that she is not allowed in the sidelines - nice

339 - i have another king and spalding story, during an interview there i mentioned that i have a couple small children. the partner at king and spalding then told me how he got his kids to sleep in their own room - he locked them in their room and let them cry themselves to sleep for a bout a week. he said one of the kids was kicking and banging the door so hard that his hands and feet bled.

i love king and spalding, some of the most perverted sick people on the planet

if this is how they treat their children, imagine how they must treat their clients

Any idea how long ago she and her wife adopted these kids?

341 - are you asking about the lesbian hiring parter at KS ?

334 - I don't think you're smart enough to sign an opinion either. I said your friend's story about a partner signing opinions while on the birthing table is bullshit. I didn't say no partner has ever signed an opinion. Learn to read.

343 - You are full of shit. The partner was a tax partner at Breed Abbott. Get over your arrogant self.

342 - is that the one who had sex with a client ?

Well, child services was involved. Obviously, Primoff went too far. Why call the police if it was under control? She could not find her so she called to the police to claim a missing child. when she actually, she abandon the child and lost her. That is traumatic to a child leaving her vulnerable to trust anyone.

Can you image how an ice cream cone calmed this child - any predator could do that.

This woman's impulsive lack of judgment really paid off - public & professional embarrassment!

Public humiliation such as the Scarlet Letter should be brazen on her chest --- which would also distract from that fro she wears.

Well, child services was involved. Obviously, Primoff went too far. Why call the police if it was under control? She could not find her so she called to the police to claim a missing child. when she actually, she abandon the child and lost her. That is traumatic to a child leaving her vulnerable to trust anyone.

Can you image how an ice cream cone calmed this child - any predator could do that.

This woman's impulsive lack of judgment really paid off - public & professional embarrassment!

Public humiliation such as the Scarlet Letter should be brazen on her chest --- which would also distract from that fro she wears.

Well, child services was involved. Obviously, Primoff went too far. Why call the police if it was under control? She could not find her so she called to the police to claim a missing child. when she actually, she abandon the child and lost her. That is traumatic to a child leaving her vulnerable to trust anyone.

Can you image how an ice cream cone calmed this child - any predator could do that.

This woman's impulsive lack of judgment really paid off - public & professional embarrassment!

Public humiliation such as the Scarlet Letter should be brazen on her chest --- which would also distract from that fro she wears.

Well, child services was involved. Obviously, Primoff went too far. Why call the police if it was under control? She could not find her so she called to the police to claim a missing child. when she actually, she abandon the child and lost her. That is traumatic to a child leaving her vulnerable to trust anyone.

Can you image how an ice cream cone calmed this child - any predator could do that.

This woman's impulsive lack of judgment really paid off - public & professional embarrassment!

Public humiliation such as the Scarlet Letter should be brazen on her chest --- which would also distract from that fro she wears.

Well, child services was involved. Obviously, Primoff went too far. Why call the police if it was under control? She could not find her so she called to the police to claim a missing child. when she actually, she abandon the child and lost her. That is traumatic to a child leaving her vulnerable to trust anyone.

Can you image how an ice cream cone calmed this child - any predator could do that.

This woman's impulsive lack of judgment really paid off - public & professional embarrassment!

Public humiliation such as the Scarlet Letter should be brazen on her chest --- which would also distract from that fro she wears.

344 - Never heard of it. Not biglaw. Don't care. I won't mention the fact that you completely ignored the substance of my response. Oh wait, guess I'm not going to ignore it.

310 - social morays? Ick. The washing-out-with-soap comment was meant as a light-hearted afterthought. But I get what I pay for trying to make a reasonable point here on the AtL. Hugs! kthxbye! 295.

This is what happens when white people don't spank their kids.

319, you're a fucking idiot. Of course you can spank your children . . . with your hand, like a reasonable person. What you can't do is beat the holy shit out of them with extension cords, wire hangers, and some of the other stuff these fools who end up in the news have used. The former is discipline, the latter is child abuse. If you're still in law school and you can't make this distinction, drop out now. If you're already practicing, make sure your firm's malpractice insurance premiums are current, Mr. Hutz.

the people here supporting what was done ended up exactly where really smart people who desperately need approval end up. Ironically, you also utterly lack sensitivity towards others. Yup. The other people chose to be where they are, and are generally content (is my guess). The 12 year old is going to get away from this woman and never speak to her again as soon as possible (16 or 17), and the 10 year old is going to be a doormat. Hope they're both smart. This woman is absolutely dispicable. If only they could fire her. But they sure could de-equitize her....

the people here supporting what was done ended up exactly where really smart people who desperately need approval end up. Ironically, you also utterly lack sensitivity towards others. Yup. The other people chose to be where they are, and are generally content (is my guess). The 12 year old is going to get away from this woman and never speak to her again as soon as possible (16 or 17), and the 10 year old is going to be a doormat. Hope they're both smart. This woman is absolutely dispicable. If only they could fire her. But they sure could de-equitize her....

355-356: I meant despicable. She's despicable. I think the order barring her from seeing the kids should have been left in place for a while so that she could really realize what gifts smelly, arguing, annoying little brats really are. And I mean that about gifts. Kids are not a walk in the park. Don't have them if you don't want the work. And it's a lot.

Are you sure she is not a White & Case partner? That is the way they treat their associates.

The Today Show just had a segment with two parenting "experts" who spent 10 minutes justifying and excusing this monster's behavior. Such BS. If it were the dad who did this, they would throw away the key.

358 - sounds like a king and spadlng freak - is she a lesbian ?

358 - sounds like a king and spalding freak - is she a lesbian ?

358 - sounds like a king and spalding freak - is she a lesbian ?

general comment - lawyers and law firms tend to reflect their clients - i have to assume that the in house attys that this lady services treat their own children the same way

339 - i have another king and spalding story, during an interview there i mentioned that i have a couple small children. the partner at king and spalding then told me how he got his kids to sleep in their own room - he locked them in their room and let them cry themselves to sleep for a bout a week. he said one of the kids was kicking and banging the door so hard that his hands and feet bled.

i love king and spalding, some of the most perverted sick people on the planet

if this is how they treat their children, imagine how they must treat their clients

at king and spalding they vandalize other attys cars - what a freaky firm

Oh geez. I find this whole thing ridiculous. I worked in White Plains and it is not a dangerous place for these kids to be dropped off temporarily. That 12-year-old probably goes to the movies with her friends there all the time, and no one cries "neglectful parent."

When I was in middle school I was misbehaving on the way to school and my mom dropped me off and made me walk, which would have been more than 2 miles. (A neighbor picked me up and took me to school with her own daughter, much to my delight and my mom's annoyance). It was in a small and safe town and, while I think my mom overreacted, I don't think she should have been arrested!!!

Give me a break.

No 365: C'mon, fess up, you are Madlyn Primoff, right? Or, her lawyer. Are you frigging serious? This woman needs to be hospitalized. If this is what goes on outside of the home, what kind of emotional and/or physical abuse do you think is going on in that house? Let me see if I get this: 1.) kids are squabbling; 2.) Mommie Dearest says stop; 3.) they don't; 4.) Mommie Dearest leaves the 12 and 10 year old on the side of the road 3 miles from home; 4.) the 12 year old chases Mommie Dearest who lets her back in the car and drives off without going back to find the 10 year old. This isn't crazy? With all of the child abductions in the world, this woman risked her daughters lives by this unbalanced act. What if the guy that found the 10 year old was not who he was but some kind of sex offender? Anyone that attempts to justify this behavior as being equal to what happened when they were kids or some type of tough love is in denial. In this day and age, to abandon your children along side a roadway is simply sick. What a loon.

I love how people are siding with the "crazy" mom in this story. First of all as one commentator said, they were only 3 miles away from home, the mom couldn't handle her own kids for three measley miles ? Seriously ? How does she handle her cases and clients when shit hits the fan ? Does she drop her case load on the side of the road, and reports her files missing ? And to all the people who have said that they understand what she was going through and that they were deserted on the side of the road and that kids should toughen up and the kids suck and are entitled bla blah, well as a parent I have wanted to dump my kids on the side of the road, but WHO THE HELL actually does it ? Also "bad" kids are the result of BAD PARENTING and shitty parents. Hell yeah kids today feel entitled, because their parents enable them to feel that way. Nothing more and nothing less. SO blame crackhead look-alike for being a shitty parent, before you go pointing the finger at two pre-teen kiddos.

366, according to other reports, she DID immediately go back to pick up the 10 year old but couldn't find her. Perhaps this was because the stranger took the child INSIDE the ice cream store to buy ice cream! I agree with the poster above. If I find a 10 year old crying on the street, I sure don't take the child inside a store and buy her ice cream. I would stay out on the street with the child, and look for somone who seems to be looking for a child, under the presumption that the parent is also looking up and down the street for the child.

368: Do you have Down syndrome? This mom left her kid three miles from home. Go measure three miles. I have a 10-year-old. Three miles from home for them might as well be the next state. It's an hour walk, through God knows what, and many people who live there have posted that there is no route that doesn't involve highway walking.

Furthermore, you say that some reports say she went right back to find the 10-year-old. No, they don't! Provide one link. I've read all the reports (there aren't that many) and NONE say she went right back. In fact, what some say is that the police wont' say if she went right back.

They do say that the police searched the area for the mom. So IF she went back, and made any effort, she would have run into the police.

The police must have thought this was particularly bad to make this biglaw partner spend the night in jail. They see stuff all the time, and this one must have been particularly egregious.

You and all these people saying kids should be tougher, well, okay, I guess they should be. But that's not the point. The point is that this kid was probably hysterical when she got out of that car. So for all you idiots saying she should have just whipped out her cellphone and called her mom back, then I say you don't spend too much time around children. A hysterical ten-year-old is not going to calmly call home, when they've just been abandoned in a strange place with their older sister. They're certainly not going to be calm after they see the sister get back in the car and the mom pull away.

Maybe this kid would not have been kidnapped or molested, but there's seems the real possibility that she could have tried to chase down the car like her sister did and gotten struck by another vehicle.

But what makes all you people so shockingly stupid is that you think she could have just walked home. First of all, she would not have known where home is. Second, she's alone, at dusk, in a strange place. And scared.

Let this be a lesson to all you people who think this was no big deal. Just like this biglaw partner is revealed to be a complete idiot despite two Ivy League degrees, you are stupid too despite your JD.

Whether you're also as cold, callous and unfeeling as this failure of a mom, that's for your family to decide.

you NEVER put your children's safety in jeapordy. She should have pulled over and spanked them...10 & 12 or not!! That'd teach them in a safe way.

Spanking? No, spanking equals child abuse. Just because your dad punched you in the mouth every day and made you so such a miserable person that you became a high powered lawyer doesn't make it right.

339 - i have another king and spalding story, during an interview there i mentioned that i have a couple small children. the partner at king and spalding then told me how he got his kids to sleep in their own room - he locked them in their room and let them cry themselves to sleep for a bout a week. he said one of the kids was kicking and banging the door so hard that his hands and feet bled.

i love king and spalding, some of the most perverted sick people on the planet

if this is how they treat their children, imagine how they must treat their clients

she is one ugly woman - is she a man in drag ?

Would everyone please stop commenting on her appearance. Her appearance fail has nothing to do with her mommy fail.

Anybody notice in the NY Post today that this robot mom is already back at work?

Anyone at Kaye who can shed a little light on what's going on there? Or know if there's been an e-mail telling everyone to keep quiet about it?

Here's my idea: Make her re-apply for her job. Then when she's forced to check the yes box for "Have you ever been arrested?" you kick her out of the partnership.

Does Kaye really want this black eye (and those permed Rasta locks)?

she is almost as ugly as the lady partner at king and spalding that makes her kids eat out of the garbage can - the king and spalding lady looks like a man in drag, is about 6 feet tall, and must weight about 200 pounds ...

376 - i don't know, i think she is kinda hot

377 - yeah, in a Tales from the Crypt-sort of way

378 - she could be a butter face ?

377 - you are thinking of the kinky spalding partner ... that one is butt ugly

368: You are as whacked as the Mom in this case. According to the police report, the 10 year old was "emotional" (another word for hysterical). The good samaritan showed that 10 year old more affection than the biological mother probably has ever shown that child. How was he or she supposed to know that the mother (per her version) was driving back looking for her? Get real. This woman is atrocious. Prediction: her children will not be visiting her in the nursing home- maybe her clients will though. Honest to God, blaming the good samaritan for buying the girl an ice cream cone in the hopes of calming her down. Oh, by the way, the Mom dumped them on the side of the road at 7:30 in the EVENING!!!!!! She is unfit and should lose custody. If someone living in a trailer park in Florida did this, there would not be anyone on this site offerring justification for the behavior. But becuase this a,,hole is a partner at some NY firm, people are trying to find some way to justify her behavior. Stop it. She is one cracked actor.

The AP reports that the mother drove around the block. When she circled around, the younger child was gone. Presumably, because the passer-by took the child off the street and into a store.

Does the fact that the mom circled around the block excuse her behavior? No, of course not. But doesn't the passer-by's behavior sound strange to anyone else: "Here, little girl, come with me and I'll buy you ice cream?" Why not stay on the street with the girl, where the mom would presumably come out of one of the stores looking for the lost child? Another report specifies that the passer-by flagged down the police car. If true, then the passer-by didn't even take the girl into the store to call police. He took her from the area where any parent would logically be looking for her, he bought ice cream, and after a while came back out of the store and only then flagged down police. The mom made some pretty bad choices, but the passer-by seems a little odd too.

"Madlyn Primoff, 45, simply drove around the block in downtown White Plains but the 10- and 12-year-old girls were gone when she returned, defense attorney Vincent Bricetti said.

"She wasn't abandoning her children," he said. "She expected to find her children."

Briccetti said the older girl had begun walking home — 3 miles away — and the younger girl was apparently taken in hand by a passer-by who called police on Sunday evening."

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5j3OaSelj77mH79weR9dXcXylTayQD97P3LO80

Now that all the facts are in, it appears the real culprits are the police. The charges against the mother were completely trumped-up, which allowed the case to get blown out of proportion. I believe she would have an excellent case against them. What do you think?

383 said: What do you think?

I think you are an imbecile. She dumped one or two (depending on whether or not you believe her lawyer; i think we all know how lawyers are) hysterical young children onto the street, and drove away. Period.

So what if she circled the block and came back? Doesn't the fact that by the time she came right back both kids were gone ipso facto prove the endangerment of her children?

And don't you think the police must have found this a particularly egregious case to throw a biglaw partner in the lockup overnight?

You are a moron for saying she has a case against the police. If anything, they should have charged her with felony endangerment and not a misdemeanor; they went easy on her here.

This was not a planned event for her kids, this was dumping them out on the street and leaving. And now the fact comes out that her mother was in the car with her when all of this happened?! And she doesn't act to keep her daughter from doing this to her grandchildren? Well, I guess she obviously must have been a failure of a mother to Primoff for Primoff in turn to be such a failure of a mother to her own kids.

Primoff is lucky the state didn't take those kids away for good. They had more than ample justification to do so.

Thank you for proving my point. You are as hysterical as the press and the police. First, there was zero child endangerment whether this was an unplanned event or not. Second, you are someone who instantly polarizes a discussion by calling a questioner a "moron." Do you have a real job?

Whether this was an unplanned event or not, and even whether the motivating reason for getting the kids out of the car was anger or goodwill, is completely immaterial. The only relevant facts are whether the child was actually endangered as a result of being left on the sidewalk in a decent, busy shopping section of White Plains.

Come on--how can you say that this was a "decent" location? Obviously it was full of danger. Just look at what happened--evil passersby instantly seized the abandoned child and dragged her into an ice cream parlor. Does anyone even care whether she wanted ice cream or not? How do you know they had her favorite flavor? Where is justice served in all of this?

I think the worst mommy story is the married woman partner at Sutherland who would sneak her PGL into her house and sneak into his house so they could fuck each other with their kids sleeping in the next room when their spouses were away, Can you imagine the trauma those kids would
have had if little Johnny had woken up? Like they couldn't get a room somewhere? Yea, that demonstrates judgment. NOT!

385: Despite you having your life handed to you on a silver platter, that doesn't also bestow upon you the right to have a situation be the way you say it is simply by virtue of you saying so.

The police and the judge here said it's child endangerment. I know this will require help from a few of your neighbors, but try to push aside your massive ego for a moment and grasp the notion that they have a lot more experience and expertise in what constitutes endangerment than you do.

You obviously know nothing about children or you wouldn't think it's perfectly fine to dump a distraught kid in the next town on a Sunday evening at dusk.

And trust me, I have a much better job, and life, than you do.

I think 386 is wrong, and here's why.

The mom's anger is material, because it affects the emotional state of the child, and thus her ability to handle the situation.

The nature of it being unplanned is material, because it affects the child's preparation and knowledge of what she needs to do.

An example: If the child were being dropped off to meet someone at that intersection at, let's say, the movie theater or the bookstore, and the child knew who they were meeting and where, then I think it would be okay for a child age ten or even younger to do this.

But that was not the case here, far from it. This was a distraught child, thrown suddenly into a situation they were unprepared for, in a strange place, while grappling with the primal emotion of abandonment.

I'm wondering what you could possibly see about this situation that would NOT be endangering this child?

What do you think is the best-case scenario here? That the child tells someone where they live, and is told how to walk there by a stranger?

Okay, let's consider that for a moment. First of all, this was three miles from the child's home. Have you walked three miles lately? I have. It takes about an hour for an adult, and is taxing. Even for someone in good shape, by the end of the third mile, trust me, you feel the walk.

Furthermore, this is an area with many busy highways and very few sidewalks. So even if someone could give her directions that she could memorize and attempt to follow, it's not so easy to walk home from there.

And I would imagine that, had this hysterical young child asked any adult how to walk home from there, they would have asked the child how they came to be alone there in the first place. And when the child told the adult that they were ordered out of the car by their angry mother, any reasonable adult would have notified the police.

It's obvious from your comments that you know nothing about children, which is fine, but then perhaps you should be in read-only mode here rather than leaving such unfounded commentary.

See this in the Wall Street Journal comments?

"I had the unfortunate incident of meeting the Primoff’s when they stayed at our family lodging establishment last year. I am not surprised this woman did this to her children at all. In six years of managing our establishment I have never had any customers be so rude and verbally abusive towards me. They are the only guests I have ever blacklisted. I feel sorry for the children. Do not cut Mrs Primoff any slack she is an unkind person. Judging by the way she treated me, I am sure she treats her children even worse!"

BITCH!

LOL, bitch is getting plenty of positive press for her firm as Good Morning America just ran a story on her. If Kaye Scholer wants to make lemonade out of lemons they could always make her the head of the firm's new family law practice.

bitch gets called out

Thank god that the passerby was a decent person that bought the child an icecream and flagged down the police and not some weirdo perv. Thank god we have a stupid woman being charged with a crime and not an amber alert. Unbelievable stupidity.

Thank god that the passerby was a decent person that bought the child an icecream and flagged down the police and not some weirdo perv. Thank god we have a stupid woman being charged with a crime and not an amber alert. Unbelievable stupidity.

Thank god that the passerby was a decent person that bought the child an icecream and flagged down the police and not some weirdo perv. Thank god we have a stupid woman being charged with a crime and not an amber alert. Unbelievable stupidity.

First the Today show and now Good Morning America. Seriously, how long can Kaye tolerate this horrible publicity? This story ain't going away anytime soon, especially with her due back in court next month.

This is the kind of thing that can do permanent damage to a firm's reputation.

400th?

The culture has gone completely overboard on "protecting the children".

How often do kids *really* get picked up by serial killer rapists? Do you really think that's an every day occurrence?

All of you people who are so shocked (!) that a 10-year-old had to spend some amount of time on her own really need to get over yourselves.

Clearly, these kids got off too easily. She should have waterboarded them, then loved them in a box with a insect. Now THAT would have taught them a lesson. And improved national security too.

For all those folks bragging about how your parents beat/abandoned you and how it was great because it made you grow up, please (a) see a shrink and (b) don't have kids.

Wow. Just wow.

I too am suspicious of this "good samaritan" who somehow convinced an "emotional" child to accompany him/her somewhere else. Not a good move, under any circumstance.

On several occasions, I've noticed and assisted lost children--at beaches, malls, department stores--as would anyone walking in crowded places without their heads up their asses. Lost children are fairly easy to spot as they're alone, crying (usually hysterically) and frantically looking about.

Common sense dictates the following:

1. Stand by the child and scout around. 9 times out of 10, you will spot an adult also frantically searching about, sometimes just a few feet away.

2. Do not touch them.

3. Do not move them. The adults will usually return to the spot they last saw the child.

4. Do not give them anything. Your purpose is to protect the child from harm. Nothing more.

5. If an adult does not turn up after a few minutes, signal a security or sales person to come to you and accompany them to a lost and found location. At a beach, get a lifeguard. At other outdoor locations, call the police. Whoever gets there first--parent, police or lifeguard--relieves you of your responsibility and you may now go on your merry way.

Congratulations. This 5 minute investment will get you into heaven.

This woman is a menace and needs to spend time in forced therapy after her stint in the clinker. I have 7 year old twins who do battle in the back seat constantly and I would never in my wildest imagination even threaten them with abandonment. Leave them on the street to walk home in 3 years when they are 10? No chance. Do kids these days need to be less coddled? Perhaps, but dumping bratty kids with no survival skills at dusk far away from home isn't the right way to toughen them up. Rather, she endangered their lives, IMO. White Plains sure isn't Mayberry RFD either. I vote for jail time plus a long community service stint and the homeless shelter.