http://www.madison.com/tct/news/police/4...

Same guy?

Chezwick.... I know, LOL.

I think it's funny that the same people that launch scuds at each other in these posts might randomly cross at the store and trade "have a nice day".
Good job girls.

I think these kids did a great job by running to call the police! Don't go jumping all over the parents for being somewhere in the house while the kids are out playing. You want unsupervised mayhem regarding children? Try the kids leaving Craig high school every afternoon! Shouting and swearing, running in traffic,inappropriately dressed for the weather and don't get me started on the driving.

Kids on a trampoline are the least of anyone's worries... especially when they are in their own yard and know how to behave in a dangerous situation.

"according to the news release" could they say that just ONE more time ;)

I do love how completely off the subject others can get while posting...

It was very entertaining to read over breakfast this morning. :)

It did make me LOL, so thank you for that :)

Nice complaint!

Don't some of you have better things to do then check this page every 5 minutes to see what you can bitch about?

Honestly people... GROW UP!
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don't you have anything better to do other than complain about the people on here?

It's pretty sad when kids are not safe playing in their yard. Even sadder when people somehow immediately question poor parenting. It sounds like a case of street smart kids doing the right thing which is probably a reflection on good parenting. The bottom line here, in my mind, is to focus on catching this predator and pressuring the law makers for harsher laws governing such behavior.

I wonder if this guy has anything to do with the guys in the red van?! we live only a few houses down from the 15 yr old they tried to get in s. beloit. My daughter is only 3 and I have had to explain stranger danger to her..its sad that we have to teach them younger these days, because it scares my daughter every time she sees a red van...but at least I know she understood the point I was trying to get across!

I dont know a 10 year old who would go to a stranger who offered CANDY...now if it was an IPod or something, the story could be different.
The parents obviously taught the kids how to act and did a good job at it. These girls were smart by warning him they were calling the cops and telling their parents. Good Job girls!!! I know I was playing outside without supervision when I was at least 10. The whole neighborhood was, there were tons of kids outside. People complain that kids aren't outdoors enough, not getting enough exercise. Well parents simply dont always have the time to "watch" their kids outside. There are full time jobs, laundry, dinner, cleaning...the chores dont do themself. Now you want to blame the parents for not being out there. Might as well put them in front of the babysitter (TV) and keep them "safe" that way.

Now get the creeper off the streets

Koodoos to the girls for doing the right thing. As far as a "10 yr old is not responsible enough to watch a 4 yr old as he could've taken anyone of them". Sure he could've taken anyone of them he could've even took the parents if they were outside. Look at how many abudtions take place everyday of men and women that are 20 yrs and older whether they willingly get in a vehicle or not. If you raise your child to be responsible and mature they will be ok to keep an eye on their siblings while mom/dad are in the house periodically checking on them. No child neglect here.

cliché

I think some of has forgotten that there are ALOT of people who read this and DON'T comment! The way I look at it, commenting here gives a great opportunity for us to hear other's perspectives, open our minds to new ideas, share stories that could help another, etc. The judgements and ridicule are doing no good.

As for THE STORY......HATS off to the parents for teaching their children the lessons they have! I agree a 10 year old is old enough to watch their siblings outside in THEIR OWN yard. If they were wandering the streets, it would be a different story. As far as the comment about the fourth ward....I live on the eastside and there are plenty of parents who do not keep a close enough eye on their kids. Parenting skills and values have nothing to do with how much money one has!

Since when do parents need to sit outside and stare at their children playing in their own yard?? However, they were on a trampoline, which begs for supervision.

lynda i think you shared kind words with stormy and it was very nice of you to do so and finally even though it was off topic it was not to bash another poster it was to sympathize with them. so i think you had a great post on topic or off.

my statement may not have anything to do with the subject here but I felt stormyone deserved to know that I read their post.

i agree hannah it's fine to debate that makes things interesting but when you start calling people names and bashing them if they mispell is not part the game. people have an option if you know you don't like the poster then don't read what they post skip on to the next one

stormyone, I'm really sorry you had such a hard childhood and I hope the people doing it were brought to justice. There are those that tend to turn a deaf ear on such defensless children when it's obvious that abuse is going on in the home.. My heart goes out to you.

Yes hannah, I know. It came up an hour after I posted the other comment. It was the number one comment so I posted there knowing people may read it.

What is your point anyway?

You people really need to get a life.
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i guess that is the only contribution you have to the article. very good i think you are the winner of bloggers today lol

gmaof3 - i totally agree with it is a balancing act that is very hard one to do. yes my first reaction to this article was where were the parents and that is because had those girls not been so quick with their very smart actions something horrible could of happened. like i said before my kids are two years apart and i do teach them look out for each other and when they are old i am sure that my feelings of them going out alone will change right now they are 3 and 15 months and they don't go out alone obviously ever. at least this is one story where the bad guy did not accomplish his evil mission and i pray pray pray that they catch this guy, i suppose if he is actually wearing a ski mask it won't be that hard to miss him if he does attempt it again.

You people really need to get a life.

My 2 cents worth...
Children who are given the proper instructions, as to where and with who and for how long, will learn to trust their own judgement. The parents who start "stranger danger" at an early age, stand the best chance of having safe kids. That said, I understand the fear that comes with raising kids. Things seem so much more out of our control than when I was growing up in the 60's.... We'd leave the house in the morning, have lunch at whoever's house we were at and come home for supper... then back out till the street lights came on!!!

I gave my children the same freedom, within reason... they knew where they were allowed to play... if they went for bikerides, I knew approximately what streets they would be on.... Now this was up until they were in their early teens. But as children, I taught them well.... they may have had a scare or two, but they used their common sense and what they learned and handled it well. Was I ever panicked??? Of course! There were the few times that they got distracted and neglected to call or run home to check in. But for the most part, they had an enjoyable fun childhood.

My daughter is a touch more protective than I HAD to be, but her children are well rounded - informed kids.... Even the 4 year old! I would rather see kids have some freedom (within reason) than be afraid of their own shadow and grow up to be clingy/needy adults.

Just my own opinion of course!!!

i get that you can't hold your kids hands forever i have two small children and they are being taught to look out for each other, but unfortunetly kids are snatched at any age babies, pre teens and older teenagers. it makes it scary to have children these days and hard as a parent to find a middle ground to protect them from the dangers of this world

Unfortunately, latinmami, this will never blow over. There will alway be another looking for the forbidden. I don't want to pinpoint the 4th ward area because there are other areas that are just as bad. We seriously call Main St Pedofile Row or Sexual Predator Row. It is a never ending battle and unfortunatly, while we can do the best that we can to keep an eye on our kids... it is not always possible. It only takes a moment while a back is turned for whatever (viable) reason and their gone. Take Adam Welsh for example. A perfectly respectable person, and father who lived in a perfectly respectable town. Child lost forever. My husband and I teach our children to watch each others backs, to never go anywhere alone, to stay in the yard, and to never go with strangers. We also teach them, though, that even friends can be strangers. This is the scary part. WE CANNOT hold onto our kids forever because forever never ends. All we can do is hope that they learn what we teach them and that we are teaching them in a way that they can learn and remember.

My other comments are more relevant than your misspelled psycho babble.
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as long as the comments are about the topic of the story then they are relevant just because you ASSume you are smarter than someone does not mean that your post is any better than the one before yours or after yours
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with this man still out and about no matter how well the children have been trained to not go with strangers i think the parents should keep a close on all children no matter what age until this is over at least

Don't the kids know that candy will rot their teeth? This story can't be real. If the person was really interested in luring children, why would he wear a mask?

these parents should be praised instead of ridiculed. these girls didnt learn this was a dangerous situation on their own. there is nothing wrong with your kids playing in your yard at 6 oclock at night, and expecting them to be safe. and for those of you posting about abuse you have witnessed in your neighborhood , the only thing worse then the parent for letting the abuse go on is the neighbor who knows and doesnt report it

Hannah, do you only read the comments with your name on them? My other comments are more relevant than your misspelled psycho babble.

maybe the trampoline has a net around the outside?

Hannah, ur right, it definitely wasn't cold enough out to warrant a ski mask. My only guess is that either someone was looking out the windows and witnessed to a certain extent or that the kids got a good description. Some kids have awesome memories when it comes to detail.

Wow.

How do you know how unsupervised they were? Maybe mom was just in going to the bathroom. Maybe just the 10 year old was on the tramp.. and the rest of the kids were off. Without further explanation to that extent... there's really know way to know. Again, it goes to the level of supervision/protection that a parent choosed to provide their children.

The cops were out in the area full force and were unable to find anyone matching the description. The description went from a gray hoodie to a gray t-shirt in a matter of minutes. The scanners were buzzing for quite some time about this.

I'm surprised no one is commenting about four kids aged 4 to 10 playing on a trampoline unsupervised.

I knew about this on Friday night (via police scanner) and have been watching the papers and news since Friday night. This is the first that I have seen it in the public at all. And the guy is still at large? I live down the street from where this happend (Main St, pedofile and sex offender row). I don't see how, even using the buddy system, we are supposed to feel comfortable letting our kids out to play whether they are 2 or 15. How am I supposed to teach my kids responsibility if even I don't feel comfortable being outside by myself for too long?

rustytrombone, true, it would have been a nice case of self-defense. Sick people need to be dealt with!

Why is everyone commenting on the kids, what about the scumbag that tried to nab some kids. This scumbag should be tossed over the bridge with heavy shoes!

The way I see it there are three levels of parenting.
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1)overprotective, afraid to trust your children to do anything, probably the type that would go to their kids job interview to shield them from the tough qutestions

2)completely oblivious, have no idea what your kids are doing or saying, let them have whatever they want because it is easier than dicipline or saying no

3) sensible, give children opportunities to prove themselves inside given boundries that are age appropriate. Allowing them to make mistakes and learn from them. Realize that you cannot gaurd over your children 24x7 and prepare them for emergency situations.

Used to have a neighbor on the east side who let their 4 kids, all under about 7, wander all over with no supervision. The 2-year old was often in another neighbor's yard out of the sight of the parents house. Sadly, there are bad parents everywhere. BUT in this case, the 10 year old proved that she WAS responsible enough to be in charge of the younger ones. Great job!
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Seems strange that this perp was wearing a ski mask and t-shirt! Um, that wouldn't look out of place or anything??? What child would go with a stranger in a black ski mask??? At least we can feel better knowing that the kids of this town are probably smarter than this idiot!

How sad so many people think that the quality of the home and property make the people. Growing up on "Pill Hill" also known as "Indian Reservation" a very nice section of Janesville at the time, yet I was beaten and violated for years while doctors, laywers, 'well to do's' did nothing. No one reported the screams as I was beat, not spanked, beat. I was labeled a problem child. Climb off your high horses and pay attention to what goes on in your own community.

sick fool needs to be sent to a place with his other sick friends. We don't need to allow them to violate our children!

The 10 year old behaved perfectly and definitely demonstrated that she can supervise her younger siblings. At 11, they can be red-cross certified to babysit other children. These kids are about the same ages as mine- I have 4 kids (3 1/2, 5, nearly 9, and, nearly 11). My 11 year old is perfectly capable of supervising the children in OUR YARD! Hello! Do you never let your kids outside to play? The parents have done nothing wrong. YOunger siblings listen to older ones, and, the girls were obviously well educated in how to handle themselves in this very scary situation.

Congratulations to the girls and their parents- they all did the right thing!

As far as parents not watching their kids in the 4th ward, I live on the East side and have seen kids 4 and even younger outside in their yards alone plenty of times.

Mainstreet, I was thinking the same exact thing. Hello, luckily no one actually was taken over the weekend since we just became aware of it this morning. Something like this should have hit papers immediately, not 3 days later.

here is the bottom line if you don't like my posts you can skip right by them. no one is forcing any of you to read them. and there are plenty of people on these forums who post over and over and over again not just me.

The scary thing mayormccheese is that latinmama is posting at a rate of 9.3 posts per day while serial posters gazettefan is at 7.7 and Hannah is 6.4 per day respectively. They are amateurs in comparison.

The ten year old in this story shows EXACTLY why they were responsible enough to be watching them. They acted exactly as a responsible well tought older sibling should of. I can just see Justsaynotomath walking through the Janesville mall with her kids tethered to her with leashes.

Go away latinmammamia, just go away. You have reached your limit of stupid comments for this story. It's time to move on to the next one.

i do hope they catch this guy because he seems to be on a mission to get somebodies baby no matter where when or how. i say since it is known that he is out and about keep your kids within you sight at least until this creep is off the streets.

nics04...Just to let you and anyone else judging 4th ward parents...My husband and I live in the 4th ward and our children are very well taken care of and paid attention to! This man is probably some creep from another part of Janesville.

i do get that installing the stranger danger lesson into children is good i have started that with my 3 yr old, but because this world is getting crazier and crazier perfect expample here this man tried to pick these kids up right outside their home, that is pretty ballsie (sp?) if you ask me. a ten yr old is probably responsible enough to look out for the younger children and i guess it is not really the kids that i don't trust in doing the right thing it is the adult who is trying to steal these kids that makes me worry

Let's focus on getting this deviant off the street and to prison where Bubba can have some fun with him.

Nice to see people generalizing the 4th Ward. "The parents don't watch their kids in the 4th ward." Neither do parents in other parts of the city. Next time, before you generalize a stereotype, you had best think if that stereotype doesn't apply to the WHOLE city.

"with a 8, 9 or 10 year old keeping an eye on the younger ones" Read the comment Latinmama, at one point the youngest was less than 4.

I used to live in that area. The parents don't really pay attention to their kids in the 4th ward.

8,9,10 that is a little different than a 4yr old out there with them

It's not like the parents were out partying and no where to be found (at least you can't tell that from the column).
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These girls are so much further ahead than if their mother or father were hovering around. They obviously recognized the danger and acted appropriately.

To add to the last comment. If we as parents or just good adults also become more vigilant at keeping an eye on our neighborhood we can take back the streets and make them safe again.

You can't leave a four year old with a ten year old in your yard without the parent having 100% supervision? That's just ridiculous. My kids played in our yard all the time with a 8, 9 or 10 year old keeping an eye on the younger ones. They took the babysitting class at eleven and watched neighbor kids with NO adults at home. Let loose of the apron strings and they will learn to be independent young adults some day.

bravo to the parents. they obviously taught the kids to do the right thing. 4 girls in that age bracket are more than ok to play outside by themselves.

Good job girls! At least they were taught what to do! I know everyone says wheres the parents. Maybe they were within view outside the window and the mom had to run a load of laundry for a couple minutes. I mean life happens! As a parent you cannot see every thing they do every second but you do your best to keep an eye on them. You cant be helicopter parents and hover over your children's every move. You can equip them with the knowledge and tools to help them do the right things though. I think the mom probably figured they were outside altogether and the 10 year old would know what to do.

I have a 4 yr old son and hes learning about stranger danger at this age. All I can say is start your kids early on educating them about stranger danger.

If you are looking for any common sense, reasoning or civility don't expect it from justsaynotomath or latinmama.
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i think wondering why a 4 yr old is outside without parental supervision is a logical question. a 10 yr should not be in charge. anything could of happened and thank god it didn't but it could of.

i don't let my kids outside without supervision for this reason alone. that is why i asked

Wow, I realize there is danger out there but when I was a kid I wasn't always within eyesight of my parents.
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I agree that if a 10 year old can't be out in their yard playing without a parent watching every second, something is really wrong with the world.
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If parents are that over-protective kids will never learn to deal with the world. What is that 10 year old going to do once they are 16, 21, 25 when faced with difficult situation.
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Instruct your children what do do in dangerous situations, you can't protect them 24x7 no matter how hard you try. You are only handicapping your children.

If you are looking for any common sense, reasoning or civility don't expect it from justsaynotomath or latinmama.

How awful, but before everyone goes where are the parents, a ten year old is responsible enough and old enough to supervise her younger siblings without an adult in their own yard or to have friends over and play without constant adult supervision. I'm sure this whole situation lasted less than a minute. Obviously these children had been instructed exactly what they should do and did it!

The parents were probably in the house. The article says that the girls said they were going to call the police and ran inside. Assuming that the parents were in the house, neither the parents nor the kids did anything wrong in this situation. Justsayno and latin, why are you so quick to try to find fault with the parents?

no kidding where were there parents. i am glad they were smart enough not to go with him that could of turned out dangerous. what is happening to Janesville