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The act of leaving an elementary school child home alone could soon be explicitly illegal, depending on whether a Manitoba judge decides to convict a mother for leaving her six-year-old home alone for 90 minutes.

Coming at the same time as a Maryland mother was investigated for letting her children walk to a park alone, the Manitoba case could signal the beginnings of a Canadian legal ban on latchkey kids — even when the child isn’t in danger.

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“The Crown is arguing that the inherent dangers of leaving the child in a house should be sufficient,” said Mike Law, lawyer for the accused Winnipeg mother, whose name has not been made public.

Calling the case “precedent-setting,” Mr. Law said neither he nor prosecutors have found any record of a parent being convicted for leaving their school-age child in a home that, to all outside observers, is risk-free.

“No broken glass, no knives left around, it wasn’t the middle of winter, it wasn’t an apartment building where windows could be opened,” said the defence lawyer.