opinion

Why isn't Rochester police investigator facing child endangerment charge?

Last week, someone took a 3-year-old boy away from a party in Greece and drove him to his home, four miles away. After being reported missing from this shindig, the child was eventually found sleeping in his otherwise empty house. It was 4 a.m.

Beyond that, public details of what transpired that night are murky.

MORE: RPD officer suspended in missing child incident

One fact, however, is obvious. His parents, including Rochester Police Investigator Jeffrey McEntee, were not supervising their child. They were at the party with everyone else, wondering where the heck their son was.

Neither McEntee, who police say appeared drunk, nor the mother of the child have been charged with child endangerment, nor has anyone whom they might have designated to babysit the boy. Kidnapping seems unlikely. No charges of any kind have been filed.

Greece Police Chief Patrick Phelan owes the community a thorough explanation.

Right now, it appears he is giving these parents a pass. And we’re wondering if it’s because one of them wears a badge.

Jia Fan, a 44-year-old Pittsford woman, does not. She left her 7-year-old son unattended in the Lego Store at Eastview Mall last July while she shopped. Fan was immediately arrested for endangering the welfare of a child.

Francisca Lopez, a 48-year-old Henrietta mother, and her sister from the Dominican Republic did the same thing with their kids, ages 7 and 9, a few weeks later.

“Neither child had any means of contacting their parents in case of an emergency,” the Ontario County Sheriff’s Office noted after quickly arresting the women for endangering the welfare of their children.

These women don’t wear badges either.

Back in March, a Rochester couple left their children sitting on a bench at Eastview while they went to their jobs at the mall. They were charged with three counts of endangering the welfare of a child. Neither of them wears a badge.

Last year, a Batavia woman left her 2-year-old twins home alone for a couple of hours one night. Tragically, fire broke out and both of her children died. She was charged with two counts of endangering the welfare of a child. She does not wear a badge, either.

Chief Phelan knows that parents should watch their children, or arrange for someone else to do so, rather than leave them alone. Greece police did not waste time before notifying Child Protective Services after last week's party.

Phelan’s defense for not taking it a step further and charging one or both parents?

“Who left the child alone? The person who took him home, right? Who is that?” he asks.

At this point, we don’t know the answer to his question. But,does it matter? We do know the two people who are required to know it.