December 17, 2011 in News

Father runs over toddler in Liberty Lake

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A Liberty Lake toddler sustained serious head injuries after her father accidentally ran over her with his truck Friday.

The toddler is expected to survive, said Det. David Thornburg, Spokane County sheriff’s spokesman.

Authorities say the parents were leaving their home on the 2400 block of Chase Lane when the incident occurred about 3:42 p.m. The father was in the Dodge Ram pickup getting ready to move the truck from the side of the garage and the mother, who had had to run inside for something, set the toddler down next to it, Thornburg said. The father thought the toddler was still with the mother when he began to back up and ran over the 18-month-old girl.

The parents left for the hospital and flagged down an ambulance at Mission Avenue and Molter Road so paramedics could take over.

Neither alcohol nor drugs appear to be factors, Thornburg said, and the father gave a voluntary blood sample.

The sheriff’s office is investigating.

11 comments on this story so far. Add yours!

• 

  Dazzeetrader11 on December 17 at 4:10 p.m.

  NEVER leave an 18 month old unattended unless they’re in bed. Just plain stupid! If I was the father though, I’d have told those idiots who wanted a blood sample to go jump in the lake! How outrageous to even ask!

• 

  johnclarke on December 17 at 4:19 p.m.

  Daisy, is there no end to your stupid posts? This is a terrible tragedy and what the hell does it matter if he provided a blood sample. You would think most parents would want to ensure they were cooperating.

  I hope this does end in bad news.

• 

  nslopeofw on December 17 at 4:39 p.m.

  Gotta go with you again, JC. Bad scene, no sense throwing blame. I’m sure Dad feels like poo. I hope everything comes out OK, and Dad just ends up learning a scary lesson. If nothing was illegal, its just covering the bases. After all, if it were a drug related issue, this would be identified, and charges filed. Hope everything turns out good!

• 

  oneanddone on December 17 at 4:44 p.m.

  Always thought DZ was just a flake. It’s obvious from this and other mindless posts that this person is a right wing snob who should go live in Ecuador or someplace. What a sh*thead.

• 

  Spokane Indoctrination on December 17 at 5:03 p.m.

  I can’t believe how dense some of you guys are. Are you guys seriously proposing that it’s a reasonable thing to do to leave an 18 month old by themselves next to a Dodge pickup truck? Anyone who does that is a bad parent. No question about it.

  I can understand why they would want a blood sample from the guy. Why not get a blood sample from the mother too? How dumb are you to do something like that? Maybe she was just too lazy to take that little girl with her.

  Unlike John Clarke… I hope this DOESN’T end in bad news.

• 

  JeanieSpokane on December 17 at 6:35 p.m.

  This is a horrible tragedy. I am so sorry for the parents and the grief and guilt they are going through. Insensitive remarks will not help. My cousin backed over her 3-year-old daughter, thinking she was still inside the house, when the little girl in fact snuck out to be with her Mom. It was beyond horrible - and her daughter died. Ten years later, Mom still grieves and with much love from her family, she has stopped beating herself up. You can never take it back. And all readers here are not exempt from this happening to you. It was a terrible decision - one that happens (like forgetting a child is in the car on a hot day - it is one of those tragedies that happen even to the most doting parent). My heart goes out to this family - please, God, embrace this family and child.

• 

  misjustice on December 17 at 6:47 p.m.

  What a sad accident. I hope that the little girl makes a complete recovery.

  Dad did the correct thing in giving a sample. I’m sure he feels awful about what happened as does mom. He stood up and did the right thing after this horrible incident and is to be commended, not questioned, for cooperating with the investigation.

  Accidents happen, that’s why they are called accidents; and humans can only learn from their mistakes and then move on. I’m certain that these parents will never make this mistake again. I hope that they are not too harsh on themselves and that other folks aren’t either.

  Best wishes for a speedy recovery little one.
  : )

• 

  johnclarke on December 17 at 7:43 p.m.

  Um obviously I meant that this child is able to recover and does not end in bad news. Yes, does NOT.

• 

  sustainable on December 17 at 9:44 p.m.

  Thank you Jeanie for a great comment. What a horrific accident. To anybody who would cast stones here remember, it was an accident and they can happen to anybody. My family’s prayers go out for these folks.

• 

  Dazzeetrader11 on December 17 at 10:38 p.m.

  Clarkie…you said what you said. Quit drinking you old sot. Obviously this is a bad…no worse…a terrible thing.
  We hope this baby recovers.
  Still though, what rule or law dictates some cop can demand blood when some innocent thing goes very wrong?. It’s an accident at his own house. Building a case against unfortunate parents who didn’t think things through is well beyond normal boundaries.
  Lil ones are so fragile. Let’s hope this one doesn’t face trouble and fully recovers.

• 

  johnclarke on December 18 at 9:09 a.m.

  Ya just can’t quit Daisy.