SEBRING, Fla. – A Highlands County woman could be charged with a felony after investigators say she allowed a toddler to be bitten by a small snake as a lesson, then posted the video to Facebook.

The sheriff’s office released the video Tuesday. They say it shows Chartelle St. Laurent presenting a Tupperware container to a 1-year-old girl, whom they did not name, at her Sebring home. Inside the container is a 14-inch red rat snake, which strikes at the reaching girl.

As the girl starts crying, a female voice in the background – identified by detectives as St. Laurent – starts to laugh.

According to the charging affidavit, St. Laurent told deputies that she had grown up interacting with snakes and reptiles “of all sorts” with her father, and admitted that she allowed the girl to be bitten to teach her a lesson.

“As she has observed poisonous snakes, including coral snakes, at the property before, Chartelle St. Laurent elected to take the opportunity of finding the juvenile non-poisonous red rat snake to expose [the girl] to,” the report stated.

St. Laurent claimed that she allowed herself to be bitten by the snake first in order to “ensure no injury would be caused” to the girl. Indeed, the report noted that there were “no marks or injury” to the toddler.

“St. Laurent said that the interaction…had the desired effect and even though the snake was soon tame enough to be held, [the girl] no longer wished to touch it,” the report continues.

The 34-year-old went on to explain that the laughing heard in the video was simply out of surprise to the child’s reaction to the snake.



http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017...to-bite-toddler.html

Sick

DISGUSTING!

Sounds similar to de-snaking a dog, though my understanding is a de-fanged rattler and shock collar are used as I understand it for that training. Maybe this lady should have just kept her kid away from snakes until old enough to understand...

Well, if this happened in India, it would be a non-issue.

I'm not sure agree with the approach, but I sympathize with the concern. Posting the video on face plant is just flat stupid anyway you slice it though. When we moved out to the ranch with a couple of toddlers, I had seen mountain lions on the property six times. We drilled into the kids that the lions would eat them and they were never to go outside without an adult. My daughter just started getting over her fear of the dark around twelve. Yeah, we probably overdid it, but better that than having one of them become lion chow...

I'll be finding out about the desnaking next month as a kennel that does that training is going to do it here on the ranch one Saturday. Their snake guys came by on their way to Atascadero for a training they were doing there last month. They had several rattlers which were *not* defanged, but were double muzzled. Apparently, they also use remote speakers they can actuate with an app. It will be interesting to see how they do it.

quote:

Originally posted by slosig:
I'll be finding out about the desnaking next month as a kennel that does that training is going to do it here on the ranch one Saturday. Their snake guys came by on their way to Atascadero for a training they were doing there last month. They had several rattlers which were *not* defanged, but were double muzzled. Apparently, they also use remote speakers they can actuate with an app. It will be interesting to see how they do it.

I paid for the desnaking for my son's dog. It was a bit pricey at about $150.00 but worth every penny. They used duct tape, at least it looked like duct tape, to muzzle the snake and a shock collar on the dog. No remote speakers were used. The training is VERY effective. It was damn hard to watch but much better than a venomous snake bite. The dog now gives all snakes a lot of room. They do recommend a follow up every couple of years.

Chartelle.....says all I need to know.

Is the mom an idiot, clearly. I am not seeing a felony though. If we start handing out felonies for every stupid person raising kids the courts will be swamped.

quote:

Originally posted by TXJIM:
Is the mom an idiot, clearly. I am not seeing a felony though. If we start handing out felonies for every stupid person raising kids the courts will be swamped.

I see felony child endangerment.

quote:

Originally posted by ulsterman:

quote:

Originally posted by TXJIM:
Is the mom an idiot, clearly. I am not seeing a felony though. If we start handing out felonies for every stupid person raising kids the courts will be swamped.

I see felony child endangerment.

Do you really?

This story gets a big "meh" from me.

quote:

Originally posted by Balzé Halzé:

quote:

Originally posted by ulsterman:

quote:

Originally posted by TXJIM:
Is the mom an idiot, clearly. I am not seeing a felony though. If we start handing out felonies for every stupid person raising kids the courts will be swamped.

I see felony child endangerment.

Do you really?

This story gets a big "meh" from me.

Bless your heart.

1 and 2 year olds do not understand danger.

Coral snakes on their property?
Something has to be done.

Question:
Since 1, 2 and 3 year olds have little or no sense of danger, what is one supposed to do when they reach for a pot of boiling water on the stove? Or reach for a coral snake?

Time out? That won't work, they still do not understand they could be scarred for life from the boiling water or killed when a coral snake bites them.

Slap their hand when they reach for the boiling pot of water and they may cry?
At least they probably will not do that again for fear their hand may get slapped again.

When they are older, they will hopefully understand danger better and need no help discerning what is what and which is which.

Maybe there are some experts here that can tell me how to get super young children to understand clear and present danger which will work almost every time it's tried.

I really would like to know what will work.
I have recently become a grandfather and advice might be helpful.
I will defer to the mother for this.

quote:

Originally posted by lbj:
1 and 2 year olds do not understand danger.

Coral snakes on their property?
Something has to be done.

Question:
Since 1, 2 and 3 year olds have little or no sense of danger, what is one supposed to do when they reach for a pot of boiling water on the stove? Or reach for a coral snake?

Time out? That won't work, they still do not understand they could be scarred for life from the boiling water or killed when a coral snake bites them.

Slap their hand when they reach for the boiling pot of water and they may cry?
At least they probably will not do that again for fear their hand may get slapped again.

When they are older, they will hopefully understand danger better and need no help discerning what is what and which is which.

Maybe there are some experts here that can tell me how to get super young children to understand clear and present danger which will work almost every time it's tried.

I really would like to know what will work.
I have recently become a grandfather and advice might be helpful.
I will defer to the mother for this.

Sometimes you to have to let experience be the teacher for a child, even if the experience is unpleasant. That being said, I think there are a some variables in the video that made what the mother did unwise, at best, such as, what if she had misidentified the snake and it was in fact venomous? Was there an increased risk of disease or infection had the child's skin been broken, as opposed to the normal cuts and scraps toddlers suffer? Could the snake have struck the child in the face, or eye? The mother laughing while her child cries makes it even more upsetting.

Nothing is guaranteed to work to keep toddlers safe, and their safety should not be in their own hands, so do what you can to make sure their environment is reasonably danger free, and watch them closely. I would not let a toddler wander without close supervision in areas known to be populated by venomous snakes.

ETA: I don't mean that to come across like I think I'm saying anything you don't already know, lbj.

quote:

Originally posted by ulsterman:

Bless your heart.

Oh, you want to get personal?

Ever seen the photos of the snake so well hidden in the leaves you can't see it? One instant is all it takes for a child to get bitten by a coral or a rattlesnake. Parents cannot make the environment 100% safe all the time.

Not to mention I read that there is no anti-venin being produced for corals right now.

Glad I don't have kids. The stress would kill me.

quote:

I would not let a toddler wander without close supervision in areas known to be populated by venomous snakes.

Seems obvious, right?

I don't think the child was truly endangered, much less in a felony sense, but the parent is a dumbass and an asshole.

quote:

Originally posted by 46and2:
... but the parent is a dumbass and an asshole.

She truly was that.

Given coral snakes on the property, I'll give an A for intent, D- for execution, and F for 'Stupidbooking' the video.

For those 'mom=devil' faction, a question....if one really wanted to torment a 1 year old, would one use a 14-inch harmless snake?

quote:

Originally posted by joel9507:
Given coral snakes on the property, I'll give an A for intent, D- for execution, and F for 'Stupidbooking' the video.

For those 'mom=devil' faction, a question....if one really wanted to torment a 1 year old, would one use a 14-inch harmless snake?

Agreed.

Some of the folks in this thread crying "ABUSE!" are pretty "citified".