You voiced my thoughts exactly, from either direction, I'm all with you. I know one thing for sure, I would never consider putting a step parent before my own daughter. Something is wrong in this picture, IMO.
To be fair, it is also possible it's self preservation.
If Mom admits that her stepfather is responsible for her daughter's death... then Mom by default failed to protect her daughter.
I have anxiety and serious Mom guilt. So I don't do well if my kid gets INJURED and I could have prevented it. I can't even imagine something like this. (Which is why if by some miracle I didn't hate the water and boats and most humans.... I would be wearing my toddler on a cruise. No way would they be with anyone else.)
Something is up, like it sounds like he was on drugs or something even taking what he's saying at face value. "I remember trying to find her on the floor and then I saw her fall, I saw her fall all the way down..." So first he started looking for her on the floor and then he saw her fall all the way down. By his own account him starting to look for her even though she was right in front of him caused her to fall out the window, which would at best mean he was impaired at the time.
It's also possible it was shock.
Is he a step parent? Some reports say step some say maternal.
Confusing.
He is both.
He is the maternal stepparent. So he's Chloe's Mom's stepdad. Chloe's maternal step grandfather.
It seems like something a man who was tipsy or distracted would do.
Would a sober, reasonable man prop a one yr old up on a window ledge, 11 stories up ?
No. I get it.
People are looking for some REASON for this to have happened.
Some mitigating factor even.
Was he drinking and his senses dulled?
Was he distracted by smoking?
Was he distracted by a phone?
Was he wearing polarized sunglasses that caused him to not see the color difference in the windows?
We could do a better job of clarifying that we are speculating, looking for a possible contributing factor. But we can certainly speculate.
you know I've actually thought about this...my first reaction is that I would be afraid my reaction might cause a reaction and a fall...I would hope I could have done something
Yes. This would be my reaction. I would hold my breath afraid of startling him. Similar to if you walk into a room and a toddler has a pair of scissors or a butcher knife. You don't want to scream at them and startle them.
I would try to grab Chloe if that was possible, or hold my breath until he set her down. Obviously that would have ended tragically.
This is one where there wasn't really a good response. There was only 5 seconds. The only time to intervene would have been before he picked her up in the first place. But WHO would have predicted he would do that?!
I felt like the attorney was a bit defensive regarding the drinking...He may not be a heavy drinker but it's common on embarking on various vacations to have a celebratory drink - Cuban rum in Cuba - mimosas on the way to Hawaii - etc., etc... my personal experience, anyway.
Yes. I have an aunt who doesn't drink. For religious reasons. In fact she had a son who was an alcoholic. She even had a beer at my sister's wedding reception. We were all STUNNED.
