This is exactly why I am not letting my daughter go to her friends house when she is older unless I know she will supervised, I drop her, and I pick her up, and I know the parents and children. Of course I am sure Elizabeth's mom probably thought she was safe going to the home only a couple hours away. Last month my 9 year old neice went to her friends house down the street. She came home crying. Apparently the brother of her friend came outside with another child and threw her down on the ground in dog poop kicking her in the stomach and the head. My sister made remarks, but made no attempt to do something about it. I on the other hand was furious. Not only because I now have a daughter and would not accept something like this happening to her, but because this was my neice who I cared for as well. I got up and told her you may not do something but I will. I jumped in my car and went down to the childrens home. I knocked on the door and told the mother. She called the boy in there and he said he was just "playing". She said, "Well you know how little boys are". I responded by saying, "well if that is how your son likes to play, he is no longer welcome at my parents and she is not to go there, if you see her there please tell her to go home". My neice plays in my parents fenced in backyard where she also lives. If another child comes over she is always quick to sneek away with them when she knows nobody is looking. Most of the times she asks first and usually it's right nextdoor or a couple houses down and she is watched as she walks, but if she is told no she will sneek. She has never been disciplined for her actions, so she will more then likely continue to do so even as unsafe as it is. My daughter on the other hand will be taught to listen to us when we tell her no. She is already does so. I don't believe in spankings but there will be an alternate punishment if she chose not to listen to us. Kids are cruel these days and you never know what they can be capable of.