I'm having a hard time about this too and wondering how any parent could let their child roam for hours like that unsupervised. Where I live, that would be called negligent. Given the fact that this was always a safe town, I would still think the girls would check in at some point just to eat lunch, have a snack, get a drink, or go to the bathroom. Maybe we haven't been given all of this info yet. Most 2nd graders would be starting 2nd grade at age 7, turning 8 sometime that school year. One of the girls was already 9, which could have meant she was repeating a grade. There might be a reason why she is 9 and in 2nd grade. I knew this person once who took his child out of 1st grade for the whole year just to tour the states making her a year behind. If it was due to her having trouble in school, I would wonder what kind of support this child was getting at home and how much freedom she had. Again, alot of info hasn't been released, I'm just looking at every angle. Were the girls maybe drawing on the garage door because they were mad at their friend and trying to get her in trouble? I have a 9 yr old dd and I honestly can't see her doing that. These little girls had too much free time and not enough structure. No matter what they did or who they might have upset, they didn't deserve to be murdered. We really have to take this serious and know where our children are!