Talk to kids about staying safe, experts urge in light of assaults

Two crimes in nearly a week that have put young children in harm’s way are prompting warnings from experts, urging parents to have serious discussions with their kids about what to do when a dangerous situation arises. The push comes after a fouryear-old girl was abducted and sexually assaulted by a stranger while she was playing outside her home on Mother’s Day. In a separate incident on Victoria Day, a man tried to take a three-year-old girl out of a parked vehicle, assaulting a woman in the process. Both are an opportunity for parents to have honest discussions with their kids about what to do in an emergency, said Christy Dzikowicz, child safety director at the Canadian Centre for Child Protection.

“We want our kids to feel confident,” she said. “We need to remind kids that, for the most part, these are very rare occurrences, but of course we want to prevent them from happening.” Lawrence Thompson, 65, a former public school custodian, was charged in the Mother’s Day abduction. He remains in custody. Kyle Williams, 26, is charged with resisting arrest, attempting to commit an indictable offence and two counts of assault. The woman suffered minor injuries in the holiday Monday incident, police said. The three-yearold girl was not hurt. Williams made a brief court appearance on Wednesday.

His defence lawyer, Robert Sheppard, said Williams had been “quite agitated” Tuesday. Courthouse mental health workers met with Williams after he was taken out of court.

Sheppard said his client’s mental fitness is an issue.

Justice John Skowronski ordered that Williams be assessed Friday through a video link from the Elgin-Middlesex Detention Centre to a psychiatrist. He is to be returned to court on May 30 to the adult therapeutic court where the next steps will be determined.

With both cases surfacing just a week apart, parents should reassure children and answer their questions, Dzikowicz said. “This stuff is all over the news now and I think we need to be attuned to what our children are hearing,” she said.

“These situations are absolutely terrifying, but we also need kids to understand that they’re safe. We want our kids to feel safe. We want them to feel prepared.” Dzikowicz recommends parents face the issue head-on with their children, give them the facts and take the time to talk about what they can do to stay safe.

The plans don’t have to be elaborate, she said. It’s as easy as telling children to always travel with a buddy.

“Even though it seems really, really simple, it is absolutely the strongest safety strategy you’re going to be able to find. It’s something very easy for kids to understand,” she said.

Parents can also pose “what if” situations to kids and work through the scenarios, said Canada Safety Council program manager Lewis Smith. Young children should also be reminded about the people they can approach in public for help if they’re alone, whether it’s security guards, police officers, teachers or other parents. Parents should also focus on teaching broader life skills to their children, including the need to trust their intuition, think critically and exercise good judgment, Smith said.

Whatever strategy parents use to talk to their kids about safety, Dzikowicz said there’s one thing that is the most important.

“It has to be something that’s a daily conversation, a reminder ... This is an opportunity for us to talk again.”