I would lie, cheat, steal, kill/die for the sake of my kids' welfare. But not for detergent and fabric softener. That was a senseless crime. How stupid can you be.

 

Thanks for the update Space, here is a little more, looks like the dead lady was a good person, when children are involved things can become complicated.


HAZELWOOD -- The driver who crashed into a light standard Tuesday, killing the mother of his two children, had just eluded police after stealing two bottles of liquid laundry detergent from a Family Dollar Store, police said Wednesday.
Paramedics aiding the man in the wreckage found the detergent bottles stuffed in his overalls, said Hazelwood Police Chief Carl Wolf. The man, identified by the dead woman's family as Anthony Minor, was in critical condition.
Fatally injured in the wreck was front-seat passenger Lashonda Lynette White, 35, of north St. Louis County. White and Minor's two children -- a girl, 4, and boy, 2 -- were restrained in carseats in the backseat and didn't suffer life-threatening injuries.
Relatives say the girl's right ear was nearly torn off in the crash, and her younger brother suffered bruises but will be okay.
The crash happened at the North Hanley Road exit from Interstate 270. The dollar store, in the 7400 block of North Lindbergh Boulevard, reported the theft at about 1:15 p.m. Tuesday. Police tried to stop the car, but it took off and later crashed. White was pronounced dead at a local hospital about five hours after the crash.
Lashonda White lived in the 8400 block of Chalons Court in Berkeley. One of White's younger sisters, Tracey White of Hazelwood, said Lashonda worked as a certified nurse's aide and a medication aide and was the single mother of four children, from ages 2 to 13. The two youngest were Minor's children.
"She will be missed truly," said Tracey White, a psychiatric social worker.
"She didn't come from a bad family. We grew up in the Central West End on Pershing in a two-parent family. She attended Cleveland High School and Ladue Middle School. She didn't smoke, she didn't drink, but she couldn't shake the father. She was trying to save the father of her children. She couldn't shake him out of her life," Tracey White said.
Relatives had tried repeatedly to convince Lashonda to leave Minor, whom they describe as a heroin addict recently released from jail.
Police confirm that the man who stole the detergent was in the store with the 4-year-old girl. White and the 2-year-old boy stayed in the car, Chief Wolf said. Police got a call that the thief left in a silver Monte Carlo. A Hazelwood police officer on patrol spotted a car matching that description and tried to stop the car near Interstate 270 and Lindbergh.
Wolf said the officer's dash camera clearly shows the car putting on its brake lights and going off to the side, as if it was going to stop, but then sped off. The officer's supervisor told the patrolman not to chase the car because the case dealt only with a shoplifting. The driver kept going, and the officer came upon the crash scene, Wolf said.
Despite the little girl's account to relatives that police were shooting at their car, Chief Wolf said no shots were fired during the incident.
Tracey White said her mother, Deborah Johnson of north St. Louis County, "prayed everyday that my sister would leave him and that God would open her eyes. Unfortunately she had to go and identify her daughter yesterday."
Tracey White said she threatened to have the children removed from the home because she was worried about what Minor might do. Previously, he'd been seen standing on the side of the road, pretending to be out of gas, trying to get money from people. He would have one of the children with him. When Tracey heard about it from a friend and told Lashonda, Lashonda hadn't known was Minor was doing and was in tears.
"He would try to use his children as a pawn to getting money," Tracey White said. "My sister said she was going to let him know that this was the last time, and if he couldn't get it together she was planning on leaving him. Sure enough, less than a week after he got out of jail, he went in and, unbeknownst to her, did this.
"This was a trip to the store gone wrong."
The family blames the children's father for stealing the detergent, but they also want to know more details about what police did. Wolf said there was no pursuit. He said the department policy says officers can't pursue over a minor theft, and that the officer followed the policy in this case.
Tracey White said she hopes people can understand that her sister loved her children.
"She was a loving mother. She had just taken her kids to Six Flags the week before because it was her 13-year-old's birthday. She took them out for a special day. She loved her children. She dressed them, she cut their hair for them. She did my niece's hair. She was a very loving mother and, unfortunately, she also loved their father, who did this senseless act and led to this pursuit and ultimately caused her to lose her life."
- From the St Louis Post Dispatch
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/c...7a4a78c22.html

and Gregory, I don't think it is right to lie for your childrens sake, I think it sets a bad example and really does them no benefit. I suspect you were making a point you would do almost anything for your children, and you would sacrifice your own needs, but lying, stealing, cheating are not right in any situation.

 

Scooby, I understand what you are trying to say, and for the most part I agree with you. However, if it came down to a matter of life/death, I would absolutely throw all decency out the door to protect my children. Not having laundry detergent is NOT life or death. I was very poor growing up. My mother had my handicapped brother, my sister and myself living out of a station wagon. We would go to McDonald's and get hot water and ketchup to make tomato soup. My mother did everything in her power to care for us kids, and did it without resorting to lying, cheating or stealing. She was a perfect role model and to this day has never disgraced herself. I believe that if any of her kids were in a life or death situation, she would have done ANYTHING to protect us. Even if it meant tarnishing her reputation.

 

Gregory, I understand, we were coming from two diff perspectives, you were talking about a life and death situation, and I was thinking about when little jimmy got in trouble for doing something wrong and the parent lies to cover it up and keep them out of trouble.
It all makes sense now and I agree with you, I still think lying, stealing, and cheating is wrong, but in life or death situation the rules go out the window.

 

Sorry about that. I was thinking about my post yesterday and was wondering if I came off as rude. I wasn't trying to be. Have you heard anything else about the condition of the kids? Do you know what kind of charges are pending?

 

That accident looks like we're lucky we can even tell it was a CAR!!!

What is with people. First, you comit a crime and have your kids with you (not a very good role model, strike 1), you speed off from an officer (strike 2), and this was all for laundry soap....(strike 3)?

I'm with ScoobyDoo and Miller, if it were life or death, or I can even understand to get food to feed your kids, I can see that. But to engage in a high speed chase over soap?? It cost one adult life, scared those kids I'm sure, and destroyed a car that in scrap metal cost was easily worth more then that soap.....

It's horrible situation and the needs don't justify the cost in any way. It's sad the one most guilty is not the one to pay the highest price (or at least not yet)....

 

Wow! That was one heck of a wreck. Hopefully the others come out ok.

 

Omg! I saw that on the news, very very depressing =(

 

I think it's a sad commentary on life when you have to steal soap, and you're willing to go through with a highspeed chase over it. Horrible example to be setting for those kids.