blog #4

Heather Jensen, mother of William and Tyler Jensen, has been found guilty of child abuse resulting in death, but not criminally homicide. In 2012, Jensen left her boys, ages 2 and 4, in a running SUV, with the heat cranked up, while she was doing unacceptable things in another vehicle. Heather and her lover sat in a vehicle next to the one her kids were in and had sex while smoking pot and leaving kids without supervision. Heather was a residence of Palisade on the Western Slope of Colorado. She called the authorities at 6:31 p.m. on November 27^th in the year of 2012 to report that her son William was unconscious and her son Tyler was having trouble breathing that was causing his breathe to sputter each time he tried to inhale. The son that was unconscious, William, was pronounced dead at the scenes, for the police were unable to make it in time to make any difference. The other son, Tyler, was still alive and was rushed to Saint Mary’s Hospital where he was barely breathing. Tyler was transferred to a Children’s Hospital in Denver because of his critical condition. Tyler died only a few days after the incident.

Heather originally explained that she took her two boys to a ski resort just outside of their town, and allowed the two of them to play in the snow together. Jensen described the boys as being worn down and cold, which caused her to strap them into their car seats and crank up the heat to get them warm. She step away from the car to smoke a cigarette and spoke with a friend that drove by, then got into the car. She started for home but soon after, stopped in panic because of the gurgling sound her son was making. This is what heather’s story started as, but she later changed the key aspects to show dishonesty.

After seeing that the truth involved sexual activity, drugs, and ultimately an irresponsible mother, this crime became a case of child abuse. This is an example of the way crime works, even when the outcome is not necessarily intentional.