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Like most people, I was always taught to not play in the street, and if I was riding something to stay out of the way and avoid traffic.
Unfortunately, others feel it's okay to play in the street, even when there are city laws that say it's illegal
Image credits: George Barker (not the actual photo)
On one tight corner of my hometown there is a family of 4 kids between the ages of 8-18, and their mother actively encourages them to play in the road, and they have even put up basket ball hoops.
I run a delivery business and several times over the past few years, whenever this woman's kids are playing, they don't leave the street and she comes out and yells at us for passing by
Image credits: Andrea Piacquadio (not the actual photo)
Usually, because her kids start screaming. I am a safety and legal type person, and today, when they refused to leave the street, I told the kids that it was illegal to have the hoop and be playing. As always, they ran to tell their mother who came out and started yelling at me while I was making a delivery to her neighbor.
When I tried to drive away they called me names and told me I should call the police. So, I parked safely, just up the road, and called the police
Image credits: Pixabay (not the actual photo)
Told them where to meet us. When the officer came, I explained we have been having an issue and specified that I was concerned about safety, and what they were doing was illegal and dangerous. A mother should not be encouraging illegal behavior, in my opinion. The officer said he didn't know the ordinances involved, but he felt it was okay to have kids playing outside rather than indoors. I left the situation without talking to the mother again, and went home to find the actual ordinance. I then called and left a message for the officer telling him which one it was.
So, am I in the wrong? Should I just ignore the kids' refusal to get out of the road and agree with the officer that it's okay since it gets them out of the house?
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