A case in Virginia’s colonial-era historic region has raised concerns about how child neglect laws are applied. Karyann Parkinson, a pregnant mother of four, was placed on the child abuse and neglect registry after allowing her 5-year-old son to collect goose feathers at a nearby pond without adult supervision.
The incident occurred on June 5, 2026, in the gated community of Ford’s Colony in Williamsburg, where Parkinson lives with her family. Her son had asked to collect feathers, and she agreed, confident in his ability to walk to the pond and back safely. However, a security guard intervened after a neighbor reported seeing the child walking alone, and soon law enforcement and child protective services were involved.
Child Neglect Laws Under Scrutiny
Parkinson’s case is not unique. Overly broad child neglect laws have been criticized for failing families and incentivizing parents to err on the side of constant supervision. The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act of 1974 provides federal funding to states to improve child protective services systems, but each state enacts its own laws with definitions of neglect, which often use vague language to ensure no true cases of neglect fall through the cracks.
For example, Tennessee law describes a neglected child as one who is “under unlawful or improper care,” while Mississippi law categorizes a child as neglected if they are without “proper care, custody, supervision, or support.” This vague language can lead to cases like Parkinson’s, where a parent’s decision to allow a child to engage in independent activity is misinterpreted as neglect.
Research has shown that allowing children to engage in independent activities can have positive effects on their development, such as increased confidence and ability to tolerate failure. A 2020 study found that kids who are given the freedom to roam on their own feel more confident when they handle new places in adulthood.
Consequences of Neglect Findings
A finding of neglect can have serious consequences for parents, including impact on future employment and the potential removal of the child from the home. Concurrent criminal charges can carry penalties such as imprisonment, fines, and other conditions like attending parenting classes. Mothers, who are often the primary caregivers, face increased exposure and scrutiny under these laws.
Despite efforts to amend neglect statutes and recognize childhood independence, parents continue to be punished for decisions that do not result in harm to the child. In 2018, Utah became the first state to permit children to engage in independent activities like walking to school or playing outside, and since then, 12 states have followed suit, including Georgia, which revised its neglect statute after a high-profile case involving a mother who allowed her 10-year-old son to take a walk to a nearby mountain hamlet.
The Virginia General Assembly amended its child neglect definition in 2023 to clarify that children could engage in independent activities without adult supervision, such as playing outdoors or traveling to nearby locations on foot or bicycle, provided the activities are age-appropriate and do not endanger the child. It did not define a minimum age for unsupervised activities, leaving it to parents to determine when their child is mature enough.
Karyann Parkinson has argued that she allowed her son to collect feathers to instill confidence in him, not to put him at risk. Her son had been placed in swimming lessons to ensure he would be safe around bodies of water. Parkinson has appealed her conviction and will have a jury trial in 2027. The police report noted that the 5-year-old was walking unattended about a half-mile from his home, in close proximity to a pond.
According to the police report, the security guard who intervened had been alerted by a neighbor who saw the 5-year-old walking alone. The guard then accompanied the child back to his home, where he informed Parkinson that he was calling the police to report her for neglect.
As states continue to revisit their child neglect laws, they must consider the impact of vague language on families.
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