Authorities already knew that they had a potentially deadly problem on their hands.
That's why earlier yesterday they announced a plan that they hope will persuade parents to leave their tots at home: Making it a felony, punishable by up to seven years in jail, to leave a child younger than 13 in a car.
"This is a point of personal responsibility," said state Sen. Robert "Tommy" Tomlinson, R-Bucks, who plans to introduce legislation stiffening penalties this month, along with state Rep. Gene DiGirolamo, R-Bucks, in the House. "This is a point of parenting. But also to get this message home, we need to increase the penalty . . . We need a big hammer, and a big hammer is seven years in jail."
The new legislation would enact a penalty only slightly stiffer than what offenders now face. Under current law, leaving a child unattended in a car is a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to five years in prison.
The increased penalties would apply anywhere in the state.
"It's a tragedy waiting to happen," said DiGirolamo, a father of four and grandfather of two. "It's just unconscionable to me that a parent or another caregiver could possibly think of leaving a child in the car to go gamble."
Between June 15 and Aug. 25, six parents left a combined 12 children and a puppy unattended in cars in Parx's sprawling parking lots. The children ranged from 15 months to 15 years old, and were left unsupervised from a half-hour to six hours.
The state Gaming Control Board last month told the casino to fix the problem. Parx officials said that they have permanently banned the offending parents and increased parking lot patrols.
