A mother in Buffalo, New York pleads guilting to felony fraud after gambling away her son's donations to fight cancer. The mother admitted to gambling $15,000 that was raised to help her son battle leukemia. The mother states that she isn't sure of the total amount she has gambled away but does say that it is virtually all gone. She admits to being a gambling addict and faces up to four years in prison.
I feel terrible for the son with cancer and am furious by what this mother has done with her son's donations. After further reading the article I was even more angry with her for blaming it on a gambling addiction.
I have heard many stories of people who make up fraudulent organizations or charities to make money, but for a mother to gamble her own son's donations that he needs to help fight cancer is completely unacceptable. She accepts blame and says she knows she is wrong, so why not get some help? There is no talk in the article about her getting help for this addiction. I would imagine that spending your child's cancer donations would have to be pretty close to rock bottom.
I have three children and can't imagine ever putting my own needs before theirs, especially if their's was life threatening. I hope they make an example out of her and give her the maximum penalty.
Man, addiction is a bitch! I wonder if the mom thought she could double or triple that money and make life significantly better for everybody in her family. The thought process of an addict is unpredictable, she might have meant well but to the normal standard we all live by, she looked like a gamboholic. It is sad to think of kids not getting the medical needs they deserve, but I think it goes deeper than the stupid, gamboholic parents, we need to find a way to provide affordable health insurance to any citizen of this country. it's insane to think that any person without health benefits will ultimately face bankruptcy if their child or themself is faced with a major medical expense. It's scary, it could happen to any of us!!!
ReplyDelete