Image via Unsplash.com- Patti Black

9 Year-Old Cleared Of Robbery Because His Mother Had Him Dog Chained To A Porch At The Time Of The Crime

More than a century ago, a child was on his way to jail when his mother’s very questionable parenting saved him from being arrested

It’s a horrible thing to be accused of a crime that you didn’t commit. It’s decidedly worse when you’re a child and the only way to prove your innocence is having your mother admit to the police that you couldn’t possibly be responsible because during the incident she had you dog-chained to the porch of the family home.

In 1909 St. Louis, nine-year-old Frank Vitla was considered an active child. He loved to run the streets with his siblings and friends, causing concern to his mother, who was afraid that he might get run over because of the way he liked to flit in and out of traffic. Her alarm was so great that she demanded that he help his brother John sell newspapers, with the idea that such focus on making a little money (which would also aid the family) would get him to calm down.

On one fateful day, Frank refused to help John hawk papers, which led to his mother putting down her foot. Announcing that it was her way or no way, she secured her son to the porch of her home with a dog chain, where he spent the better part of eight hours (12 p.m. to 8 p.m.). However, the rather cruel arrangement ended up helping him in the long run.

During that afternoon, a local woman saw three young boys enter a house through a window, which was subsequently reported as being burglarized. When she made a report to the police, she told them that one of the youngsters was Frank, who she knew. When the authorities showed up at his house to take him in, they found him shackled by an ankle to the porch eating a plate of spaghetti and watermelon. After they saw his predicament and confirmed that his mother was the only one with a key, they realized that it was a case of mistaken identity.

It was an embarrassing situation, and Frank’s mother did her best to explain herself:

“I chained him up because he wouldn’t help his brother John sell papers.

“When he plays with the other boys, he just butts into things…