Mother Of Kidnapped Child Says She's Hired An Attorney
By Jericka Duncan
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – On Thursday morning, Eyewitness News spoke to the mother of the 5-year-old girl who was abducted from school.
She said her daughter is traumatized.
The victim's mother also told Eyewitness News she has obtained attorney Tom Kline.
"What happened here is a terrible crime, an unthinkable crime," said Kline. "Here we have, by all accounts, a stranger, that was unknown to this little 5-year-old girl, who was snatched in broad daylight in the middle of the school where we all expect our children to be safe."
The investigation continues. Police say they are still searching for two suspects, a male and female.
Tuesday morning, a man found the child underneath a slide at an Upper Darby playground.
On Wednesday, police recruits canvassed the Cobbs Creek neighborhood near Bryant Elementary, where the abduction happened. They handed out crime bulletins with descriptions of the suspects.
And on Thursday, some parents attended a school meeting about security changes since the kidnapping.
"We are presenting parents with a safety plan outlining specifics in how to improve safety in school," said District Spokesman Fernando Gallard.
Verifying IDs and adding more staff to monitor entrances and hallways are the key components to the new plan.
The parents Eyewitness News spoke with agree with the changes that they say should have been in place from the beginning.
"Everything sounds good, but they need to put it to play as soon as possible," said Nadine Morris.
School officials agree a conversation about school security would have never happened if proper protocol had been followed.
"There are significant issues which involve school security," said Kline. "It won't come as any surprise that I will, at some point, turn my attention there."
Kline says on Thursday, the focus is to cooperate with police and help bring the perpetrators to justice.
