<p>A High School Cheerleader from Randolph, NJ was in Hawaii for a competition and fell off the balcony from her hotel room. This was truly a very sad story.</p>
<p>Her parents successfully sued the chaperone:</p>
<p>[Parents</a> of dead Randolph cheerleader win judgment against chaperone - Breaking News From New Jersey - NJ.com](<a href=“http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/05/parents_of_dead_randolph_cheer.html]Parents”>Parents of dead Randolph cheerleader win judgment against chaperone - nj.com)</p>
<p>^Why would anyone take on the thankless job of being a chaperone knowing that it could mean such liability?</p>
<p>A boy from our local high school fell off a balcony in Italy a couple of years ago. The kids were jumping back and forth between balconies, apparently! He was paralyzed, but I think he’s doing better now. It’s been a long haul, though. I agree with ellemenope - I don’t think I would be a chaperone after hearing these stories.</p>
<p>Last night I heard that the older sister of one of my D’s friends, who is at college in Tennessee, jumped from one balcony to another on a dare,apparently while sober. She fell, broke her hip, and has probably messed her back up for life. And this girl is a great kid. Responsible, level headed, mature for her age- this is literally the first really stupid thing I’ve ever heard that she did, and I’ve known her since she was nine.</p>
<p>My daughter has a balcony safety lecture coming up in her immediate future.</p>
<p>A few years ago, a freshman at SMU was killed when he and his friend were playing on top of the dorm elevator…yes, outside of the passenger part…on top. The kid was bright enough to get into SMU but thought it would be fun to ride on top of the elevator. </p>
<p>Most of us fear that under some circumstances, our own kids would be capable making similar idiotic decisions. In school I was a total straight arrow with fantastic grades, yet I did something my last semester in college that could have gotten me kicked out of school. It wasn’t a safety issue but boy was it dumb! Even smart young people can have great lapses in judgment.</p>
<p>Reading about that family in Florida is heart breaking. </p>
<p>There is something wrong with the way our brains have evolved. We have all the judgment we need during a time in our lives when we don’t have the energy to use it. It’s the 16 year old with boundless energy and imagination who needs the judgment.</p>
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<p>Isn’t this the truth?</p>