A new proposal has been introduced that would make leaving any child alone at home in the state of Texas a felony.

The proposal, christened as “Sherin’s Law,” was brought about following the death of 3-year-old Sherin Mathews, a girl who was adopted from India and later found dead in a culvert in the town of Richardson. Wesley and Sini Mathews, Sherin’s adoptive parents, have since been charged with the child’s death and currently imprisoned in Dallas. The couple states that all three of them had gone out to dinner on the night prior to Sherin’s disappearance.

One of the individuals who came up with the idea for the new law says that no child should be left unaccompanied at home, especially if they are under nine or ten years of age. Attorneys have also gone on record of clarifying that books in Texas currently do not specify a minimum age in which a child can be left at home alone. In fact, the current law states that parents have the sole discretion regarding whether or not a child is mature enough to be left at home alone.

In addition to leaving a child at home, “Sherin’s Law” would also make not reporting a child as being missing within a few hours a felony as well. Other states have adopted similar laws, but currently, Texas does not.

Attorneys further state that adopting this particular law may end up creating an overlap in others laws, such as current ones involving abandonment and child endangerment, but that “Sherin’s Law” would help make everything much more black-and-white.

According to local media, a number of representatives have expressed a great deal of interest in wanting to help “Sherin’s Law” become a reality.

Thank you for stopping by Gabriella Young’s blog, an Austin criminal defense attorney.