Tampabay: Child abuse charges drive Brits batty

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Child abuse charges drive Brits batty

As London's tabloids take hold of the story, St. Pete Beach officials say they'll drop the charges.

By WILLIAM R. LEVESQUE

With the feisty British media seizing on the arrest of an English couple in St. Pete Beach, police now say the charges should be dropped.

St. Pete Beach police last week charged Philip Adam, 35, and Jill Adam, 33, of Yorkshire with felony child abuse for leaving their two children unattended in their room at the Tradewinds Resort. The Adams had gone to the pool area to watch fireworks.

The arrests were detailed Sunday and Monday in most major British newspapers, on television and radio news shows, including the BBC. Even a member of British Parliament has taken an interest.

Phil Willis told the Adams' family and attorney he will address the House of Commons today to denounce the arrests and discuss the concerns he believes British tourists should have in visiting Florida. Willis could not be reached for comment.

As a writer in the London Observer said, the case "will horrify parents preparing for their summer holidays."

The media attention that has descended on the family has been enormous. Clearwater lawyer John Trevena, who represents the Adams, said photographers have been stationed on the lawns of the homes of both the Adams and Mrs. Adam's father, who was vacationing with them. Amid the storm, police softened their stance against the couple, who face a maximum of five years in prison if convicted.

"I still stand by what the officers did. Absolutely," police Capt. Joe Cornish said on Monday. "But it would be appropriate if charges were dropped. The kids are back home safe with their parents. We made our point with them. I don't think it serves justice to bring them back to the United States to stand trial."

Said Cornish, "I hope this hasn't permanently damaged our relationship with Great Britain."

State Attorney Bernie McCabe's office has the final word about prosecuting the case and could decide by early next week.

Fueling the controversy is the fact that the Adams are members of a prominent British family. Mrs. Adams' father, Sir Lawrence Byford, 73, is Her Majesty's former Chief Inspector of Constabulary, the nation's top police post.

Byford was vacationing with his daughter and son-in-law before returning with them to Britain this week. He posted the couple's $1,000 bail.

On May 30, the Adams left their 1-year-old son, Daniel, who was in a crib, and their 5-year-old daughter, Maisie, sleeping in their second-floor hotel room so they could watch a 9 p.m. fireworks display.

The couple told police they watched the fireworks from a pool area no more than 100 yards from their room and were gone no more than 45 minutes. Police said they were gone 90 minutes.

The fireworks awoke the girl, who left the room as the door locked behind her. Unable to get back in, she tried to open her grandparents' adjacent room door and began crying loudly when she couldn't get in.

Jim Jensen, 40, visiting his sister at the hotel, came upon the girl as she clung to her grandparents' doorknob.

"She was crying frantically," he said. "I was able to calm her down pretty quickly."

He called hotel security, who then called police. Meantime, security opened the Adams' room and found Daniel awake and crying, too, Jensen said. Neither child was hurt.

Police were called, and the Adams were immediately arrested upon their return, spending the night in jail before Byford bailed them out.

The family declined comment to the St. Petersburg Times, but Philip Adam told the Sunday Telegraph in London, "We can't really believe all this has happened ... It spoiled a very enjoyable holiday and I am sure it would never have happened in this country. Obviously, they call child abuse one thing, we call it another."

Said Byford, "It could only happen in America."

Pinellas tourism officials say they're monitoring the situation but do not expect an adverse affect on tourism.

While not all British newspapers struck an alarmist tone, some people in the country were nonetheless angry.

"The horrendous story about ... the Adams has amazed the British nation," said Peter Stanhope, president of Florida Brits Club, based in York, England. "It seems like the same old knee-jerk rush to justice that we have come to expect from the security police in America."

The group boasts 1,000 members who enjoy travel to Florida and, in some cases, own property here.

Not everyone is siding with the Adams. Some say the couple acted irresponsibly when they left their children unattended.

"They should be embarrassed at what they've done," said Debra Hill, who came to St. Pete Beach from England four years ago to operate a hotel called the Savoy. "It makes me embarrassed to be English."

Jensen, who found the girl, said he thinks the parents acted irresponsibly, though he said he doesn't think their actions amounted to child abuse.

"I'm open to the fact that their culture is different," Jensen said. "But I was pretty appalled. Still, charging them with a felony is a bit much."

In Britain, the media frenzy continues.

Two newspapers have told Trevena they are dispatching reporters to St. Pete Beach.

"I'm being faxed letters constantly from British reporters just begging for interviews with my clients," said Trevena, who said he has received more than 100 calls from reporters in Britain. "The family is absolutely devastated. The last thing in the world that they wanted was this kind of media frenzy."

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