Tough Love?

(Posted on 14/10/11)

Could you turn your teen or even an adult child over to authorities if you discovered he'd broken the law? One mom did exactly that, saying, "you have to do what is right". Here's how Annabel Sloley practiced a bit of tough parental love.

Olive Sloley, a 22 year old university student, decided he wanted to impress a friend. He couldn't possibly have known the repercussions of this less than brilliant idea. He took Mom's yacht - and Mom's quite upset. After stalling off the coastline and then firing a flare so rescuers could locate him and his friend, Sloley had to then face his mother - and she was most certainly not a happy camper. Ultimately, she decided he needed to be turned over to law enforcement. This led to a 9 month sentence after he was convicted.

What's not clear in this situation is why an inexperienced boater opted to sneak the family yacht out with at least one guest who knew even less that the host. There were no life jackets on board, either. His efforts not only landed him jail, but also put his college education in jeopardy. Even worse was the stolen property that was found on board after the rescue. There were two stolen boat motors and fuel tanks, along with several bank cheques that belonged to his mother.

Judge Christopher Elwen oversaw the case and Phillip Lee served as prosecutor. Sloley's solicitor said, following the verdict, "He has wasted his future..." Sloley, for his actions, was sentenced to nine months in jail. His mother, while admitting it was quite difficult to turn her son in, says she hopes that this hard lesson will perhaps provide a bit of maturity and wisdom because the outcome could have been far more serious than criminal charges: someone could have fallen overboard and drowned.

She says she and her son are getting along fine and that they hope to put it behind them.