In the News: Teen Gets Staph Infection from Illegal Ink; Tattooer Charged
Sunday August 17, 2008
When an Illinois teen went to the hospital with a staph infection from an illegally received tattoo, his parents - who were previously unaware of and had never consented to the tattoo - filed charges against the tattooer, 18 year-old Michael Whitlock. The age of consent for a tattoo in Illinois is 18, lowered from 21 a few years ago.
Unfortunately, a lot of teens who get tattoos and piercings without their parent's knowledge or consent will also keep quiet even when they see it becoming infected. That can be a fatal error, so if you're one of those teens keeping an infected tattoo or piercing hidden, please tell someone! If you really don't think your parents will understand, talk to your school nurse or another trusted adult. But believe it or not, most parents are a lot more concerned with their kids being healthy and safe than about how they got themselves in trouble. You might get grounded, but that's better than being hospitalized or dying - and an untreated infection will lead you in that direction.
Comments
Since when are school nurses trusted to keep secrets from parents, police or school administration? Since they aren’t allowed to diagnose or treat much of anything it’s likely they’ll send you to the hospital to relieve themselves of any liability.
If you are anyone, of any age and think you might have an infection (anywhere from any reason) just go to the Doctor, anything else is a delaying tactic that isn’t in your best interest.
When parents take a hard stand against scratcher tattooers and start charging them with confinement, kidnapping, child abuse, assault with body fluids, etc. maybe, just maybe they will think twice about whoring out our industry.
Touch a minor, go to jail, right?
I have parents call me all the time about aftercare and other problems their kids run into because someone jacked them up at home. I have little sympathy when I tell them to call the authorities and they whine ‘oh, I don’t want to go that far’.
Your kid is messed up with a rotten tattoo/piercing, possibly picked up HBV or HCV and you ‘don’t want to go that far’???
Take a stand, parents, BE THE PARENT.
yes of course wr, i see young teens walking into the doctors offices by themselves all the time! when kids screw up and bad things start to happen, they freak out, dont want to get busted and heir parents are the last ones they want to tell, unfortunately. it is sound adice to speak with a trusted adult, or someone they can view as a friend and not so much an athority figure.
as long as they tell someone and get it taken care of, and hopefully the parents will be informed early on as well.
vor don is not an associate of about.com, nothing i say means squat, beyond being a voice of reason, with my own common sense, and opinions.