US Mother Arrested For Allowing 10-Year-Old Son To Get Permanent Tattoo

A mother in New York, United States was arrested for allowing her 10-year-old son to get a permanent ink tattoo.

The 33-year-old Crystal Thomas claims she was under the impression that her son was getting a temporary tattoo. She was arrested after her son went to the school nurse to get Vaseline for his tattoo and the nurse contacted the police.

The Mid-Hudson News reported that local authorities alleged that the child received permission from his mother to get a tattoo. The tattoo was his name in large block letters on the inside of his forearm.

Suggested Reading: Shehnaaz Gill's Brother Gets Sidharth Shukla's Face Tattooed to 'Keep Him Alive'

Mother Allows Son To Get Tattoo

Other states in the United States have no minimum age of consent to get a tattoo as long as the parent gives permission. However, in New York, the minimum age to get a tattoo is 18 years old, regardless of whether the minor has parental consent or not.

The mother, Thomas claimed that the entire situation was a misunderstanding and that she thought her son was seeking permission to get a temporary tattoo. Thomas added that she supports age restrictions for tattoos and said, “No little child should get tattooed”.

The mother has been charged with endangering the welfare of a child and was released on an appearance ticket. Reportedly, the 20-year-old unlicensed tattoo artist Austin Smith was also arrested along with Thomas. He was arrested after pictures of the minor’s tattoo circulated online and on the news.

The tattoo artist Smith was charged with dealing unlawfully with a child, a misdemeanour that can carry a prison sentence of up to one year. Smith was also released on an appearance ticket.

He described it as “the worst mistake I’ve made in my life”. Smith added that he believed that if a person got their parent's permission, they were allowed to get a tattoo.

The 10-year-old spoke with The Times and revealed that he was inspired to get the tattoo because one of his favourite teachers had a tattoo in the same place. Now, the child believes that the tattoo artist should not have agreed to give him the tattoo.