Having finally commandeered a phone, Kate McAllister makes the sensible call of contacting her local police department. That should at least calm initial concerns, right? Well, it turns out that the local police are about as competent as the McAllisters themselves. After passing the baton back and forth, the police finally agree to send somebody out to check on the McAllisters home because, well, because theres an 8-year-old stranded on his own. Youd think thatd be enough to encourage some sort of urgency. When a cop does arrive at the house, he gives a brief knock, gets no answer, then leaves the premises. Surely if you have a woman telling you categorically that she has left her son alone whilst she and the rest of the family are in another country, youd maybe try a bit more than a brief knock. For all the police know, Kevin could be inside, bludgeoned to death by some crazed criminal. He couldve been kidnapped. He couldve nipped out to the shops. He couldve been in the back yard. He could even have just been using the little boys room! But no, one quick knock will suffice.
