Most people on here think that's abusive and you're treating your kid like a dog..
They'd much rather see outcomes like this then to see a kid on a leash..
BUT, kudo's to the Dad (I assume it's the Dad).. sounds like he TRIED to sacrifice his body protecting his child, didn't just stand on the side of the road and watch. He probably made the difference...
I totally agree - it's easy to say that you would do anything to save/protect your child, but until you are put into a situation like this one, you just don't know for sure how you would react and if you could react in time to make a difference. It's such a split-second decision that you have to make... I don't know this family at all, but I am so proud of this Dad for actually following up what every parent thinks they would do to save their child with his actions.
As for the 'leash' thing... people who think it's abusive would rather have their toddlers run off from them in a crowded Wal-Mart I suppose. I am surprised that most people on the forums think it is abusive... in my mind, *not* doing something to keep an energetic toddler from getting away from you is abusive - and if that something is a little harmless backpack-type leash, then so be it.
I had one for my daughter, who from the age of about 1 and a half to 2 years old would take off like a track star if you so much as blinked. It would have been more 'abusive' to strap her into a cart and have both of us screaming for half an hour while I tried to get a few groceries... she hated being in the cart, a stroller, anything that confined her and didn't allow her to walk - and the way she would scream if you tried to confine her would make someone call CPS much quicker than seeing her in a little monkey harness. Yes, she tried to run in the thing when I first put it on her, but she quickly figured out that she couldn't do that... and that she could either use the harness and walk around, or be strapped into the cart and unable to explore.
Shame on me for giving the kid repressed memories about being on a 'leash' when she was 1, and not having the luxury to leave my kids at home when I needed to go shopping and my husband was gone on TDY or deployed. Guess I'd better start saving for her therapy bill.