Child harness...opinions?

I had one with my youngest. He would escape from the shopping cart at Target. Then they would do a "Code Adam" and lock the store down. So yeah, the harness put an end to that. Diagnosed with severe ADHD, so that explained why. People can look all they want, but it's your kid and you know how they are and what's best. According to my Mom, I was nothing like that, but on my husband's side with six kids, him and his brothers ran wild. Using my Mom's tactics with my boys don't work, so I went to parenting classes, read books, etc. They have calmed down as the have gotten older, but between 2-4, it was rough.

I was one of those people who thought they were cruel and inhumane. And then I found myself in charge of a cousin's autistic child for the day. She told me to use the harness, and cocky me, pregnant for the first time, thought she was an awful mom and didn't end up using it. As a result, her 4-year old son took off at Target and getting him back was a nightmare! He was found hiding inside a clothing rack!

When you're faced with the safety of a child, suddenly you realize their importance. Now, 3 kids later I am lucky that I have not needed to use them on my own kids (thankfully, none are runners), but I fully respect another parent's decision to use one.