I saw a brief clip of the judge on T.V. and he fully admits it was him in the video. He claimed he was rightly punishing her for stealing (she was downloading music or something similar from the internet). Now, I am a huge supporter of spanking and completely believe we'd be better off if more parents these days spanked. That said, spanking a 16 year old is NEVER appropriate. I also think that one does not need a weapon to "spank" their child. At that point, IMHO, it rises to the level of abuse. Having been raised in an abusive environment, I can tell you that the abusive words inflict more long lasting damage than any beatings ever could. I hope both parents in this case get just what they deserve. |