It is wonderful that this community is saying that no one is above the law and that child abuse must stop.

My parents divorced when I was young. My mother is a small women so my average build, even at the age of 10 meant that we were almost of the same build.

Anyway, for some strange reason, I accidentally cut a hole in the screen of my window. It tore open and I noted how straight the tear became. So, I touched it, and it tore some more, but in another direction, and again it was straight. I was mesmerized. I couldn't stop, it was like I was on some drug, I kept poking and tugging and watching my handiwork, as the screen continued to tear in perfectly straight lines. It was intoxicating.

And then my mother returned home from working the night shift at the hospital as a cardiac nurse. Well, she almost had a coronary. I was still drunk in my fascination with my creation as she began to lose her temper. I then realized what I had done and how stupid it was, but it was too late. I needed to be reminded that I had gray matter located between my ears that wasn't being properly used.

So the rules were in my house, that it would be much easier on me, if I didn't run. Yeah right. So as I gave flight, my mother, being the creative and thoughtful person she could be, grabbed the first tool of torture that she could find, and unleashed her punishment down upon my rear end. It turned out the tool of her trade happened to be a piece of "Hot Wheels" track that I had unwisely left on the floor. (You remember those orange pieces of track?)

She unleashed her mighty blow upon my bottom. I then realized that hard, stiff pieces of plastic, hurt much worse than any belt we had in the closet. (I used to have to go and get the belt for her, and I always returned with the limp, faux leather belt that didn't really hurt when I got my whipping. I think she knew that too, but she acted as if it hurt, and I of course, wailed at the pain, when little made it through to my rear end.) Anyway, as I mentioned, the rules were to not run, and when she swatted my behind with that piece of hot wheels track, I was suddenly awaken to the mistake I had just made. I responded by doing what came natural, I ran. My dear mother still wanting to complete her parental duties, gave chase.

Mind you a 10 year old can run pretty fast, especially in comparison to my 35 year old mother, but the walls of a home precluded my ability to out distance her, so as you might have expected, she caught me two doors down while backing up into my bedroom. Having just caused her the aggravation of having to run, and compounding that with the original crime, she decided to make at few additional swats at my reluctant-to-cooperate behind.

Unfortunately, one or two missed the mark and struck my arm, leaving streaks of red that lasted for several days, if not weeks.

I recall going to school and proudly displaying to my friends the beating that I had endured, (I left out the part about the window screen). I rolled up my sleeves and showed the marks that were there to remind me of what I had done. My friends "ooohhhh" and "awe'd" at my marks. They heeded my advice to make sure no hot wheels tracks were left out on their floors either, should they decide to partake in any mischievous activity.

I mention this for no other reason than to suggest that although I am very concerned over any corporeal punishment that parents might give to their children, that one single example does not necessarily paint the entire picture.

So without knowing more about this lady and her daughter's behavior that may have warranted some type of punishment, I will instead leave it up to the police who I have found never, ever arrest the wrong person. To the District Attorneys of our state who have never charged or prosecuted the wrong person, and to the judges who have never ever let their personal opinions effect how they decide to punish those found guilty in their courts.

As a follow up, I am now helping to care for my mother in her senior years and to show you how sometimes our actions come back to haunt us, I routinely remind her of that day whenever she starts to get a bit ornery. She just smiles and reminds me,-the shyster lawyer-, that the Statute of Limitations ran about 35 years ago. ;>)

I don't understand how some parents think that spanking a child is going to solve the problem
plus spanking is old! we are in 2007 we should be using communication and understanding of our children, not hurt our children...
what was in her mind? i wonder. I hope she gets gets good discipline in jail!

This must have made you feel rail gud? A black woman putting 42 deep lashes on a naked little 8 year old girl. More of them need to whop up on more of them! Let's just whoop up on all of them at one Saturday at one of the ball fields? More parents are idiots than are not! Use "emotional disturbance" as the reason when caught. Ignorance causes this kind of discipline, there certainly are better ways to do it.