Spank your kid, get 5 years probation?

A Texas mom is slapped with an "egregious" punishment after swatting her 2-year-old — outraging many parents

Spanking a child has been a debatable disciplinary measure for years, but one Texas court has taken punishment to a new level, sentencing a mother to five years probation for her spanking.
(Image credit: Ariel Skelley/Blend Images/Corbis)

The spanking debate is back, after a Texas woman was sentenced to five years of probation, under a plea agreement for swatting her 2-year-old on the behind. Rosalina Gonzales of Corpus Christi was also fined $50 and ordered to attend parenting classes. Gonzales lost custody of her kids in December, and she won't get them back until the court deems her capable. "In the old days, maybe we got spanked," Judge Jose Longoria told Gonzales. But "you don't spank children today." Does he have a point?

No. This takes nanny-state intrusion to an "absurd" new level: Gonzales "did not use a belt" and "she didn't draw blood, break any bones, or even leave bruises," says Dathan A. Paterno at Big Government. She spanked her kid on the behind. That's hardly a "heinous crime." This "egregious judicial overreach" is about imposing the judge's obvious liberal agenda, not the law.

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