Columbus woman found guilty of child cruelty; local parents react
A Columbus mom was found guilty this week on child cruelty charges, and the verdict struck a nerve with local parents. She was accused of punishing her 5-year-old son and leaving him with bruises all over his body.
According to WTVM.com, the child’s father noticed blue and black bruises on the then 5-year-old during a weekend visit last May. The beating was allegedly for kicking a teacher twice and slapping another student. Investigators arrested the mother and charged her with a felony of cruelty to children.
The verdict created a buzz on WTVM’s Facebook wall, with parents weighing in on whether the verdict was too harsh.
According to the American Psychological Association (APA), two-thirds of Americans still approve of parents spanking their kids — even though many studies have shown that physical punishment — including spanking, hitting and other means of causing pain — can lead to increased aggression, antisocial behavior, physical injury and mental health problems for children.
Question: If parents aren’t supposed to hit their kids, what nonviolent techniques can help with discipline?
