Convicted for spanking?

Sage thinks the case of a 33 year old father convicted of assault for spanking his four-year-old son on the backside twice for “pooing his pants” is political corectness gone mad.

I am not so sure. The Taranaki Daily News article does not give details of how this came to the attention of the authorities, but I presume the four year old did not go to the police station and file a complaint. Someone had to be concerned enough about what happened to have laid a complaint.

The father is quoted as saying he was shocked when he saw the extent of the bruising in the photos shown to him by police. There is in my mind a huge difference between a “spanking” which should sting or hurt but not bruise, and whacking your baby/kid so hard that he ends up black and blue.

Ironically the case, in my opinion, tends to undermine the argument that Section 59 needs to be repealed, as it has shown it is not a defence for beating up a child, but limited to “reasonable force” for correctional purposes.