A parent’s right to discipline his or her child comes into conflict with the criminal laws on assault and child abuse. Does the Texas “Corporal Punishment” Statute permit leaving visible cuts on a child’s buttocks, back and scrotum, or will a Jury consider Peterson’s actions “tough love” and an effort by a loving parent to teach his son “right from wrong”? The doctor who examined the child called the cuts “extensive” and alerted Law Enforcement. The Grand Jury, a sample reflection of the community where the “whopping” took place, called it “negligent or reckless injury to a child”. Peterson denies any intent to harm the child, and it will be up to a Jury to determine if this was an act of loving discipline, or a crime.
