Iowa Mother Ticketed for Spanking

An Iowa mother was cited with injury to a child after publicly spanking her toddler at a Fourth of July Parade. Several witness signed the police report. What I find interesting in this day and age with so many digital cameras and cell phones with cameras that no one to on the scene coverage. I'm sure someone does and will at some point come forward. There are a few issues raised by this story.

My comments are based on my belief that children should not be spanked. We raised a larger family so I certainly understand the difficulties that toddlers can present. Every mother can relate! Our oldest grandbaby is now 19 months old so I'm being reminded of those difficulties. Toddlers are asserting their independence while absorbing their surrounding like sponges but at the same time don't fully understand about danger so is it any wonder there are bound to be parental clashes with toddlers? Consistent constructive parenting and proper discipline that promote long term learning is what is needed. In my opinion, corporal punishment has only short term effects and sends a negative message to the child that violence (hitting) is acceptable. One reasoning for this is you should never hit a child when angry but the only time you would hit a child is when you are angry. Ok, I'll step off my soapbox now.

It is hard not to notice that she has three children under the age of four which likely means she is tired most of the time and a bit frustrated. She was apparently have troubles with all three at the parade. They were likely hot, tired and over stimulated by the sights and sounds. They might even have been a bit frightened. I can so relate to this however my solution would have been to simply leave the parade!

What I can't relate to is the aggressiveness she consistently displays towards her toddler. What scares me is she is this aggressive in front of the cameras so my first question is what is she like behind closed doors? Sadly lacking is effective parenting skills. This might have been a first time event but I highly doubt it. I think that this is a child at risk! It is only a matter of time before the child does something she shouldn't and the mother over reacts with full aggression towards the child. The citation as pointed out likely won't stand as there were no physical injuries but what about the next time? It would be a shame to have something tragic happen a few months from now when it could be prevented. This is a child at risk for abuse and a mother at risk for abusing. If anything the citation should serve as a wake-up call to the family that they need help. At the very least Child Protective Services should be involved to fully assess the potential risk and make recommendations to help this mother and child.


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