folks we have another one/Abuse conviction - MERGED

[doggie]

lets hurt your kids or lei about what you do to your kids to get on tv.

Prosecutor says mom punished boy to get on TV

Story user rating:

MARY PEMBERTON

Published: Yesterday

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - A woman put hot sauce in her adopted 7-year-old son's mouth not to punish the Russian boy for lying but to come up with sensational footage to get on the "Dr. Phil" self-help TV show, a prosecutor argued Monday.

Jessica Beagley, 36, recorded the punishment on Oct. 21, 2010 for a show segment titled "Mommy Confessions," said prosecutor Cynthia Franklin. The Anchorage woman faces misdemeanor child abuse charges stemming from the footage.

The eight-minute video shows Beagley confronting her son Kristoff about misbehaving in school and lying, and then pouring hot sauce into the crying child's mouth and not allowing him to spit it out for more than a minute.

The footage also shows Beagley forcing the screaming boy into a cold shower before sending him off the bed.

Under a city ordinance, that is child abuse, Franklin told the District Court jury in her closing argument. "There is no reason in the world why someone has to hurt a child to get on a reality show," she said.

When the episode aired, it sparked public outrage in Russia, with some demanding that Kristoff and his twin brother, who were both adopted by Beagley and her husband, be returned to their native country.

Franklin told the jury that it wasn't Beagley's first attempt to get on the "Dr. Phil" show.

She had seen a segment in April 2009 titled "Angry Moms" and contacted the show but heard nothing for a year and a half, Franklin said. The show eventually called to find out if Beagley was still angry, she said.

Beagley then submitted audition videos, but was told they needed to see more than just yelling at the children: They needed to see her actually punishing her son, the prosecutor said.

That's when Beagley got the flip-cam ready, made sure there was enough hot sauce on the shelf in the bathroom and recruited her 10-year-old daughter to shoot the video, Franklin said.

Days later, she was on her way to Los Angeles to be on the show, Franklin added.

"It is all about the show," she said.

The episode aired on Nov. 17, 2010. A spokeswoman for the show, Stacey Luchs, declined to comment to The Associated Press.

Beagley and her husband, a police officer, had tried more traditional means of punishment, such as spankings, timeouts and television restrictions, but none of those worked with Kristoff, said William Ingaldson, Beagley's lawyer.

Beagley made the video and went on the show because she was desperate to find help for her son.

While Kristoff's twin made an easier adjustment, Kristoff was more difficult, doing such things as urinating on the floor, Ingaldson said.

More recently the boy has been diagnosed with reactive attachment disorder and is in therapy, Ingaldson said.

He encouraged the jury to look closely at other footage submitted to the show where Beagley coaches the children on not getting into trouble and reminding them of what happens if they do.

"She is not trying to get these kids to misbehave. She is trying to do the opposite," Ingaldson said.

He reminded the jury that the boy actually did get in trouble in school the day the video was shot.

"She did not punish him to inflict pain on him for its own sake," he said.

The Beagleys, who have four biological children, adopted the Russian boys in 2008 in hopes of doing some good, the lawyer has said. They remain committed to them, he said.

"This is not about whether she was trying to get on the 'Dr. Phil' show," he said. "If she could take back that video, I'm sure she would."

[tabitha2]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44248082/ns ... ?gt1=43001

[duplessis3]

She is saying that now as a defense - so it could be true, or she is attempting to make it seem like an incident that was unique (when it wasn't.)

[demgirl]

I don't know if it's more frightening to believe she actually believes that her punishment was appropriate, or that she did it to get on Dr. Phil.

[lilwriter85]

I'm glad she was convicted. Watching that video of her and her son was awful. I wonder if hot sauce discipline love Lisa Whelchel will comment.

[Kitty]

I'm glad she was convicted. Watching that video of her and her son was awful. I wonder if hot sauce discipline love Lisa Whelchel will comment.

She'll probably give us some bullshit about how Beagley was "doing it wrong." (Hot-saucers preach only using a drop or two, not pouring it in the kid's mouth.) Even getting past the fact that forcing a child to put anything in their mouth is wrong, hot-saucing as a discipline method is absolutely moronic. Nothing used as food or to enhance the flavor of it should ever be used as punishment, because the kid will learn to get over the taste, and even like it.

Maybe it's because I come from a family that loves spicy food. I just remembered that I have a buffalo chicken wrap in my fridge. Mmmmmmm. Fuck you, Lisa Whelcel! Come hot-sauce me for cursing NOW, bitch!

[Witsec5]

Found a great article on hot saucing along with this quote detailing why pp abuse, "The answer is not complicated. People cannot have empathy toward children’s plight until they can honestly acknowledge the mistreatment from their own childhood experiences and examine the shortcomings of their own parents. To the extent they feel compelled to defend their parents and guard their secrets, they will do the same for others. By continually insisting that they “turned out okay,†they are reassuring themselves and diverting their attention from deeply hidden unpleasant memories. I found that this individual described this smartly on this Octavio Ochalek webpage. This is why, when someone says, “‘hot-saucing’ is abuse,†many people react as though a door barricaded since infancy has been smashed open. This barricaded, unconscious door has prevented them from committing the most dangerous, most unpardonable act of disloyalty imaginable, disloyalty to their parents. They are afraid that by opening the door to the truth, they might fall through into an abyss–abandoned and cut off from any possibility of reconciliation with the parents they love. The fear is irrational. Denial–about what was done to them, and, now what they are doing and allowing to be done to this generation–is the current danger and the real sin."

http://kerryoprosa.blog.com/2011/05/02/ ... ncreasing/

[Burris]

In some ways, "Dr. Phil" is worse than Beagley. He's worse than Jerry Springer - much worse. Springer didn't pretend to be a legitimate professional.

If the staff at the Dr. Phil Show had actually cared about this kid, they would have sent the footage to piolice, rather than to Editing.

[luckylibrarian]

I hope this hurts his show, but it won't. The children weren't removed from the home - which would have been a bigger scandal for Dr. Phil - and she basically was convicted of violating a city ordinance. Still, I'm glad. I'm hope the bitch gets some jail time. And mental help.

I wonder how the ex-mormon boards are reacting.

[lilwriter85]

In some ways, "Dr. Phil" is worse than Beagley. He's worse than Jerry Springer - much worse. Springer didn't pretend to be a legitimate professional.

If the staff at the Dr. Phil Show had actually cared about this kid, they would have sent the footage to piolice, rather than to Editing.

Dr. Phil is a fucking joke. He has lost fans throughout the years. I agree he should have sent the footage to police. Also Dr. Phil screwed up before this, there have a few other incidents in he and his staff never reported a few guests for possible abuse and neglect.

[Witsec5]

Although Dr. Phil is entitled to confidentiality in his role as mandated reporter, he should have informed the woman of his intent to make a report to CPS. I saw the episode and the abuse was pretty bad. Was starting to wonder if the boy came with problems after all. I imagine CPS was flooded with calls after the episode aired but that is not enough. While watching my occasional guilty pleasure "Hoarders--Buried Alive" the psychologist informed the hoarder that she was going to be calling CPS because it was her duty as a mandated reporter. That is how Dr. Phil should have handled this situation--with professionalism. I stopped watching that turd after he aired an episode about his granddaughter turning 1. As if we care! He and his family are as narcissistic as some of the fundies we know.

[lilwriter85]

Although Dr. Phil is entitled to confidentiality in his role as mandated reporter, he should have informed the woman of his intent to make a report to CPS. I saw the episode and the abuse was pretty bad. Was starting to wonder if the boy came with problems after all. I imagine CPS was flooded with calls after the episode aired but that is not enough. While watching my occasional guilty pleasure "Hoarders--Buried Alive" the psychologist informed the hoarder that she was going to be calling CPS because it was her duty as a mandated reporter. That is how Dr. Phil should have handled this situation--with professionalism. I stopped watching that turd after he aired an episode about his granddaughter turning 1. As if we care! He and his family are as narcissistic as some of the fundies we know.

I have seen stuff like that on those shows. I agree Dr. Phil should have acted in that manner regarding contacting CPS.

The McGraws are very much narcissists like you said. Jay McGraw in some ways is worse than Phil. He wrote books about psychology at age 21 when he was still in college and his books were slammed by APA and other organizations.

[ADoyle90815]

Although Dr. Phil is entitled to confidentiality in his role as mandated reporter, he should have informed the woman of his intent to make a report to CPS. I saw the episode and the abuse was pretty bad. Was starting to wonder if the boy came with problems after all. I imagine CPS was flooded with calls after the episode aired but that is not enough. While watching my occasional guilty pleasure "Hoarders--Buried Alive" the psychologist informed the hoarder that she was going to be calling CPS because it was her duty as a mandated reporter. That is how Dr. Phil should have handled this situation--with professionalism. I stopped watching that turd after he aired an episode about his granddaughter turning 1. As if we care! He and his family are as narcissistic as some of the fundies we know.

I agree, which is why I refuse to watch Dr Phil. If he were a real professional, he would have informed that woman that as a mandated reporter, he had to notify CPS about the abuse, and follow through with the report.

[thoughtful]

Found a great article on hot saucing along with this quote detailing why pp abuse, "The answer is not complicated. People cannot have empathy toward children’s plight until they can honestly acknowledge the mistreatment from their own childhood experiences and examine the shortcomings of their own parents. To the extent they feel compelled to defend their parents and guard their secrets, they will do the same for others. By continually insisting that they “turned out okay,†they are reassuring themselves and diverting their attention from deeply hidden unpleasant memories. I found that this individual described this smartly on this Octavio Ochalek webpage. This is why, when someone says, “‘hot-saucing’ is abuse,†many people react as though a door barricaded since infancy has been smashed open. This barricaded, unconscious door has prevented them from committing the most dangerous, most unpardonable act of disloyalty imaginable, disloyalty to their parents. They are afraid that by opening the door to the truth, they might fall through into an abyss–abandoned and cut off from any possibility of reconciliation with the parents they love. The fear is irrational. Denial–about what was done to them, and, now what they are doing and allowing to be done to this generation–is the current danger and the real sin."

http://kerryoprosa.blog.com/2011/05/02/ ... ncreasing/

Thanks for finding and sharing this -- it's an interesting insight into the whole "my parents did that and I turned out OK" routine.

[bicyclecat]

I'm not sure that Dr Phil is a mandated reporter anymore. TV personalities, even those with a Dr. in front of their name, don't need a license or even a degree in a medical field to do what they do. Not that it makes any ethical difference, in this case, but it changes the rules a little.

The adoption of foreign children, especially older children, into US families is going to be problematic, at best. I don't have enough experience with many other cultures to know, but Russian culture is significantly different than the culture in the US. A child that's been raised in Russia and then is carted over to the US is going to have adjustment problems, unless there's a good support network in place and the parents reach out to them. During the time when the 7 year old was put on a one way airplane to Moscow, I really supported the ban on adoptions to American families and I wish they'd have made stronger stipulations and requirements, in regard to adoptions to the US.

These children don't understand life in America. They don't speak the language. When a parent diciplines them, there's a good chance that they have little understanding of what the parent is even talking about. And they're doubly confused, because the behavior they're being punished for is perfectly acceptable, where they're from. If these parents had any idea of the culture that these children were raised in, they'd know why.

[Kishiria]

Dr. Phil isn't renowned for his ethics. He lost his license in Texas because he got sexually involved with a patient. There are lower and scummier things to do, but not many. Here in California a psychiatrist tried to get Dr. Phil shut down because he isn't licensed to practice here, but does anyway on his show. The Federal government had to intervene to get his diet products off the shelves after people died from them. And so on.