News & Politics

Rant

Georgia "Man" Slaps Stranger's Child

Posted 33 months ago|15 comments|2,325 views
Written by
Rudi Stettner
 Moderator
There are actually people out there like this. Roger Stephens of Georgia was in Walmart when he became angry at a two year old toddler who was with her mother during a shopping trip. The little girl started crying when Stephens reportedly said, "If you don't shut that baby up I will shut her up for you."

Predictably, the child continued crying. Shockingly enough, Stephens reportedly slapped the little girl across the face four or five times. Police were called and Stephens, who readily admitted to what he had done. He is now being held on charges of felony cruelty to a child and being held without bond at the Gwinnett County Detention Center, according to the Smoking Gun web site. Fortunately, the little girl suffered nothing more serious than redness in the face.

It is a safe bet that Stephens is likely to find out first hand what four or five slaps across the face feel like while he is locked up. I am amazed that the mother did not go ballistic on that chromosomal approximation of a human being. If it would have been my kid, my face would be in a mug shot, and the slapper would be on life support. At least they caught the guy. It would be a good idea to see if Stephens has access to any other children, grandchildren or nephews and nieces. The guy sounds like a walking time bomb. If that had been a newborn, he could have caused lethal injury with the same blows. A person who slaps a two year old for crying has serious issues. That is what two year olds do.

Reprinted with permission from Magdeburgerjoe.com
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COMMENTS
markbyrn
markbyrn
 Moderator
33 months ago: Yikes, my eyes are feeling abused just looking at his mug shot.
33 months ago: "If that had been a newborn, he could have caused lethal injury with the same blows."

Sure, and if it had been a porcupine, he would've injured his hand. Why waste time trying to make it sound worse than it was? The man assaulted a two-year-old child. Isn't that bad enough?

I see women slapping and hitting kids in Wal-Mart all the time, and just assume the kids belong to them. A woman could probably get away with slapping strange kids for weeks, as long as their mothers are out of sight.

What's up with women using Wal-Mart as a redneck Killing Field, anyway? It's like they let their kids run wild all week, then take them to Wal-Mart on Saturdays to show the community that they can still control the little monsters. Whack! "I TOLD you we ain't gettin' no candy!"

It's better than a circus.
Mark Tomles
Mark Tomles
FPO, AE
33 months ago: but the point is, ABMAC, that the man could have simply left the situation. Instead, he became enraged to the point of striking a small child. Can we just assume that he wouldn't do the same thing to a younger child? That's the point- we don't know that he wouldn't, and this must be taken into account when considering a suitable legal repurcussion.
33 months ago: It doesn't matter what a person might have done. You're basically saying that we should prosecute the man for crimes he didn't commit because he can't prove that he wouldn't have committed them.

Your assumption that the man would've struck the first crying child he encountered, no matter what its age, is ridiculous. Everyone knows that newborns can't be controlled.

Two-year-olds, on the other hand, are old enough to learn how to behave properly in public. Not through violence, of course, but through proper behavior modification techniques that any decent parent would recognize. In this case, it's obvious that none of the adults involved had any business being around children.
jaysabell
jaysabell
Fort Bragg, NC
33 months ago: Two-year-olds, on the other hand, are old enough to learn how to behave properly in public.

Really? That is just about the most asinine statement i have ever heard and could only have been made by someone who has no clue about children!

An average child does not start actively reasoning until they are over three.At two years of age thier emotions are based solely on "What will make ME happy at this time". Sure there are two year olds that are well behaved at times , that is in thier nature , part of thier personality but to imply that a parent is neglectful because a two year old is having a melt down, is ridiculous! Have you never heard of the terrible two's? The statement had to come from somewhere for it to have been adopted my millions.
TheLegendTomWing
TheLegendTomWing
 Administrator
Philadelphia, PA
33 months ago: Spare the rod, spoil the child. The kid probably deserved it. Yet, this does not excuse this man's actions. I propose a child rearing class for this woman. Young children (as jaysabell points out) cannot be reasoned with, thus a quick smack or two was in order to be delivered by a PARENT. I can tell you right now my mother would have taken me outside and clocked me, and deservedly so. I think the moral we can all take away from this is: Spank your kids please so someone else doesn't have too because you're a bad parent.
33 months ago: Most children develop an awareness of cause and effect around the age of two. They learn the meanings of words like "stop," "no," and "hot," and usually signal that they're ready to begin toilet training around 18 to 24 months.

If the child, for whatever reason, lacks the mental capacity to learn simple commands, it's up to the parent to remove the disruptive child from the area and deal with it, not shrug it off because they're just "terrible" at that age.

A parent who stands by while a child of any age has a tantrum is not only being neglectful of their child, but is also being inconsiderate of the other shoppers and the employees of the store who have to listen to the child send out a primal cry for attention that's almost impossible to ignore. It's a shame that more store managers don't ask them to leave the premises.

Actually, the only ones who I hear mention the "terrible twos" anymore are lazy parents who didn't properly train their children. There are far too many of them who raise essentially feral children until they're old enough to foist off on the public school system.
Rudi Stettner
Rudi Stettner
 Moderator
33 months ago: I have seen a few children through the "terrible twos." Each child is different. What works for one does not work for another. Sometimes a measured slap is needed. What can be said in general is that the parent should be in control of him or her self when disciplining a child. Losing one's temper and hauling off does no good. I have seen a tap or a stern look elicit a strong emotional response. Being removed from public surroundings in which a child is disruptive does impart a valuable lesson. But you don't lay your hands on someone elses' child. There are almost no exceptions to that. I am not morally opposed to corporal punishment. I have observed that it yields diminishing returns. It should exist as a possibility rather than a frequent occurence
Mark Tomles
Mark Tomles
FPO, AE
33 months ago: "It doesn't matter what a person might have done. You're basically saying that we should prosecute the man for crimes he didn't commit because he can't prove that he wouldn't have committed them. "

Who's saying that? Not I. I am saying the the point of our judicial system is to remove an individual, or the individual likelihood, of additional similar crimes in the future.

Also, please read my statement again. I did not say that I assume he would have struck a younger child, I said we cannot assume that he would not.
33 months ago: quite frankly, whenever a rowdy little kid is acting like an annoying screaming monkey around me, i deliver the equivalent of a slap to the face via a glare to the mother. if the mother doesn't do anything to rectify the situation (control the little savages), then i will "accidentally" trip the child with my foot or ram my shopping cart into him. that'll make him BOTH shut up and make him mom pay attention.

if a kid is being a pain and the mom smacks him, good for her! i approve. sometimes these little monsters deserve a good slap -- it's a constant battle for control with toddlers and if you are too soft on them, oh they walk all over you!
33 months ago: Parents need to set limits for their children appropriate to their age and level of understanding. I'm not against using corporal punishment on toddlers to teach the consequences of misbehavior, as long as it's used consistently, and without anger. I'm talking about a pat on the backside here, not a slap across the face.

I'm bothered more by parents who make no effort to control their children, or ones whose only attempt at discipline is to occasionally over-punish the kids in public for behavior that was never discouraged in private.
33 months ago: "Who's saying that? Not I. I am saying the the point of our judicial system is to remove an individual, or the individual likelihood, of additional similar crimes in the future.

Also, please read my statement again. I did not say that I assume he would have struck a younger child, I said we cannot assume that he would not."

But that's completely incorrect; our judicial system is set up to punish a crime only after the crime has occurred and the guilt of the perpetrator has been proven. Even if a person intends to commit a more serious crime in the future, intent is not a crime until it's acted upon. Tell a cop on the street that someone is about to commit a robbery and see if he makes a move before determining that a crime is actually in progress.

And yes, we can assume he would not have struck a younger child, because we cannot offer any evidence that he would have. Even if he had stated aloud that he intended to strike the next crying child he encountered, we can't assume that he would've struck an infant with the same force that he used upon the two-year-old. Again, why make a case for a hypothetical situation when the existing one is sufficient to get him locked away?
jaysabell
jaysabell
Fort Bragg, NC
33 months ago: You know I am quite shocked at the level of parenting in this rant? I really hope the so called "voice of reason" does not have children! and let me say this " If a shopper were to ram my child with a cart, there would be an adult crying rather loudly once I was through.
What most of you seem to be assuming is that this mother was not trying to quiet her child. I have 3 children and my middle one would throw some tantrums, I have no shame in swatting him on the behind , but I have also been told be a store employee once when I threatened my son to "pop hid behind, if he did not stop trying to stand up in the cart" that she would notify the police...this was on a military base and she informed me that they had a strict no spanking policy. Now when you have store employee's sticking thier noses in on discipline, what exactly should a parent do? I spanked him anyway but that is just me.
I am also not above putting a child in time out in the store, I have learned to bury my embarressment.
A child is capable of learning yes and no at age two, but at age two they are also not ready to apply it all the time. and it is age three that they start to realize that there are others influenced by what they are doing. emotions are a means to an end for a two year old, a tantrum may mean " i want candy" or I am sleepy " or "I am bored because I have been sitting in this cart for an hour while you shop." but above all else it means "Something in my world is off and I want attention". wether it be negative or positive.
The basic thing though is this man had no right what so ever putting his hands on the child, no matter what age, and no one knows what this mom was trying to do to quiet her child.
If you think it bothers you when a child throws a tantrum in a store...try being the mother or father, its no fun all around!
sure there are bad parents but there are bad people too and what this man did was a BAD thing!
TheLegendTomWing
TheLegendTomWing
 Administrator
Philadelphia, PA
33 months ago: ABMAC, there is such a thing, it's called conspiracy to commit (insert charge here, murder, corporate espionage, or spanking children).

Interesting insight, jaysabell, i still may have clocked that kid too though, or trip them.
personally, i employ the insipid look of "DEAL WITH YOUR KID LADY!" that usually works and even if it doesn't I usually feel better anyway.

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