Tag Archives: child abuse

Gone are the days when grandparents live around the corner. Chances are you don’t live within walking distance to your close relatives. If you do, you’re extremely lucky to have “babysitters” who you can trust with your little ones when you’re out for date night or traveling for business. For …

An Alaska mom sent video to Dr. Phil's show of herself putting hot sauce in her seven year old son's mouth and forcing him to take a cold shower after he misbehaved. Once the video went viral, Alaska authorities got involved and now mother of six, Jessica Beagley, faces charges. I hesitate to judge another mom because I don't know what the child did and how often she's tried to correct his behavior. Since I absolutely hate hot sauce I can only imagine the terror this child felt as it was poured in his mouth. As a TV journalist with more than a decade of experience covering child abuse and child deaths, I can tell you the fact that this boy was in a house where they could afford to buy hot sauce makes him luckier than a lot of kids. Beagely made several key mistakes. She got angry, mistreated her child, allowed another child to videotape it and then sent it to a nationally televised talk show to ask for help. What she should have done was talk to her son's pediatrician, teacher, child psychologist, family member, trusted friend or neighbor and asked for suggestions on how to correct his behavior. Or she should have at least asked them to watch the tape and offer their opinion on whether she should send it in. It never ceases to amaze me the things people do on camera and think that it's "normal behavior."