Appeals Court: L.I. Man Who Spanked Son Used 'Reasonable Force'

CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A New York state appeals court has ruled that a Long Island father used reasonable force when he spanked his 8-year-old son for cursing at an adult.

The New York State Appellate Division dismissed a child neglect proceeding Wednesday against a Suffolk County man who spanked his then-8-year-old son in October 2012 for cursing at an adult during a party at a friend's house, according to a Newsday report.

County social services officials alleged he used an open hand and then used a belt on the boy's buttocks, legs and arms after they got home.

A Suffolk County Family Court judge found the man in neglect.

But the Appellate Division said under the circumstances the spanking ``did not constitute excessive corporal punishment.'' The higher court said there was insufficient evidence to prove he hit his son with a belt.

As 1010 WINS' Holli Haerr reported, some parents at Eisenhower Park in East Meadow, including Jennifer Hairston-Davis, said they do not believe spanking is acceptable.

"What I've been doing is basically putting my son on timeout, which he doesn't like, so I'll either do that or I'll take a toy away," she said.

But others, including grandmother Nestorina Cooper, said other methods sometimes do not work.

"Spanking is kind of the last resort," she said.

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