Did <i>Survivor</i> Dad Abuse Son?
Was Richard Hatch too rough on his 9-year-old son?
The methods allegedly used by the former contestant on the reality TV show Survivor to toughen up the boy have gotten him arrested on child abuse charges.
Hatch is accused of forcing his son to go jogging, then roughing up the boy when he stopped running.
Hatch, 39, turned himself in after his son, a fourth-grader, told administrators at his school that his father assaulted him.
The 9-year-old boy told police Hatch woke him at 4:30 a.m. Thursday to go running because he wanted the boy to lose weight. The boy said when he got tired and started walking, Hatch pulled him by the ear and wrapped his hands around his neck to move him along.
Police said the boy had red marks on his right ear, around his throat and on his upper arms, along with a scrape on his forehead and right knee.
Hatch, a management consultant who specializes in team building and conflict resolution, had just returned home after spending 40 days marooned on a remote tropical island off Borneo being filmed for the CBS show, set to air beginning later this month.
Hatch remains free on $10,000 personal recognizance. He did not return a message Monday seeking comment. The boy is in temporary state custody until the case is resolved.
Hatch was among a group of 16 people left on the remote island in March to live without running water or electricity. The "castaways" built rattan huts, caught fish and grilled rats for protein and, every three nights, the contestants voted to eject someone from the community. It was not known how long Hatch lasted. The final person left at the end will get $1 million.
CBS spokesman Chris Ender said Monday the show would go forward as planned with Hatch in it. Survivor will be aired weekly starting May 31.
The network has said that 6,000 people applied to be on the show. It said it interviewed 800 people, then flew 48 to Los Angeles for 10 days of grilling and six hours of psychological tests before selecting eight men and eight women.