Texas judge responds to being caught beating his daughter on video

Texas judge William Adams may recieve some justice of his own after a video uploaded by his daughter has gone viral.

According to reports, after Hillary Adams told her dad about the video, Judge Adams "dared her" to post it. Screenshot via YouTube

Currently serving as a family and child abuse judge in Aransas County, Texas, Adams has reportedly admitted that it was him on the tape.

KZTV, a CBS affiliate out of Corpus Christi, spoke with the judge outside his home on Wednesday, and he admitted it was him in the recording. According to the judge, it “looks worse than it is.” He also told reporters that he didn’t think there would be any repercussions from the video.

“In my mind, I haven’t done anything wrong other than discipline my child after she was caught stealing,” Adams said. “And I did lose my temper, but I’ve since apologized.”

The folks at the video hosting site must not feel the same way.  There is a warning on the page that states, “This video has been age-restricted based on our Community Guidelines.”

Not knowing that he’s being videotaped, the man in the clip says, ”Go get the belt. The big one. I’m going to spank her now.”

For over 7 minutes the video shows a man with a belt, scolding and swearing at the girl and repeatedly hitting her legs. As the girl cries and begs him to stop, he tells her to ”Lay down or I’ll spank you in your f***ing face.”

After a few moments, a woman enters and tells the girl to “turn over like a 16-year-old and take it! Like a grown woman!” The beating is seemingly finished, but about a minute later the man an woman return and continues the beating, demanding “Get on your stomach. Get on your goddamn stomach!”

Near the end of the recording, the man yells at the girl and says he aims to beat her “into submission.”

“I’ll just keep beating you and beating you. Thats how upset I am.”

When the whipping stops, he continues to berate the girl, “you even look at me wrong, I’m gonna take you in here and wear your ass out with this belt.”

Viewers of the explicit video are clearly disturbed by the fathers behavior. ”I couldn’t watch any more,” one outraged person explained. “A judge, a judge? At what age do you outgrow spankings. This isn’t a spanking, but a beating. He needs help.”

Hillary Adams, who has had ataxic cerebral palsy since birth, was not surprised by her fathers comments, “it’s a shining perfect example of his personality and he believes he can do no wrong. … He will cover up rather than admit to what he did and try to come clean, which is what I really want him to do.”

The now 23-year old Adams told the Associated Press, “I’m experiencing some regret because I just pulled the covers off my own father’s misbehavior after so many people thought he was such a good person. … But so many people are also telling me I did the right thing.”

According to clinical instructor of psychology at Harvard Medical School, Jim Hopper, ”This is an act of brutal violence. To beat someone into submission is not discipline. To beat a child into submission makes it harder for that child to take in rules and the values that the parent believes they are imposing on the child.”

The Associated Press reports that, since being elected in 2001, Adams is the County’s top judge. In the past year, the 51-year old has handled over 300 family law cases of which about 50 involved a determination regarding the parents ability and if they were fit to raise their children.

Calls from outraged citizens prompted police in Rockport to open an investigation, according to the city’s police chief.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20129269-504083/report-texas-judge-admits-he-is-man-shown-beating-daughter-in-video/

UPDATE: Judge Adams is suspended by a higher court