Boy forced to do 200 push-ups, then beat with wooden spoon by Franklin Co man, charges say
UNION, Mo. (KMOV.com) — A Franklin County man accused of hitting a child with a wooden spoon has been charged with child abuse.
According to the probable cause statement, a 13-year-old boy was walking on Water Tower Drive on Saturday, Oct. 26. He was seen wearing sweatpants with no shoes or shirt by a witness.
The witness told police it was 49 degrees outside with a windchill with of 42 degrees and it was lightly raining.
The witness saw the boy crying and put him in his vehicle and brought him back to his home. The witness noticed “fresh” bruises on his lower and middle back and then called police.
Police responded and said there was a circle mark in the bruising and he had a cut on his left ankle.
The boy told officers that he was forced to do push-ups as punishment by 31-year-old Dane Horine. After doing 200, Horine told him to do more. When he refused, Horine reportedly struck him a wooden spoon.
According to the probable cause statement, the boy said he was hit repeatedly with the spoon until it broke. The boy said then he was poked with the pointed edge of the spoon.
According to police, Horine also drove his electric wheelchair into the boy causing bruises and cuts on his left leg.
When confronted by police, Horine told them the boy got rug burns from doing sit-ups.
Then Horine told police he uses push-ups and sit-ups as punishment.
Officers told Horine the marks on the boy did not look like rug burns. Horine said he hit him with a spoon, but was trying to hit him in the butt when he ducked, which caused him to get hit in the back and elbow.
Horine was released Monday morning after posting his $4,900 bond.
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