Texas Judge Seen in Video Beating Daughter Should Be Charged, But Won't?
Police Say Statute of Limitations Has Expired
Police have announced that the Texas judge that has recently come under fire for beating his then-16-year-old daughter in a video that went viral will not be prosecuted for assault-related charges.
Rockport police Chief Tim Jayroe said this was because the 5-year statute of limitations had expired, according to The Associated Press, as the video was recorded in 2004.
"We believe that there was a criminal offense involved and that there was substantial evidence to indicate that and under normal circumstances ... a charge could have been made," Jayroe said.
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The video was released by Judge William Adams' daughter, Hillary, and runs for about seven minutes showing the judge repeatedly whipping his daughter with a belt on the legs and back while swearing and shouting at her to turn over so he can hit her from behind. At one point, her mother joins in yelling, "You turn over like a 16-year-old and take it!"
Hillary, who suffers from cerebral palsy and is now 23 years old, posted the video last week on the website Reddit.com after she said a dispute with her father pushed her over the edge. She told reporters that the video was recorded in 2004, and that the punishment came because she illegally downloaded video games and music onto the family computer.
Hillary said it was not the first time she had received a beating, and she decided to secretly set up a video camera in her room after tension between she and her father began to escalate.
Hillary and her mother, whom she says has since apologized for her role in the beatings and divorced the judge, appeared on NBC's the "Today" show to discuss the video.
"I waited seven years because back then I was still a minor and living under his roof," Hillary told interviewer Matt Lauer on why she did not release the video sooner. "I don't know what would have happened to me or my mother or my little sister, so waiting until today, seven years later, has enable me to pull away and be able to distance myself from the consequences."
Judge Adams responded to the video, saying the incident was not "as bad as it looks," and recently released a statement through his lawyer, William Dudley, in which he claims Hillary posted the video as revenge after he threatened to stop supporting her financially.
"Hillary warned her father if he reduced her financial support, and took away her Mercedes automobile,which her father had provided, he would live to regret it," the statement said.
