Back in the day, parents and teachers could and would threaten you with a bit of physical violence.
In schools, it wasn't uncommon to hear the phrase 'getting the cane' whereas in the home it could range from getting a smack or if you were really naughty then you might face the belt.
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Nowadays that type of punishment seems outrageous but there are still some parents who stand by smacking their kids if they're disobedient.
Well, a Perth mother has found out that you can't exactly hit your kids with an instrument after she was smacked with a $750 fine.
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The woman, who can't be named for legal reasons, was accused of hitting her nine-year-old daughter with a wooden spoon on her bum for eating old meat that was supposed to be for the dog.
"I woke up in the morning, she was nice and quiet just sitting in the theatre room eating away these burgers that were supposed to be for the dogs," she told Channel 9.
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"I panicked and out of frustration, having a lot of difficulties with her behaviour I just had a moment of frustration.
"It was the extreme panic thinking, 'did I put that medication in those burgers?' The fact that she could have been on the floor frothing at the mouth, that was my main thought."
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The daughter was bruised from the incident and when someone noticed it, the mum was charged with common assault and plead guilty.
In court, her legal team argued that this was her first criminal offence and that her daughter suffers from behavioural issues, including ADHD.
The magistrate said during sentencing, according to WA Today: "You struck your nine-year-old with a wooden spoon and by your plea you accept that the force you used was more than necessary to correct her.
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"I'm satisfied this is unlikely to happen again."
The mum admits that the experience has traumatised her but she isn't going to stop disciplining her daughter.
"I haven't been the same since, shaking, mortified," she said.
"There are so many other people out there who deserve to go through what I've gone through and they're sort of putting all their time and effort onto me."
"I believe that discipline helps our society and our children, they've got to learn respect and integrity and you just can't get away with doing naughty stuff. How do we do that now these days?"
Well, looks like she's going to have to come up with a new method.
Featured Image Credit: 9 News