YouTube Domestic Abuse Dad Gets Slap On Wrist Sentencing

Formerly when parents abused children it was in the privacy of their own home without recorded documentation. But thanks to the help of the internet, we now get advertisements on video replay of how parents sow seeds of mental abuse that spring forth the Ted Bundys and Jeffrey Dahmers of the world. Serial killers don’t start full bloom out the womb. Trading a child’s sanity for clicks and views on YouTube is what got DaddyOFive channel’s Michael and Heather Martin caught. “It’s just a prank” isn’t a valid defense in the court of law. That only works on the internet. They were recently found guilty of child neglect in a Fredrick County Circuit Court in Maryland. But both managed to avoid jail. Only receiving probation and the return of two out of five children to their biological parents. The other three will have to tough it out until they turn 18. 

In one controversial video, the pair poured ink onto their youngest son Cody’s bedroom floor before swearing at him and blaming him for the mess. Cody was then shown crying hysterically. The pranks also included smashing Cody’s Xbox with a hammer. ‘Videos were fake’ The videos have since been deleted, though one – an apology message posted on 22 April – remains. Some YouTubers had expressed concern about the Martins’ videos and had questioned whether the pranks might constitute abuse. Mr and Mrs Martin appeared on Good Morning America on 28 April and revealed that police had launched a child abuse investigation. “We did do pranks, but most of the time the kids knew about them and they were planned,” Mrs Martin told the US television show, adding that some of the content was real, but some was acted.

Michael and Heather didn’t  win in the court of public opinion either. Funny how someone could actually believe an adult purposely making kids cry could receive sympathy. YouTube is such a sketchy place sometimes. It can quickly go from tutorials on how to fix a dryer belt to how to mentally abuse your offspring until they become murderers later on in life within a few clicks. Even faster if you leave auto-play on.