Parents’ Belief in Spanking Stalls Adoption

The planned adoption of a year-old boy by a Perris couple has been put on hold after the couple told officials they believe in spanking their children.

Meanwhile, county officials say the law the question exists to protect children who are often victims of abuse from further suffering. But the Rev. Ted Norton, pastor of New Life Community Fellowship, and his wife Joyce say they’re going beyond their own case to see standards changed.

The matter began in April, when a county social worker interviewed the Nortons about their application to become foster parents. The couple, who have four children, had already been screened and approved by the state.

Then the social worker asked them to sign an agreement promising that they would “not use corporal punishment . . . or any type of degrading or humiliating punishment.”

“We just didn’t feel like we could legally sign a paper that says, ‘Never in a million years will we ever spank this kid,’ because we love our kids and we spank them, and how do we not love a child enough to discipline him the same?” Joyce Norton said.

The couple said they declined to lie and sign the statement anyway because they believe that it would send the wrong message to their children.

Then, after withdrawing their foster care application in June, the Nortons fell in love with a 1-year-old boy, Danny, who was in the foster care of a friend. The boy had changed families at least twice by the age of 5 months. In October, Danny’s foster mother said she could not adopt him, and the Nortons decided they wanted him to join their family. But county officials say that’s unlikely unless they change their minds about spanking.

Paul Rout, assistant director of the county’s Department of Public Social Services, said there’s a good reason the requirement exists. Foster children often are removed from homes because of physical or sexual abuse, and adults caring for them could easily go overboard with spanking, Rout said.

The county’s goal is to help such children recover from their traumas, he said.

“If they stand firm on their policy, would they ever be considered for adoption? The answer is no,” Rout said.

The case has piqued the interest of state Sen. Ray Haynes (R-Riverside), who has accused the county of abusing Danny by not letting the Nortons adopt him.

When the Legislature reconvenes in January, Haynes said he plans to propose revising the law so foster parents can spank their children.

“As much as we would like to help this young boy, I think our primary goal is to get the law changed, because there are a lot of kids out there,” Ted Norton said. “If every family just helped one child, I think that would really help the system.”