Court Upholds Conviction of Pastor For Conspiracy To Commit Child Abuse

In State of Wisconsin v. Caminiti, (WI App., March 20, 2014), a Wisconsin state court of appeals upheld the conviction of the pastor of a small, close-knit religious community on eight counts of conspiracy to commit child abuse.  Philip Caminiti taught his followers that they should discipline fussy infants starting as young as 2 or 3 months by forcefully striking their bare bottoms with wooden spoons and dowels. He claimed that the Bible gives specific instruction on what tools to use, and he demonstrated to his congregation the correct degree of force.  During church services Caminiti would look at parents whose child was crying to indicate that they should discipline the child. The court rejected Caminiti's free expression, free exercise of religion and parental rights defenses. The court held that the state has a compelling interest in preventing child abuse, and that the state's "reasonable discipline" privilege for parents strikes an appropriate constitutional balance.