Legal Question in Family Law in Massachusetts

mother hitting son
I went to pick up my son. He is 3, he was wearing winter coat, he got very excited when he saw me at the door to his apartment, starting running up and down the hallway smiling, happy. He ran up to his mother, he was playing, and he pinched her. Apparently it hurt, she hit him on the back with her open hand and told him ''NO''. She hit him on his winter jacket, but hard enough where he was knocked down, but he was not hurt. He is usually very happy when I get him, he definitely does not look abused, he is happy at the end of the weekend to go see his ''Momma'', but I'm still troubled by the way she dealt with him pinching her. I gave him a big hug, but told him he should not pinch ''Momma''. Common sense question....should I make an issue out of this? I did tell her that although what he did was wrong, I felt that her response was also wrong and reminded her she is a lot bigger than he is. My son is just starting to talk, my feeling is that if this is going to be an issue the day is coming soon where he will be able to tell me what is going on. As I said though, I don't think he is being abused, but I want to do the right thing. Any advice??? (I did document the incident in a notebook. I document everything.)

Asked on 11/23/08, 10:31 am

2 Answers from Attorneys

Gabriel Cheong Infinity Law Group

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Re: mother hitting son

If he wasn't hurt and you don't want to make a big deal out of it, I would just document it and watch out for warning signs in the future. I wouldn't mention it to the child or say things like "if your mommy abuses you, tell me" because that puts a thought into his mind that his mother might hurt him.

Just keep an open mind and eye.

Answered on 11/23/08, 12:05 pm

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