Insets, left to right: Robert Bores in court; the electric cattle prod that Ohio father Robert Bores used to punish his children and stepchildren (WJW/YouTube). Background: The yard of the home where the abuse took place (WJW/YouTube).
An Ohio father is headed to prison after using an electric cattle prod to zap his children and stepchildren as punishment. His lawyer argues the "discipline" was "not with a weapon" and says things simply "went awry," according to a report.
Robert Bores, of Erie County, was sentenced to six years in prison Thursday after he pleaded guilty to two felony counts of domestic violence stemming from incidents involving children who were 8 and 9 years old at the time, according to local Fox affiliate WJW.
During the hearing, the court heard that Bores used the cattle prod on different parts of the children's bodies, including the back. In one incident, Bores shocked a child for failing to put away laundry. The children also described being chased around the house with the device. Bores also struck the children with a horsewhipper and a large decorative wooden spoon as punishment, WJW reports.
"The item he used was used for animals, not for humans," Erie County Judge Roger Binette said.
Bores' attorney, Brent English, argued that his client did not intend to hurt the children and primarily used the cattle prod as a threat to frighten them into behaving.
"This is not with a weapon," English insisted. "This is not any violence directed at anyone other than this is discipline of children that went awry."
According to English, Bores acknowledged making a terrible mistake and said he had never purchased the device to maliciously hurt a child.
Chief Assistant Erie County Prosecutor Paulette Lilly pushed back on English's claims, saying, "When he referenced that this did not involve weapons, I disagree. There is a cattle prod, an instrument designed to manage the behavior of animals not less than 400 pounds in size."
Bores addressed the court before sentencing, insisting he never meant to hurt his children and asking for another opportunity to be their father.
"Children services were there, not a mark, not a scratch, healthy," he said. "I understand, I guess it was mental, maybe scared them. That was not my purpose. I did not intend to hurt them in any way."
Bores' mother, Laura Bores, also asked the judge for leniency, describing her son as a hard worker who cared for his family. She said she regularly saw the children and believed they were happy with him.
"When they see him pull up the driveway, they would run out and give him hugs," she said. "They are not afraid of him. They have never been."
Binette, however, said the children's victim impact statements contradicted that account.
"Contrary to what your mother says, they are all afraid of you," Binette told Bores, according to WJW. "They all fear you and don't want to be around you."
Describing Bores' prior criminal convictions and history of domestic violence, Binette added, "You talk about you want to be a good father, you want to be a father to them. Well, if you'd have got the help you need for your anger, which is probably unresolved hurt, or you got the help you need for your alcohol use, that would have been being a good father, not using a cattle prod."