Man, woman charged in beating of child with autism, caught on video in Independence
An Independence man and woman face child abuse charges after video from a home surveillance camera allegedly captured them beating a child with autism, according to the prosecutor’s office.
The Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office has charged 34-year-old Terry L. Watson with one count of first-degree domestic assault, or in the alternative, abuse or neglect of a child, as well as one count of abuse or neglect of a child for a separate incident. Tiffnee Hockaday, 38, is charged with one count of abuse or neglect of a child.
According to court documents, the alleged beating occurred shortly after 6 a.m. on Oct. 27. It was caught on home surveillance camera on the front porch of home in the 15100 block of East Truman Road.
A Kearney police sergeant saw the video posted to a Facebook group page for Independence and sent the video to Independence police on Monday.
The video allegedly showed Watson smoking a cigarette on the front porch of the home. Hockaday then joined Watson, dragging the child by the arm. She allegedly threw the child at Watson, saying that he had made a mess.
Watson allegedly grabbed the child by the arm and punched him with a closed fist four times in the back. Watson then placed his hand over the victim’s mouth and allegedly punched the child six times in the stomach. As the victim struggled to breathe, Watson said, “Shut up,” twice, according to court documents..
A detective contacted dispatchers to get an address for Watson. The dispatcher advised that the video had been posted on several social media sites and a report had been made earlier in the day.
On Tuesday, detectives interviewed a witness who said that she woke up to yelling on the front porch. She accessed the surveillance camera and saw Watson allegedly assault the child. She identified Watson as the man in the video and said Hockaday was dating him, according to court documents.
During the interview, the witness said there was a long history of Watson allegedly physically abusing the child. The witness said the child had been diagnosed with autism and is non-verbal with hearing issues.
Watson was taken into custody later in the day for questioning by detectives. While there, Watson said he had sought help earlier in the day because he saw the video and it made him sick.
Watson said he remembers Hockaday bringing him the victim and spanking him. He then “blacked out” and doesn’t remember punching the victim, according to court documents.
The other child abuse charge against Watson stems from an incident in April at an IHOP restaurant in Independence.
Officers responded to the restaurant after witnesses reported seeing Watson striking a child in the face with a closed fist and slap the victim with an open hand.
Watson allegedly told police that the victim had been “glaring” at other customers in the restaurants and “smacked” the victim as punishment. Watson denied hitting the victim.
This story was originally published November 10, 2022 at 9:32 AM.
