Police: Florida Father Used Stun Gun On Son

PALM CITY, Fla.- A man was charged with child abuse after he shocked his 14-year-old son with a stun gun, authorities said. Douglas Dycus, 40, also was charged with domestic battery following a complaint to the state Department of Children & Families, Martin County sheriff's investigators said. The stun gun used was not a Taser device, officials said. Dycus used the stun gun when he became frustrated with the boy, who was wrestling with his brothers and not paying attention to him, authorities said. Two burn marks were found on the 14-year-old. Dycus told investigators he remembered using the weapon on the youth's arm on Dec. 26 out of frustration, but said he didn't recall causing a second burn on the child's abdomen. The 14-year-old was not being identified. Investigators reported Dycus has four other complaints against him with DCF, including a 2003 report that he hit the youth with a belt and left welts. Those reports are not public and Dycus has no other arrest history for abuse or domestic violence in Florida. Sheriff's Sgt. Jenell Atlas said she knows of no law that restricts ownership of stun guns, but she said they are designed primarily for self defense and subduing attackers. The shocks don't cause any lasting damage and the pain ends instantly when the device is turned off, Atlas said. The gun Dycus allegedly used requires close contact with the target, as opposed to Tasers, which allow for use from farther away because they deliver the charge through a long wire. Dycus, an engineer with a West Palm Beach firm, was jailed without bail. Palm City is about 30 miles northwest of West Palm Beach.

(AP article here)