Man Denies He Abused Son For Stealing His Pot
POSTED: 2:35 pm EDT April 15, 2004
BONIFAY, Fla. -- A father acknowledged tying his 15-year-old son to a barn post, but he denied Thursday charges that he fired a handgun near the teen's head or that the punishment was for stealing his marijuana.
Sean Stewart, who was arrested Tuesday, said marijuana had nothing to do with why he tied the boy to the post two months ago but was unable to recall exactly why he did it. He said he fired the gun at a beer can 100 yards away, not at or near his son's head.
Before firing the gun, Stewart said he gave it to his son and told the boy to shoot him, but he wouldn't do it.
"I would never shoot at my children," Stewart told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. "I just tried to scare the child because I couldn't whip him."
Holmes County sheriff's deputies arrested Stewart, 39, on charges that included aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and child abuse. He was released Wednesday from the county jail on a $31,000 bond.
Investigators alleged Stewart blamed the boy when he found a half-pound of marijuana missing, tied a rope around his neck, hands and feet and blasted several shots near his head with a .357 Magnum.
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