Abstract
This chapter cites data that give the incidences of corporal punishment per state, both by number and by percentage of the student body. Additional data show the ten most religious states in the US and note the correlation between these states and those with the highest incidences of corporal punishment. Thus, the interconnection of religion and corporal punishment is evident. Data are included that show that the US is one of the few remaining nations that still allow corporal punishment. The chapter examines some legal cases where parents have tried to sue the school districts for the harm done to their children. Especial note is given to the landmark case in 1977, Ingraham v. Wright . The Supreme Court, in a vote of four to five, ruled that corporal punishment does not violate constitutional rights. Although nearly 40 years old, this case is still used to support the noninvolvement of the legal system in school-related corporal punishment.
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Fitz-Gibbon, J.H. (2017). Data and Legal Issues. In: Corporal Punishment, Religion, and United States Public Schools. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57448-6_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57448-6_3
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