Judge's disabled daughter reveals why she posted YouTube video of her father brutally beating her WARNING: Foul Language and Not for the Faint of Heart!!/Aransas County Court-At-Law Judge William Adams took a belt to his teenage daughter as punishment.

2004: Aransas County Court-At-Law Judge William Adams took a belt to his own teenage daughter as punishment for using the internet to acquire music and games that were unavailable for legal purchase at the time. She has had ataxic cerebral palsy from birth that led her to a passion for technology, which was strictly forbidden by her father's backwards views. The judge's wife was emotionally abused herself and was severely manipulated into assisting the beating and should not be blamed for any content in this video. The judge's wife has since left the marriage due to the abuse, which continues to this day, and has sincerely apologized and repented for her part and for allowing such a thing, long before this video was even revealed to exist. Judge William Adams is not fit to be anywhere near the law system if he can't even exercise fit judgement as a parent himself. Do not allow this man to ever be re-elected again. His "judgement" is a giant farce. Signed, Hillary Adams, his daughter.

A family law judge faced a police investigation today after his disabled daughter posted on YouTube a secretly-filmed video of her father beating her with a leather belt.
Hillary Adams took revenge on her father, Court-at-Law Judge William Adams from Aransas County, Texas, saying: 'It had happened before, and had been escalating. I set up a camera, and I caught it.'
Police Chief Tim Jayroe, of Rockport, Texas, said today that the probe was launched after members of the public contacted them after the film swept the Internet.
Taken in 2004 when the girl was 16, Miss Adams decided last week to make it public by uploading it on YouTube and it was then posted on Reddit.
Chief Jayroe said he has not determined the identities of the people in the video nor whether any crimes were committed, according to Msnbc.
After being shown the video, this afternoon Judge Adams responded to the tape.
He said: 'It happened years ago.. I apologized. It's not as bad as it looks on tape.'
As a result of the furore, the video was being examined by the District Attorney and previous controversial judgements Judge Adams made in cases involving children have come to light.
The young woman, who suffers from cerebral palsy, was attacked because she was caught downloading music to the computer in her bedroom.

After delivering around ten powerful strikes across her legs and backside, his wife then grabs the belt from him to take over, at which point he walks out only to return moments later with another belt so he can continue the beating.
The shocking footage appears to have been filmed on a webcam set up in the bedroom and dates from 2004 but only became public last week on October 27.

Tt gained speed yesterday with the video trending on Twitter and being viewed 600,000 times on YouTube. A Facebook page entitled Don't Re-Elect Judge William Adams was set up yesterday and already has 6,000 followers.
Miss Adams has now tweeted that she was sorry she posted the video.
She wrote this afternoon: 'I'm feeling some regret for publishing the video because to ruin my own father is heavy indeed. But I really want him to seek help.'
Miss Adams, spoke to a local TV network by phone earlier today, said she is safe, and decided now was the time because she was tired of being harassed by her father.
She said: 'My father's harassment was getting really bad, so I decided to finally publish the video that I had been sitting on for seven years.

The 23-year-old added that she decided to post the footage - which she'd been 'holding onto until the right time' - after receiving 'a barrage of harassment' in a phone call from her father.
From her Twitter account, she tweeted: 'Please spread the word that my father needs professional help and not hatred. We can offer him the tools to be a better person.
'It is my wish that people stop threatening my father and start offering professional help. That is what he really needs.'

The video footage of Judge William Adams physically abusing his daughter has brought under scrutiny child protection cases he has worked on in the past.
Witnesses who attended a courtroom trial of Judge Adams on October 11 last year claimed that the judge agreed with a lawyer who had argued that 'a child's statements amounted to no evidence' and they are 'fantasizers'.
The case involved the custody of a six-year-old child who is said to have suffered 'horrific abuse'.
According to the blog, A Child's Voice, despite the child's statements being confirmed by independent third party witnesses and the young person being interviewed by a child psychologist, Judge Adams concluded that children's testimony should be ignored.
On the seven-minute long clip, the girl begs him to stop he can be heard snarling: 'Bend over the f***ing bed.
'Lay down or I'll spank you in the F***ing face.'
Calls to Judge Adams' office in Texas went unanswered. However his senior colleague County Judge C.H. 'Burts' Mills told MailOnline that Judge Adams was not currently at work and had not presided over any trials this week.
Judge Mills said he had seen the video footage and had 'no comment' to make on the film but that it had been turned over to the District Attorney and was being 'reviewed'.
The police department confirmed it would be making an announcement shortly.
In a court judgement last October, Judge Adams said that a child's statements 'amounted to no evidence' despite the fact his words had been confirmed by third party witnesses and recorded on video several times. The young person had also been interviewed by a child psychologist who believed the child.
According to Judge William Adams, all children are 'fantasizers' and their testimony should just be ignored.
The girl in the video is said to have suffered from ataxic cerebral palsy from birth. The condition causes problems including difficulty with balance, shaky movements of hands or feet, and difficulty with speech.
The victim, who has a passion for technology, is believed to have illegally downloaded the video game as well as music.

The title reads: 'Family law judge beats own daughter for using the internet, please spread'.
The video has incited fury on twitter with dozens posting their disgust.
@Johnny_Ads wrote: oh my god. what a disgusting video. im shocked. poor girl - what repulsive parents. Shame on them.
And @eschaton added: I hope this exposure gets him sent to prison for a good, long time.
In total the girl receives 20 hard lashes from her father and one from her mother.
She screams: 'You turn over like a 16-year-old and take it like a grown woman.'
As she lies crying on her bed he shouts: 'Do you want to put some more computer games on? Are you happy disobeying your parents?
'You don't deserve to be in this f***ing house. What happened to you Hillary?'
'If I hear so much as you raising your f***ing voice to me or your mother with the wrong tone or do one little thing or you look at me f***ing wrong, I'm going to wear your f***ing a** out with this belt.'
Although it has not been confirmed that the man shown is Judge Adams, several people have posted comments below the video claiming it is definitely him.
One post from a J. Andre Bardin, who claims to be one of Hillary's friends, reads: 'I know in the article you say you cannot confirm the man in the video is him, but I can. It's him.
'That's his voice, that's his mannerisms, and that is his house.'
The woman, thought to be judge Adam's wife, who is seen in the video delivering a single blow to her daughter, is said to have left the marriage after suffering emotional abuse.
She has apparently apologised for taking part in the beating and allowing it to happen.

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My journey through the world of piano, from a child to an adult. It's pretty cheesy in a couple parts but hey, it won a $1500 scholarship from Ivysport! Thank you to my mother for being with me every step of the way, and helping me overcome the cards I was dealt.

Wrap I see he is a judge in Aransas County, Texas. Is that my stomping grounds?

That video is very disturbing. That man is a horrible Father! That man clearly doesn't care much about children, he says as much up thread "According to Judge William Adams, all children are 'fantasizers' and their testimony should just be ignored". I shudder to think that he has presided over court hearings involving custody of children who have been abused.
I hope he's brought up on charges for child abuse for what he's done to his daughter and/or any children that are/were in his care. Personally, I hope this creep rots in prison.

Good for his daughter for posting this on the Internet!

Video very hard to watch. I have been beaten w/ a belt by my dad as well, when I was a kid I never considered it child abuse. It was a different era back then. The video brought back the horror of being held and beaten.
Shame on this man, and a "judge" no less. And he still maintains he did nothing wrong. Unfreakingreal.

Texas judge William Adams says daughter posted "beating video" out of spite


(CBS/AP/KZTV) McALLEN, Texas - Texas family law judge William Adams claims his daughter recently posted a YouTube video of him beating her several years ago because he told her he was reducing her financial support and taking away her Mercedes.
Through his lawyer, the Aransas County Court-at-Law judge issued a statement Thursday in which he questions his daughter Hillary's motives for posting the secretly-made 2004 video online last week.

According to CBS affiliate KZTV, the statement from Adams' attorney William A. Dudley reads, in part, "If the public must know, just prior to the you tube upload, a concerned father shared with his 23-year-old daughter that he was unwilling to continue to... be her primary source of financial support... Hillary warned her father if he reduced her financial support, and took away her Mercedes automobile, which her father had provided, he would live to regret it. The post was then uploaded."

The statement concludes with a plea from Adams that the investigation and legal process not be played out daily on a national stage.

The judge does not apologize in the three-page statement for lashing his then 16-year-old daughter 17 times with a belt while she wailed and pleaded with him to stop. He told KZTV Wednesday that the video "looks worse than it is" and that he was just disciplining his child.

Police are investigating and Adams says he will "respond" to any investigations.
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Texas judge William Adams says daughter posted "beating video" out of spite

I hope this young Woman can over come her sicko Parents. OMG I am sorry but her Mom is not a victim at least not in this video. She is as bad as NOT Father.

Nope, her Mom is NOT a victim either. This video is so disturbing, I'm surprised here aren't tons of comments.

Her father is a sicko and I hope she finds a way to over come the abuse...I think she will! And yes the mom is a victim as much as she is... reminds me of home unfortunatly.

40+ years ago my father had my mother up against a car as he took shots at her with a pistol. The next morning she was kissing on him as she served him bacon and eggs...taught me a lesson Im much stronger than my mother.

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November 4, 2011 8:56 PM

McALLEN, Texas - Federal prosecutors said Friday they would not charge a Texas judge seen lashing his teenage daughter with a belt on a video posted online, closing the door on the possibility of criminal charges in the case.

Angela Dodge, a U.S. attorney's office spokeswoman, said prosecutors determined there was no federal crime depicted on the 2004 video of Aransas County Court-at-Law Judge William Adams. The decision came a day after the local district attorney decided the statute of limitations blocked any state charges.

Rockport Police Chief Tim Jayroe said he had discussed video of Adams beating his then 16-year-old daughter with a prosecutor from the U.S. attorney's Corpus Christi office Friday morning.

"There was nothing that we discussed briefly this morning that to him would indicate there could be any federal involvement, but that he had seen the video and they would look into it," Jayroe said.

Hillary Adams, now 23, posted the 8-minute clip on YouTube last week that shows her father viciously lashing her with a belt and trying to force her to bend over her bed to be beaten despite her pleas to stop. The clip had received more than 4 million views by Friday.

Aransas County District Attorney Patrick Flanigan said Thursday the statute of limitations on charges such as injury to a child expired after five years.

"I would expect that yeah, charges would have been pursued but for the inability to proceed due to the statute of limitations," Flanigan said Friday. "You know, whether that would have been a felony or a misdemeanor charge I can't say but I think there would've been some action pursued."

County Attorney Richard Bianchi, meanwhile, said a visiting judge would handle all Adams' cases, not just those involving the state's child protective services as originally planned, for the next two weeks. Adams often presides over child abuse cases.

"Now the issue is to wait on the actions of the State Commission on Judicial Conduct," Bianchi said, referring to a state panel investigating the judge. Bianchi said he'd be "surprised" if Adams, 51, returned to the bench before the commission concludes its investigation.

Adams issued a three-page statement Thursday saying his daughter posted the clip to get back at him for telling her he would be reducing the amount of financial support he gives her and taking away her Mercedes. The statement did not include an apology for the beating, but he told Corpus Christi television station KZTV this week that the video "looks worse than it is," that he already had apologized to his daughter and that he was just disciplining his child for stealing.

Hillary Adams says her parents were angry because she had downloaded pirated content online, and that she turned on the camera because she sensed something was going to happen.

The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, which requested that he be removed from its cases until the investigation concludes, is also investigating the case.

Agency spokesman Patrick Crimmins has declined to elaborate on the exact nature of that investigation, but he said the agency generally would only investigate a case in which a suspected abuse victim has already reached adulthood if there are still children in the home who could be at risk.

Adams was granted joint custody of his 10-year-old daughter in his 2007 divorce. There are no allegations of alleged abuse by Adams against his younger daughter.

In his statement Thursday, Adams said he would "respond" to all investigations. As Aransas County's top judge, he has dealt with at least 349 family law cases in the past year alone, nearly 50 of which involved state caseworkers seeking determine whether parents were fit to raise their children.

If the judicial commission investigation doesn't lead to punishment, Adams could be safe on the bench until he's up for re-election in three years.

Miss Adams has now tweeted that she was sorry she posted the video.
She wrote this afternoon: 'I'm feeling some regret for publishing the video because to ruin my own father is heavy indeed. But I really want him to seek help.'
Miss Adams, spoke to a local TV network by phone earlier today, said she is safe, and decided now was the time because she was tired of being harassed by her father.
She said: 'My father's harassment was getting really bad, so I decided to finally publish the video that I had been sitting on for seven years.

The 23-year-old added that she decided to post the footage - which she'd been 'holding onto until the right time' - after receiving 'a barrage of harassment' in a phone call from her father.
From her Twitter account, she tweeted: 'Please spread the word that my father needs professional help and not hatred. We can offer him the tools to be a better person.
'It is my wish that people stop threatening my father and start offering professional help. That is what he really needs.'

This is ALL Over the news here. Yes, Jeanne..this is "your stomping grounds". Rockport is about 15 miles or so from Port Aransas and about 30 min. from Corpus. I am glad BJ posted this as I saw it on the local news this morning but couldn't get online to post the video.

This is Beyond a travesty!!! I also wonder if he was sexually abusing her. And, why did he just do this to her and not the younger daughter?

She was very smart to tape this. But, I am somewhat surprised at her quest to get him help. The poor thing has been through hell and she still wants to see her father get help?? It's such a mixed bag with children that are abused. They both love and hate the abusive parent.

Nite, I too found it strange that he brings up the make of her vehicle. I would tell him to take that Mercedes and stick it where the sun doesn't shine.

As far as Aransas County allowing him to continue being a judge, this is utterly b.s!! Can you imagine having to go in front of this judge? I would fight it tooth and nail - especially if it has anything at all to do with children.

Hippy and Sly, I could not watch the entire video. The first two minutes were all I could stomach. I am so very very sorry you two either witnessed or were abused by your father. My dad used to pull down my pants and spank me with a hair brush, bristles down. I also thought that was what all parents did. But, after about age 5 he stopped. My mom stood by and just watched. "Spare the rod, spoil the child" was the way of life back in the day.

I do have to add, what did she expect when she posted the video? She had to know this would not go over well with the public and of course her father would be "harassed".

Also, Texas should be ashamed of themselves for allowing this judge to continue practicing law and sitting on the bench. I don't CARE that the Statute of Limitations has run out. I don't CARE that she is NOW an adult.

I think with our generation most parents believed in the 'spare the rod, spoil the child'. I can excuse quite a bit of the parents for spanking their kids from that era because of this.
My parents used the belt on us. My Mom wasn't so bad but my Dad was heavy handed and it didn't matter what you did, he would take the belt out and use it you no matter what age, from toddler on thru' and inclusive of the teen years. I was the oldest and got it the worst but my brother two years younger got knocked around pretty bad too. I moved out of the house on my 18th birthday because of many things but that was one reason. He wasn't as bad as the judge on that tape but he sure as heck wasn't much better. When my kids were born I told both of my parents if they ever touched my kids with a belt they wouldn't be allowed over at their home. To this day my Dad thinks he did nothing wrong, I disagree but forgave him a few years ago because I didn't want to be angry forever.
So you can see why I'm in favor of that judge being reamed a new one.

Judge Adam's Statement:

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My name is William A. Dudley. The statement which follows has been reviewed and approved for circulation by Judge William Adams.

The seven year old video presently circulating the internet and now made the basis of international media attention, showing two parents disciplining their 16 year old daughter, who had been caught, by her own televised and internet reported admissions, engaged in repeated criminal activity, was posted for reasons other than as professed by the publisher.

It is regrettable that Hillary Adams, a bright and gifted person, would include in her post that she is or was a disabled or a special needs child. As multiple media appearances clearly demonstrate, Hillary Adams is articulate, possesses a superior IQ, and is capable of functioning as a productive adult in today’s complex society. No one should take the affliction of cerebral
palsy lightly. Hillary’s parents did not. Hillary’s condition was monitored as a child and her medical needs met. However, neither should a perfectly capable adult try to use an affliction as a device for media sympathy. It should now be apparent to the world that “disabled” was
mislabeled.

In response to the internet post, the media has appropriately attempted to understand why Hillary Adams chose the present time to disseminate the video. To many, her answers to those questions have been confusing and hollow. As she has said by recent interview, she “hoarded”
the secret tape for future use, but has not explained, even now, for what purpose. Very few people find palatable her claim that it was to “help” her father.

Perhaps Hillary Adams should explain, if she felt she was raised by a tyrannical father, a claim shared with no one until five years after adulthood, why she insisted on living with her father and not her mother from the time of her parent’s divorce, until she moved out on her own.

Hillary Adams has been living on her own for some time, and has been an adult for almost six years, so why post the video in late 2011?

William Adams is of the opinion that Hillary Adams is an extremely bright, highly functional, adult. The media has described her as a piano prodigy, who has competed at six years, so why post the video in late 2011? As one of Hillary’s long term teachers noted in the press, Hillary, so close to accomplishment, has of recent “inexplicably dropped out, just two classes shy of completing her [college] studies.” The video in question was recorded well before Hillary graduated high school. If the public must know, just prior to the You Tube upload, a concerned father shared with his 23 year old daughter that he was unwilling to continue to work hard and be her primary source of financial support, if she was going to simply “drop out”, and strive to achieve no more in life than to work part time at a video game store. Hillary warned her father if he reduced her financial support, and took away her Mercedes automobile, which her father had provided, he would live to regret it. The post was then uploaded. The public may wonder if this is the tyranny of which Hillary Adams speaks as her reason to disseminate the video seven years after it was recorded, and five years into adulthood? Is this the reason she “hoarded” the video for seven years?

William Adams regrets the interruption and inconvenience his daughter’s post has caused to the Aransas County, Texas community. Judge Adams is confident that when the dust settles and international media attention has passed, and the work ahead, whether civil, criminal, or
administrative has taken it’s full course and has been fully developed, with an opportunity for all sides to ask and answer relevant questions, it will be concluded that Hillary Adam’s actions in 2011 were misguided and misleading.

Judge Adams regrets, if true, that his daughter believes he is in need of healing from the family divorce. Divorce is certainly traumatic, and takes a significant toll on all, especially children. Judge Adams is of the opinion that Hillary’s gesture is little more than a much needed but hard to believe explanation of why she chose to post the video. If this entire event was a plea for help
and healing, the methodology is certainly unorthodox. Judge Adams, who among other reasons, still has a minor daughter to consider, chooses to involve the media as little as possible whilst personal family matters are sorted through. The public may ponder what consideration
Hillary Adams gave her little sister before subjecting the entire family to world-wide microscopic scrutiny, and permanent consequences.

:FBI:

A friend of mine told me today that he talked to a cop who said that Hillary Adams was doing more than downloading illegal music. She was also using people's SS numbers to get credit cards. Now, this is all conjuncture and I would think had this been the case, it would be all over the media. It isn't.

No matter what she did, IMHO, she did NOT deserve the horrible abuse she suffered; HOWEVER, I DO question WHY she waited until NOW to post this for all to see. From what my friend said the cop told him, she is a spoiled brat whose father "doted" on her.

From what my friend said the cop told him, she is a spoiled brat whose father "doted" on her.

Right....in between beatings. No matter how much he spoiled her she didn't deserve to be beat and it doesn't matter how old the video is. It's still a video of her father beating her. It doesn't matter if her father gave her Mercedes or only a bus pass every month, HE BEAT HER.

Latest Update Hillary Adams Discusses Media Attention, Fears About Younger Sister

11/08/2011 04:57 PM by Steven Romo - [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

SAN ANTONIO - As she returned from her national media tour, 6 News spoke with Hillary Adams on the fallout of the video she posted showing her father, Aransas County Judge Williams Adams, using a belt to hit her.

We sat down in her San Antonio apartment and talked about the world-wide attention and its effect on her family.

"We're trying to reach out. We're trying to turn this into a good thing. I'm really sorry and I know it hurt him that it had to happen this way. But he needs to reexamine some things," she said.

She says the response from her father has not been constructive and she thinks he needs to reevaluate the situation.

Hillary also says she has mixed feelings about the protests and outrage aimed at her parents.

"I don't know how I feel about that protest, because that's my dad they're yelling about," she said.

While she says she understands the anger some feel toward her father she says the similar feelings expressed toward her mother are unwarranted.

"But the rage against my mother I feel is undeserved. There are a lot of people saying I shouldn't be around my mother and she's a terrible person for joining in and she should have left. All of those people they don't understand how abuse, manipulation all of that, it really does weird things to a family."

Hillary has a ten-year-old sister who she says spends time with both of her parents since their separation. She says the family is trying to shield her from the media attention, but she is worried about the girl.

Hillary says she doesn't think her sister has been physically abused, but she believes emotional abuse may be a way of life for her.

"I do want her to get away from my father, she experiencing that at ten years old. If it's hard for me and i'm in my early twenties I can't imagine what she must be going through as a ten-year-old," she said.

Now that she is back home, Hillary says she wants to try to get her life back to as normal as possible.

She also says she's hoping to get her whole family involved in counseling.

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Texas judge has visits with daughter limited
APBy CHRISTOPHER SHERMAN - Associated Press | AP – 4 hrs ago

McALLEN, Texas (AP) — A Texas family law judge seen beating his older daughter in a video she posted on YouTube has been placed under a temporary restraining order, and his ex-wife's attorney said Friday it effectively prevents him from visiting his younger daughter.

Under the order issued Thursday by another judge, Aransas County Court-at-Law Judge William Adams is forbidden from visiting his 10-year-old daughter without getting permission from the girl's mother, his ex-wife. The order also says Adams can't disparage the woman or drink alcohol within 24 hours of seeing his child.

Brett Pritchard, the attorney for Adams' ex-wife Hallie Adams, said in a prepared statement that the ruling "temporarily terminates the visitation between Judge Adams and his younger child."

William Adams' attorney did not respond to a request for comment Friday from The Associated Press.

State District Judge Kemper Stephen Williams scheduled a hearing for Nov. 21 to decide on Hallie Adams' request to have William Adams' visitation denied or require that it be supervised. William Adams has not held court since his 23-year-old daughter Hillary Adams released a secretly-recorded 2004 video of him beating her with a belt.

William Adams faced public calls for his resignation and threats after Hillary Adams posted the 8-minute clip on YouTube that shows her father viciously lashing her with a belt and trying to force her to bend over her bed to be beaten despite her pleas to stop.

Hallie Adams filed an affidavit Thursday claiming a dysfunctional 22-year marriage and conflict that continued since their 2007 divorce. Pritchard said the furious reaction to the video triggered the legal move.

"The impetus is she (Hallie Adams) doesn't feel at first that her daughter is safe going down there to be with the judge right now," Pritchard said. "The impetus now is the result of the video, not necessarily the video itself."

The district attorney and federal prosecutors both declined to bring charges against William Adams, but the State Commission on Judicial Conduct continues its investigation.

Last week, Rockport Police Chief Tim Jayroe said that police did not interview the younger daughter, but asked both Hallie and Hillary Adams about it and there was no indication of abuse of the younger daughter.

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I dont get how her mother who was also seen on the video hitting her with the belt gets a free walk on this? She is sitting next to her daughter on all the talk shows like she is a saint. I understand that she says she was abused once by this man but no man could make me beat my child with a belt against my will.

I agree Sly. Did you see the daughter and mom on Dr Phil? There was something about both of them that I could not put my finger on. I'm sure I heard the mom say that he had never abused the younger girl yet a couple of days later she filed a restraining order on him regarding the same girl.

I heard that he had custody of both kids after the divorce??????? I am not sure if that is true or not.

Upthread, there is a video of the mom and daughter on The Today Show.

Something just doesn't add up here. Did they have joint custody or did HE have custody?????

I saw them on Dr Phil and on Anderson. I agree something is off with them. I dont agree with anyone being beaten but I think this girl is up to something, Just cant figure out what??

I too think there's more to this about the girl and I hate saying that since her Dad beat her like that but since I've heard her interviewed I've thought something's not right.
I'm not convinced the Mother was a battered wife either but I have nothing to back that up with either.

Many people say she posted the video after he took away her Mercedes.

November 22, 2011
The Texas Supreme Court suspended an Aransas County judge whose daughter secretly videotaped him whipping her with a belt when she was a teenager, the Associated Press reported Tuesday night.

Court-at-law Judge William Adams was suspended immediately with pay while the State Commission on Judicial Conduct investigates his behavior. His duties included hearing child-abuse cases.

Adams' now 23-year-old daughter, Hillary, made the video in 2004 and uploaded it to YouTube in late October. It has generated more than 6 million page views and 150,000 comments -- most of them condemning his conduct.

In the video, Adams curses at his daughter, then 16, and uses a belt to whip her 17 times for illegally downloading music and games.

Adams told local media recently that the beating was "not as bad as it looks on tape" and added: "In my mind, I haven't done anything wrong other than discipline my child after she was caught stealing." He said his daughter posted the video because he was taking away her Mercedes.

But Hillary Adams told Matt Lauer on the "Today" show that she had released the video because "the disputes and the harassment were escalating, and finally it was just the straw that broke the camel's back." She added: "I told him I had the video and he brushed it off. ... He didn't seem to think anything of it, and basically dared me to post it."

She told Lauer that she had set up the video camera on her dresser to capture the discipline that routinely occurred in the household.

"It did happen regularly," she said. "I waited seven years [to release it] because back then I was still a minor and living under his roof, and releasing it then, I don't know what would have happened to me, my mother, my little sister. So waiting until today, seven years later, has allowed me pull away and distance myself from the consequences."

Her parents have since divorced, and her mother has custody of her 10-year-old sister. William Adams is fighting a court order that requires him to get permission from his ex-wife before visiting the younger girl.


Photo: Judge William Adams returns after a lunch recess at the Aransas County Courthouse in Rockport, Texas, on Monday. He is fighting for visitation with his 10-year-old daughter after a temporary restraining order was issued, barring him from visiting the girl without permission from her mother, his ex-wife, Hallie Adams. The restraining order was issued following the October posting of a 2004 video on YouTube showing Adams beating his older daughter, Hillary Adams

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Supreme Court issues order to suspend Adams

Published:
Friday, November 25, 2011 2:16 PM CST

The Texas Supreme Court issued an order of suspension late Tuesday, Nov. 22, as recommended by the State Commission on Judicial Conduct, for the immediate suspension, with pay, of Aransas County court-at-law Judge William Adams, pending the final disposition of the sworn complaint filed against him.

Adams has been on a voluntary leave of absence since Nov. 1, after a 2004 video on YouTube of him disciplining his older daughter with a belt went viral on the Internet.

Due to the high profile nature of the matter, the State Commission on Judicial Conduct began an investigation into the incident on Nov. 2.

On Thursday, Nov. 3, it was announced no criminal charges will be filed in district court against Adams.

Tuesday’s order states, “In the agreed motion for order of suspension, Judge Adams and the Commission have agreed that: no findings of fact or conclusions of law have been made by the Commission in connection with this action; Judge Adams does not admit guilt, fault, or wrongdoing regarding the allegations contained in the sworn complaint; Judge Adams voluntarily waives the notice and hearing requirements contained in Rule 15(b) of the Procedural Rules for the Removal or Retirement of Judges; and Judge Adams agrees to a temporary suspension from office, with pay, pending final disposition of the allegations made the basis of this inquiry or further orders of the court.”

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By DEAN SCHABNER and COLLEEN CURRY
Nov. 27, 2011

A prominent Texas judge placed on leave while the court investigates the circumstances surrounding a video of him beating his daughter with a belt and cursing at her proposed the suspension himself, his lawyer said.

Judge William Adams and the Texas Commission on Judicial Conduct filed a joint motion to temporarily suspend his official duties as presiding judge during the course of an investigation. The Texas Supreme Court approved the motion on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2011.

Adams had already taken immediate voluntary leave, upon learning that the video of "a family disciplinary event" had been made public, his lawyer William Dudley of Corpus Christi, Texas, said in a statement today.

"The agreed temporary suspension is neither a fault sanction imposed by the Texas Supreme Court following an adversarial hearing, a finding of fault or wrongdoing by the commission, or admission of fault or wrongdoing by Judge Adams," Dudley said.

The suspension will allow the commission to "investigate allegations in a complete and yet expedient manner," he said.

After the video went viral on the Internet earlier this month, Adams said that he was merely disciplining his child and did nothing wrong.

"No, in my mind I haven't done anything wrong other than discipline my child after she was caught stealing. And I did lose my temper, but I've since apologized," he Adams told KZTV.

Hillary Adams, the daughter who is seen being beaten in the video, secretely recorded the beating seven years ago and recently uploaded it to YouTube Oct. 27. The video was then posted on Reddit, a link-sharing website, where it racked up millions of views and incited anger among viewers.

"I just wanted somebody to see it and tell me, 'no, Hillary this wasn't right and I'm glad you were able to grow up and move on past this' and 'no, your Dad wasn't right,'" Hillary Adams said told ABC News' Chris Cuomo.

Beating Judge Not Sorry

Both Hillary and William Adams have said the beating took place as punishment for then-16-year-old Hillary illegally downloading from the Internet. It was shot in 2004 by a secret camera Hillary set up when she anticipated her father might beat her.

She said the beatings were a regular part of her life during those years, but she did not publish the video until now because she feared it would incite more violence, according to the interview.

"Another fight was getting out of control and I knew the beating was coming so I just waited," Hillary Adams said.

Hillary and her mother, Hallie Adams, have since moved out of the family home. The family has not said where a younger daughter, age 11, is living.

The video, which prompted thousands of calls of complaint to the courthouse, sheriff's office, and police department, also prompted a police investigation into the matter.

"Under Texas law, and the penal code, parents have a right to discipline children. You know what is discipline and what is abuse. That has to be determined as some point," Rockport Police Chief Tim Jayroe told ABC affiliate KIII-TV.

The police will try to authenticate the video and then turn it over to the district attorney, who can then present it to a grand jury.

The video also shows Hillary's mother, Hallie Adams, participating briefly in the beating, grabbing the belt from her husband and telling her daughter to "act like a 16-year-old woman and take it." Hallie has since left her husband and apologized to her daughter, she said on the Today show.

"I was completely brainwashed and controlled," Hallie said, noting that her husband struggled with addiction, but didn't offer details on what kind. "I did every single thing that he did. When I leave the room he is telling me what to say, what to do."

Now, Hillary Adams said her father has suffered enough.

"I think he's been punished enough just by seeing this go public like this and I think he really needs help and rehabilitation. We need to get him counseling," she told the Today show.

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William Adams, Texas Judge Who Beat Daughter In Video, Seeks Reinstatement

First Posted: 10/05/12 02:11 PM ET EDT Updated: 10/05/12 04:57 PM ET EDT

A suspended family law judge whose daughter posted a video online of him hitting her with a belt is asking the Texas Supreme Court to reinstate him.

In a motion filed Wednesday seeking reinstatement, Aransas County Court-At-Law Judge William Adams waived his right to contest a misconduct warning he received in September. The warning was issued after the state's Commission on Judicial Conduct held a hearing on Adams' capability to serve as a family court judge.

Adams, 52, was suspended with pay on Nov. 22, 2011 after his daughter, Hillary Adams, 24, uploaded to YouTube a seven-and-a-half minute video clip that she had recorded seven years prior.

The video, which has amassed more than 7 million views since it was first uploaded, shows William Adams beating his young daughter with a belt. According to a description of the clip, the girl has ataxic cerebral palsy and was being punished for "using the Internet to acquire music and games that were unavailable for legal purchase" at the time.

"Bend over the f--king bed, dammit," Adams said as he repeatedly hit his daughter with a belt. "Lay down or I'll spank your f--king face. ... I have to f--king beat you into submission. You want to put some more computer games on? You want some more? F--king computer... See all the problems they cause?"

The video triggered enormous outrage from viewers, who left more than 160,000 comments on it, and received worldwide media attention.

After Adams uploaded the video in 2011, she spoke with KRIS-TV. She said she was 16 years old when it was filmed.

"It had happened before and had been escalating," Adams told the news station. "I set up a camera, and I caught it ... My father's harassment was getting really bad, so I decided to finally publish the video that I had been sitting on for seven years."

A phone listing for her father is disconnected. In a letter distributed by his attorney after the video was released, Adams claimed his daughter posted the video because he had threatened to withdraw financial support.

The Rockport Police Department investigated the video, but child abuse charges could not be filed because the statute of limitations had passed.

READ JUDGE WILLIAM ADAMS' PUBLIC WARNING
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According to CNN, Adams' ex-wife, Hallie Adams, sent a letter to the Supreme Court on Tuesday asking that the justices not lift her former husband's suspension until after they investigate a complaint she filed against him in August.

"I have not been able to get anyone to protect me and now I am trying to protect the public from being judged by a person that I feel does not have the capacity to act fairly and effectively as a judge as evidence of how he has treated his own family over the years," she said, according to CNN.

Since William Adams has waived his right to appeal his misconduct warning, he is now eligible to have his suspension lifted. His elected term does not end until 2014. It is not immediately clear when the court will rule on the matter. Officials at the Aransas County Court were unavailable for comment Friday.

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Judge suspended WITH pay??? Unreal!! Welcome to TexASS!!!

Wrapitup wrote:Judge suspended WITH pay??? Unreal!! Welcome to TexASS!!!

Well, that's not much of a example. Makes me wonder about the people who decided that was enough punishment. Do they beat their kids so this is normal to them? I think maybe there is a lot more of this kind of behavior than anyone wants to admit.
joan+20

I agree spayandneuter, I think there's tons more of this type of behavior than anyone knows about and/or wants to admit.
I think everyone from teachers, cops, city, county, state or federal workers get suspended WITH pay. Doesn't make it right thou'. MOO.

So the judge is still getting paid but doesn't have to work. Speaks Volumes!!

There is more of this going on all over the country and sometimes, right under our noses.

Judge in video beating seeks reinstatement; ex-wife is opposed
By Joe Sutton and Ed Payne, CNN
updated 9:58 AM EDT, Thu October 4, 2012

(CNN) -- A judge suspended after an online video showed him beating his teenage daughter is asking the Texas Supreme Court to reinstate him.

Judge William Adams' former wife, however, opposes his return to the bench.

Adams was suspended last year after the 2004 video went public. It showed him beating his then-16-year-old daughter because she downloaded online music and games.

He signed off on a public warning Wednesday issued by the state's Commission on Judicial Conduct, waiving his right to appeal its sanction. The signature clears the way for the Supreme Court to rule on a motion to have his suspension lifted, which the commission supports.

It was not immediately clear when the court would rule on the matter.

His former wife, Hallie Adams, filed a grievance with the commission in August. In a letter to the Supreme Court on Tuesday, she asked that the justices not to lift his suspension until her complaint has been fully investigated.

"I have not been able to get anyone to protect me and now I am trying to protect the public from being judged by a person that I feel does not have the capacity to act fairly and effectively as a judge as evidence of how he has treated his own family over the years," Hallie Adams said Wednesday.

What is child abuse?
As a judge, William Adams handles misdemeanor cases, including family-related and juvenile court issues.

Hillary Adams unleashed a firestorm in November when she posted a seven-year-old video of her father beating her when she was 16.

Aransas County Attorney Richard Bianchi said at the time that his office was overwhelmed with calls and e-mails, including some from overseas, after the video went viral on the Internet.

The 2004 beating occurred when her father was punishing her for using the Internet "to acquire music and games that were unavailable for legal purchase at the time," Adams wrote on the Internet posting. She said she released the video after being harassed by her father.

"It was the straw that broke the camel's back," she said in November. "It wasn't any huge happening or anything." She said she told her father she had the video, "and he didn't seem to think anything of it, and basically dared me to post it."

The video posting said, "Judge William Adams is not fit to be anywhere near the law system if he can't even exercise fit judgment as a parent himself. Do not allow this man to ever be re-elected again. His 'judgment' is a giant farce. Signed, Hillary Adams, his daughter."

The 7 1/2-minute video is punctuated by cracks of the man's belt and the girl's screams and cries.

At one point, the man says to his near-hysterical daughter, "What happened to you, Hillary? Once you were an obedient, nice little girl. Now you lie, cheat and steal."

At another point, he yells at her, "You want to put some more computer games on? You want some more?"
William Adams has acknowledged that the man in the video is him.

Hillary Adams "has had ataxic cerebral palsy from birth that led her to a passion for technology, which was strictly forbidden by her father's backwards views," according to the posting on the YouTube video.

Ataxic cerebral palsy is a rare form of the condition and affects balance.

Since going up in November, a Facebook page called "Don't Re-Elect Judge William Adams" has attracted more than 32,500 "likes." A Spanish-language version has collected more than 300 more.

"This man is a terrible excuse for a human being! Shame on you!" said one post on the page. "He is nothing but a bully and deserves adult punishment! God bless his daughter!"

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IIRC, the mother also was behind her husband when Hillary was beaten. NOW, she says it was due to him being a bully w/her. I wouldn't care if I were married to Satan; I would NOT stand back and allow my husband to beat my child.

She states

"I was completely brainwashed and controlled," Hallie said, noting that her husband struggled with addiction, but didn't offer details on what kind. "I did every single thing that he did. When I leave the room he is telling me what to say, what to do."

If he told her to jump of a bridge, would she do it? This is total crap!

By Mark Collette
Posted November 6, 2012 at 12:10 p.m., updated November 6, 2012 at 12:37 p.m.

ARANSAS COUNTY — The Texas Supreme Court on Tuesday lifted the suspension of the judge whose video-recorded beating of his daughter focused uproar on Aransas County a year ago.

William Adams, who as a family law judge hears child abuse cases, went on paid suspension in November after his daughter uploaded a secretly recorded YouTube video showing the judge whipping her with a belt seven years earlier, when she was 16.

The video depicts the judge and, at one point, the girl’s mother, striking her more than a dozen times while issuing an obscenity-laced tirade and threats of further harm.

Adams agreed to a paid suspension while the State Commission on Judicial Conduct investigated. Judicial suspensions typically are lifted soon after the commission issues a censure, unless the censure includes a recommendation that the judge be removed from the bench.

In September, the commission issued a public warning to Adams, finding the video cast doubt on his ability to be impartial. It also warned the judge against a pattern of demeaning behavior toward attorneys in his court.

Adams has not commented on the warning and he could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

It is unclear when Adams will return to the bench. At the Aransas County courthouse, officials have prepared for his return by beefing up security. In the days after the video went viral, county offices were besieged by hundreds of phone calls and emails, many of them threatening, urging the county to dismiss the judge. But under state law, county officials have no control over the employment and little control over the salary of an elected judge. Adams’ term runs through 2014. He has received about a year’s salary and allowances while on suspension, roughly $150,000.

Another major change when Adams returns: He won’t be hearing some cases brought by the Texas Department of Family and Protective services, which investigates allegations of child abuse.

Agency Commissioner Howard Baldwin told County Attorney Richard Bianchi in a letter that the department does not believe Adams can serve in the best interest of children and parents in abuse or neglect cases. Baldwin initially asked that all of the agency’s cases be shifted to a district court.

Bianchi said the agency since has modified its request to apply only to cases involving violence with children. Those cases will be filed in district court, Bianchi said. The agency has indicated its lawyers will try to move similar cases now in Adams’ court to a district court, he said.

Of 15 local attorneys who practiced in Adams’ court and who testified before the Commission on Judicial Conduct, six said he could no longer be effective because the video created the public perception that he could not be fair in cases of family violence, child abuse or assault. Another six supported his return to the bench and, according to the commission, all 15 praised Adams for his fairness, impartiality and knowledge of the law.

Lawyers also told the commission it’s likely criminal defense attorneys would file motions to recuse the judge if he returns to the bench. That potentially could slow the progress of court cases.

A public sanction of any kind is unusual. More than 4,000 complaints against judges were filed with the commission from 2008 to 2011, and 73 public sanctions were issued. A warning is one step short of a reprimand, which would have prevented Adams from serving as a visiting judge after he retires, denying a lasting source of income.

Although police and prosecutors reviewed the Adams video, they did not pursue criminal charges, citing statutes of limitation.

Adams has downplayed the video as a ploy by a conniving ex-wife embroiled in a custody battle and a vengeful daughter cut off from his finances. He said they capitalized on him losing his temper after his daughter illegally downloaded music. The daughter, Hillary Adams, and her mother, Hallie Adams, have reconciled and said they hoped the video would force the judge to confront an abusive past.

Hallie Adams continues her efforts to have the judge sanctioned. She has delivered her own complaints to the Commission on Judicial Conduct, saying his behavior during and after their marriage shows he is unfit to be a judge. The couple remains in a legal dispute over their youngest daughter.

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This judge was caught on tape beating his then-16yo Cerebral Palsy suffering daughter back in 2004. The reason for the beating? She used Kazaa to obtain some music.

Now, after a year of investigation, (all while he has been paid $146,000/year) Judge-at-Large William Adams, of Aransas County, Texas is back on the bench and issuing judgements.

In its November 6 order, the Texas Supreme Court agreed with a deal between Adams and the Texas Commission on Judicial Conduct.

As part of that deal, a public warning was issued to Adams on September 5 2012, but no further punishments were levied aside from a minor pay cut to $144,000/year (€113,000)

Part of the difficulty was that since the beating happened in 2004, meaning that the statute of limitations for Criminal Child Abuse had expired when the video was published by Adams’ daughter in November 2011. The Texas Supreme Court did express reservations about his suitability for the bench, but did not feel strongly enough to remove him.

Adams is free to sit in judgement of others in his Rockport, Texas courtroom until 2014, when he is up for re-election to the post. However, physical domestic abuse cases, which comprised much of his docket a year ago, will no longer grace his court.

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