Negotiations are frequent in our household between the parental units and the 12- and 15-year-olds about (more) piercings and tattoos. My answer, as far as the remaining years they live at home, is that less (or none, in the case of tattoos) is more.
So it boggles my mind that a father would HOLD DOWN his 7-year-old son so that another gang member could allegedly tattoo a gang insignia -- a dog paw -- on the boy's stomach.
Yet that is what Fresno police say happened. They are looking for Enrique Gonzalez, 26, of Fresno, who also goes by Henry Gonzalez. The man who allegedly marked the boy with the tattoo, Travis Gorman, 20, of Fresno, was arrested by police Tuesday.
Police spokesman Jeff Cardinale said both men face charges of mayhem, battery with gang enhancements, false imprisonment, participating in criminal street gang activity and committing a crime for the benefit of a gang. The father also faces a charge of child abuse.
Detective Jesse Ruelas said the boy is "traumatized."
Of course, he is.
Photo special to The Fresno Bee
This is beyond sad that this little boy had to go through such torment at the hands of his father. Is this supposed to be his initiation at the age of 7. It is ludicris. Our rule with our kids has been no holes God didn't already give you and no ink until you are on your own.
This is sick.
Perhaps an appropriate punishment for the feckless father and his criminal cohort would be to have the word "LOSER" forcibly tatooed on their foreheads.
these idiots would love the tattoo on their forehead. They will just get more ink done to change the word LOSER.
the best punishment would be to skin these gangbangers alive and watch their tattoos be used as toilet paper.
FYI, if the family wants the tattoo removed, the Fresno Police Department, through the Mayor’s Gang Prevention Initiative, will donate at no cost use of a tattoo removal machine. If anyone has information on the suspect's whereabouts, please call Det. Ruelas at 457-4463 or remain anonymous and call Crime Stoppers at 498-STOP.
Thanks to the FPD for their offer to remove this disgrace from this little guy thus hopefully removing him from ever wanting to walk in his fathers footsteps. I hope you catch this scumbag soon.
I don't know if removing a tattoo hurts less than putting one on. Though it was an act of child abuse, that tattoo would not be visible most of the time and could be removed at a later date. I did not know that the Kalvin Klein label extended to children's underwear. The photo did not have to include that. And if the little boy did not have the legal right to refuse the tattoo, the "scumbags" in all probability will get away with it with no more than a slap on the wrist.
This is appalling... H.A.D. would never tat a paw on his kids... this dude is an idiot.
It is cruel for a father to have a gang tattoo put on his minor child. It is contributing to the delingquency of a minor for a parent to encourage their children join gangs. But, I thank God, the family isn't Muslim, where the slice their heads with a straight razor.
Wow, that's absolutely insane.
more than the pain, the absolute lack of judgement on the father's part is what get's me!!! a gang symbol placed permanently on this child? he is simply asking for failure in life for his kid. and where the heck is mom during this??
I think it is amazing and hypocritical that people would demonize a father for forcing his son to get a tattoo, and yet I imagine that many of these same people have forcibly "tattooed" their own sons through circumcision (there is NO medical organization in the world that recommend routine circumcision for health reasons--see http://www.nocirc.org). What does circumcision have to do with this case? Well, a pediatrician in this case had testified that circumcision is more painful and traumatic than getting a tatoo! Of course, I believe it is wrong for a father to do something like allowing his son to be tattooed, and I hope that the judge throws the book at him. But I also think that, if we are going to outlaw all permanent markings on children, that should also extend to the unneccessary, painful, and traumatic procedure of "routine" newborn circumcision. Sadly, you will not see that heppen because the medical industry makes too much money off of it, children's rights notwithstanding.