SOMERSET, Pa., June 3 (UPI) — A Pennsylvania man has been sentenced to 17-35 years in prison for abusing his son by wrapping a snake around his neck and forcing the boy to drink hot sauce.
Jason Flick, 29, of Somerset swore under his breath as the judge pronounced sentence Wednesday, The Tribune-Democrat of Johnstown reported. Somerset County Judge John Cascio read a detailed record of the injuries Flick’s son suffered, including a broken leg and fractured skull at the time Flick was arrested in 2007 when the boy was 2 years old.
Cascio said Flick also held his son’s mouth open and poured beer and hot sauce into his mouth and draped a snake around him.
Assistant District Attorney Carolann Young, who asked for an even longer sentence, said the boy has recovered physically. Emotionally, he remains traumatized, she said.
“He hits himself. He hits his mother. He hits his 2-year-old sister,” the prosecutor said. “He claws himself to the point where he leaves marks. The boy revealed his motivation for why he does this — because that’s what his dad did to him.”