Round Rock Man Jailed After Repeatedly Hitting Son With Paddle

ROUND ROCK, TX — Police arrested a man after he allegedly spanked his young son repeatedly with a paddle with such severity the 11-year-old boy now could develop kidney failure, according to a published report.

Thomas Scott Drever, 50, has been charged with injury to a child — a third-degree felony punishable by up to a decade behind bars. The incident dates to April 4, when a Williamson County Sheriff's Office deputy was called to Hernandez Middle School amid reports of an injury to a child that occurred at a house on White Indigo Trail in Round Rock, according to an Austin American-Statesman report based on an arrest affidavit.

Prior to arriving at the school, the deputy examined photos of the injuries: Deep purple bruising on one of the boy's outer thighs spanning from his left buttocks to above his knee, according to the report.

The boy's mother said the corporal punishment had been meted out after the boy allegedly stole items from the house, according to the report. The woman acknowledged her husband spanked the child — but only two or three times, and the extensive bruising was likely caused because he moved about during the spanking, the affidavit details.

The mother became upset after seeing the child's injuries, showing police the instrument used for the discipline: A paddle 16 inches long and six inches wide, half-an-inch thick, according to the report. The boy disputed the mother's claims that just a handful of spankings took place, saying he was hit up to 30 times, the report indicates.

A Williamson County Children's Advocacy Center nurse told police the boy could develop kidney failure if the bruises swell up or he might develop a blood clot, according to the report. According to the report, Drever has since posted bail on a $10,000 bond, and was released from detention on May 18.

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Thomas Scott Drever booking photo via Williamson County Jail records