TX Parents Arrested For Forcefully Restraining and Tattooing Kids

This is a heartbreaking story coming out of East Texas!  According to ktek.com, two individuals have been arrested after forcefully tattooing their children and trying to remove the tattoos once CPS became involved, according to Lt. James Denby with the Zavalla Police Department.

According to the article, the investigation revealed that the stepfather of the children, Gunner Farr, and mother Megan Farr had been “forcefully restraining” the kids in order to give them the homemade tattoos. After further investigation, visible injuries were found on the children that indicate that the parents tried to remove the tattoos once they found out that CPS was about to get involved.

Both the mother and stepfather were arrested on Monday and charged with injury to a child and unlawful restraint. Both were taken to the Angelina County Jail and the children are in the custody of CPS.

IS IT ILLEGAL FOR A CHILD TO GET A TATTOO IN TEXAS?

While the law states no person under 18 in Texas could receive a tattoo, there are two very specific exceptions. 

A tattoo artist is allowed to tattoo a minor if the tattoo is covering up:

• obscene or offensive language or symbols;
• gang-related names, symbols, or markings;
• drug-related names, symbols, pictures; or
• other words, symbols, or markings that the person's parent or guardian considers would be in the best interest of the person to cover

If you get a tattoo in Texas, you must document everything. Before anyone gets a piercing or tattoo, they must fully complete the proper paperwork and present an ID; that paperwork is then kept on file for two years.

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