2 Mennonites guilty in strapping case

ST. THOMAS, Ontario, March 27 (UPI) -- A pair of Canadian Mennonite teachers pleaded guilty to charges of using corporal punishment against seven boys in Aylmer, Ontario.

Johan Penner, 30, principal of Old Colony Christian School, and Anna Klassen, 42, pleaded guilty in St. Thomas to charges of hitting the boys on their buttocks with a belt. The boys remained clothed for the punishment. Child welfare officials have seized the belt, the London Free Press reported Thursday.

The newspaper said the peace-loving Mennonite community is standing behind the two educators. Defense attorney Gord Cudmore said church members do not see "strapping" as punishment, but rather see the hand as a "tool of God."

Nevertheless, the community is changing its rules related to corporal punishment.

Sentencing was set for July 15. Cudmore said he would seek to have the convictions discharged.