WI Man Arrested for Forcing Son to Wear Packers Jersey

[FavreChild]

http://www.todaystmj4.com/news/local/13845022.html

Packers Fan In Trouble For Taping Jersey To Son

Katie DeLong

PARDEEVILLE – A Green Bay Packers fan got in trouble for punishing his son.

The reason?

The son refused to wear a Packers jersey.

Matthew Kowald of Pardeeville in Columbia County is accused of restraining his son and tying him up with tape after the boy refused to wear a Packers jersey during the Seahawks game. A jersey was also taped to the boy.

Kowald was arrested.

He pleaded no contest to disorderly conduct and has to pay a $186 fine.

[Packers4Ever]

Must have lifted quite a few that day !!! :lol:

:shock:

[Badgerinmaine]

The article I saw said his wife took shots of it with her camera phone and forwarded them to the police. He apparently has a troubled past ("other domestic issues have surfaced") and his wife has obtained a restraining order against him. The more I read about it, the more it seems a lot more scary than funny. I'm sure the New York media will have a field day with this.

[Deputy Nutz]

I hope the national media realizes this isn't all Packer fans.

[Badgerinmaine]

I hope the national media realizes this isn't all Packer fans.

You'd hope that, but even if they do, some people reading the story won't.

[motife]

since when is this illegal though?

If I'd been the arresting officer I would have arrested the son.

they have a photo. I'm assuming this is not the son :

http://images.todaystmj4.com/images/kowald.jpg

[Harlan Huckleby]

he should have smiled for the mug shot

[Deputy Nutz]

since when is this illegal though?

If I'd been the arresting officer I would have arrested the son.

they have a photo. I'm assuming this is not the son :

http://images.todaystmj4.com/images/kowald.jpg

Yep, this guy was only messing around, what a upstanding citizen.

[Badgerinmaine]

he should have smiled for the mug shot
Probably too hung over. He doesn't look like Mr. Happy or Mr. Sober.

[gbgary]

my daughter just emailed this article and i answered back..."i don't see a problem with this. :wink: "

[Harlan Huckleby]

Yep, this guy was only messing around, what a upstanding citizen.

Waiting to hear both sides of a story before passing judgement is not a bad habit to get into.

[Harlan Huckleby]

Probably too hung over. He doesn't look like Mr. Happy or Mr. Sober.

He looks like Mr. Mafia Hitman is what he looks like. I don't think a professional actor could get a sneer that good.

[FavreChild]

my daughter just emailed this article and i answered back..."i don't see a problem with this. :wink: "

Yeah, my dad sent it to me with the comment, "Good thing you weren't a problem child."

But yes, there is probably more behind the incident....

[Iron Mike]

he should have smiled for the mug shot

Smile for the mug shot?

http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/lou/sports/m-footbl/03-04roster/HS_spitz_jason.jpg

[MJZiggy]

Every damn time... :lol:

[]{ilr]3]

Great, just saw this story on the CNN Headline News this morning :roll:

They pretty much only told the womans side of the story. Most people will probably come away with the idea that this is what all Packer fans are like.

I dont think what he did looked particularly bad or cruel. But in all likelyhood the guy is a turd and she has finally had enough and this is her out.

[MJZiggy]

Actually, he plead no contest so there really wasn't too much for him to say about it. What's he gonna say? That he accidentally taped a jersey TO his kid?

[KYPack]

my daughter just emailed this article and i answered back..."i don't see a problem with this. :wink: "

Yeah, my dad sent it to me with the comment, "Good thing you weren't a problem child."

But yes, there is probably more behind the incident....

But you were a FavreChild.

This idiot is getting a TON of airplay around here. The whole idea is how goofy Packer fans are.

[The Leaper]

http://images.todaystmj4.com/images/kowald.jpg

Why isn't HE wearing a Packer jersey.

Tape the bastard up!

[Carolina_Packer]

Yep, this guy was only messing around, what a upstanding citizen.

Waiting to hear both sides of a story before passing judgement is not a bad habit to get into.

Yep, just ask Mike Nifong! He's filed for bankruptcy just recently. I live near Durham, NC. The guy is compeletely ruined.

[twoseven]

http://images.todaystmj4.com/images/kowald.jpg

Why isn't HE wearing a Packer jersey.

Tape the bastard up!
Chances that he'll experience a very personal 'packer' moment all his own in his new temporary holding facility?

[GoPackGo]

My gut feeling tells me this has more to do with husband and wife and less to do with the Father/Son relationship and the Packer jersey. He was probably messing with his son, his son mouthed off and he punished the kid in a funny way. The wife was probably looking for a way to get out of the marriage.

[Deputy Nutz]

My gut feeling tells me this has more to do with husband and wife and less to do with the Father/Son relationship and the Packer jersey. He was probably messing with his son, his son mouthed off and he punished the kid in a funny way. The wife was probably looking for a way to get out of the marriage.

Are we really this stupid?

[GoPackGo]

My gut feeling tells me this has more to do with husband and wife and less to do with the Father/Son relationship and the Packer jersey. He was probably messing with his son, his son mouthed off and he punished the kid in a funny way. The wife was probably looking for a way to get out of the marriage.

Are we really this stupid?

thats just my opinion- I think most women are crazy in the head

[Deputy Nutz]

My gut feeling tells me this has more to do with husband and wife and less to do with the Father/Son relationship and the Packer jersey. He was probably messing with his son, his son mouthed off and he punished the kid in a funny way. The wife was probably looking for a way to get out of the marriage.

Are we really this stupid?

thats just my opinion- I think most women are crazy in the head

I think most guys that tape their kids to a chair for over an hour are crazy. But way to assume that this guy is right in the head and this child's mother is overreacting to seeing her son taped to a chair with a Packer jeresy wrapped around him. Just a type of comment that makes me stand up and scream, "Brilliant!"

[GrnBay007]

My gut feeling tells me this has more to do with husband and wife and less to do with the Father/Son relationship and the Packer jersey. He was probably messing with his son, his son mouthed off and he punished the kid in a funny way. The wife was probably looking for a way to get out of the marriage.

Are we really this stupid?

thats just my opinion- I think most women are crazy in the head

Wow!! :crazy:

[Deputy Nutz]

Gee, don't you think the cops interviewed the kid, and asked him if him and his dad were just goofing around? If the kid was honest and said "dad was just messing around and we were laughing at it." Don't you think the cops would have let it go?

[MJZiggy]

My gut feeling tells me this has more to do with husband and wife and less to do with the Father/Son relationship and the Packer jersey. He was probably messing with his son, his son mouthed off and he punished the kid in a funny way. The wife was probably looking for a way to get out of the marriage.

Are we really this stupid?

thats just my opinion- I think most women are crazy in the head

Excuse me?

[GoPackGo]

here's a quote from the article-
"Smith said other domestic issues have surfaced, though he wouldn't elaborate."

we don't know the whole story. I'm not passing judgement on the guy yet.

[MJZiggy]

I'm not passing judgement on the guy yet.

Wish you'd give the same courtesy to "most women."

If it were truly just goofing around he wouldn't have plead no contest, the pictures that the wife took would have shown the kid laughing, a restraining order keeping the guy away from his son would NEVER have been issued, and don't you think it's probable that the "other domestic issues" are some type of abuse? Sorry, in this one, I gotta side with the kid. The dude is far more able to defend himself than his son, and I know if I were goofing with my kid and someone accused it of being more, you couldn't PAY me to plead no contest to it.

[Harlan Huckleby]

Man cited after forcing son to wear Packers sweat shirt, says he was only joking
By Matthew Call, Daily Register

A Pardeeville father accused of forcing his 7-year-old son to wear a Packers sweat shirt and then tying him up during the divisional playoff game last weekend said the incident was a joke that "got blown way out of proportion."

Mathew Kowald, 36, was cited for disorderly conduct Wednesday after authorities arrested him Monday on tentative felony charges of causing mental harm to a child and false imprisonment. He was issued only a disorderly conduct citation for the incident.

Kowald reportedly forced a Packers sweat shirt on the boy, who said to his father that he refused to root for the Packers and was told by Kowald that anyone who said that would be grounded. Kowald allegedly also wrapped his son in insulation tape, forcing him to watch the football game.

"He wanted the juvenile to be a Packers fan, and I would suggest he went about it the wrong way," Columbia County Lt. Wayne Smith said.

The boy's mother took pictures of the incident on her cell phone camera and filed them with the sheriff's department.

Kowald pleaded no contest to disorderly conduct after he was released from the Columbia County Jail. He received a fine of $186.

Wednesday afternoon, Kowald said his son was challenging him in a friendly manner that he would not root for the Packers against the Seattle Seahawks when Kowald got home from work Saturday and began to watch the football game.

In a joking manner, Kowald told his son to put on the Packers sweat shirt and his son refused, throwing it back at him in jest, Kowald said.

In a continuation of that joke, Kowald said he tied the boy up and that his son was laughing at first.

"It was like if you buried someone in the sand," Kowald said. "My wife was sitting right there, taking pictures, laughing."

"Then he couldn't get out and he got upset and that's it. It lasted a minute," Kowald added. "I didn't mean no harm, and he knows that, but I haven't been able to tell him that."

Reached by phone Wednesday, the boy's mother, Rebecca Kowald, declined to comment. According to the Wisconsin Circuit Court Access Web site, she filed a restraining order Wednesday against her husband.

Kowald said he hasn't been able to see his 7-year-old son and his two other children since his arrest, and he plans to meet with a social worker today and then arrange a visit. Kowald said he wants to tell his children that he loves them.

"I know I sound like the Big Bad Wolf, but anyone who knows me knows I'm not," he said. "It was just for fun. To me, it's something dads do with their kids, they wrestle around.

"I never would have dreamed something like this would happen."

Columbia County District Attorney Jane Kohlwey said there was not enough evidence to support the felony charges.

"I wouldn't agree with what he did," Kohlwey said. "But, legally, a parent can restrain a child."

"I have no proof of emotional damage," Kohlwey added. "I have to follow the law."

According to a Columbia County Sheriff's Department report, Kowald told his son "he wasn't allowed to get out (of the tape) unless he was going to be a Packer fan."

Rebecca Kowald reported the incident Monday, the sheriff's department said.

Kowald allegedly came home around 5 p.m. Saturday and began yelling because he could not find a television remote control, according to a sheriff's department report.

After wrapping the boy's wrists and ankles together, his mother asked Kowald if she could free him, according to the report. Kowald reportedly said no but let the boy's sister cut him free with a pair of scissors.

The boy told the sheriff's department he was not injured in the incident. The boy also said he was a Packers fan and was scared of being tied up.

[Harlan Huckleby]

If it were truly just goofing around he wouldn't have plead no contest, the pictures that the wife took would have shown the kid laughing, a restraining order keeping the guy away from his son would NEVER have been issued, and don't you think it's probable that the "other domestic issues" are some type of abuse?


Ziggy, he paid a $126 fine for disorderly conduct.

I knew a young woman who got into an argument with her brother over some food. (the "kids" were teenagers, or young adults.) The girl got into a shouting match with her parents. The brother called the cops. The girl ended up being sent to jail.

Ummmm, never mind the details, but the idea that this girl was violent is a joke, trust me. The father restrained the girl and she had bruises on her arms. When the cops get called to a domestic disturbance, SOMEBODY goes to jail. That's just how it works. In this case, the parents just said the girl was the problem to protect themselves.

Don't make judgements about what really happened. It could easily be much like what the guy said, and the cops still would feel obliged to do SOMETHING to cover their asses.


don't you think it's probable that the "other domestic issues" are some type of abuse?

I wouldn't make any judgement at all. For 100% certain, the wife and husband have a terrible relationship.

[MJZiggy]

Why did he plead no contest? I have a friend who's a state trooper in DE and the notion that they feel they have to arrest someone is pure bullshit. I've talked to him about DV calls and generally they just want to assess the situation and get it under control. If someone gives the cops a hard time or a victim wants to press charges then they think about an arrest, but they don't go to a scene thinking that they have to arrest someone. Sorry, but in these instances I'll always side with the kid. If they were playing, the kid wouldn't have told the cops he was a Packer fan because he was afraid of getting tied up again. The dude needs a social worker just to get to see the kid. Maybe he's just making excuses for himself 'cause if he were a great guy, I don't see it ending this way and his friends would be coming out of the woodwork to defend him. I've heard nothing from ANYONE in his defense. I don't say my mind can't be changed on the topic if further evidence comes out to support him, but for the moment, I'll stay on the side of the 7-year-old.

[Harlan Huckleby]

Sorry, but in these instances I'll always side with the kid.

Mom called the cops, not the kid, TWO DAYS LATER.

note the vague reference to "other domestic issues." Obviously the husband and wife are at war. And quite possibly the guy IS an S.O.B. But then again, maybe not.



Maybe he's just making excuses for himself 'cause if he were a great guy, I don't see it ending this way and his friends would be coming out of the woodwork to defend him. I've heard nothing from ANYONE in his defense.

Ziggy, you're losing it. Where, pray tell, would we be reading character references from his friends? This is not exactly the OJ case, I doubt that DAteline has descended upon Pardeeville.

[Harlan Huckleby]

I'll stay on the side of the 7-year-old.

Me too. Lets get him out of the clutches of that psycho woman. :lol:

[GrnBay007]

Well, I will say in the State I live in if the police are called to a domestic call, someone is going to jail. The laws have changed to protect victims of domestic violence mainly due to so many of them dropping charges after being harassed.

I thought this quote was rediculous....

"I know I sound like the Big Bad Wolf, but anyone who knows me knows I'm not," he said. "It was just for fun. To me, it's something dads do with their kids, they wrestle around.


I've never known wrestling to include tying or taping up the individual so they can't move. The guy messed up big time. I don't think it was mentioned whether alcohol was involved or not, but either way, you mess up, you gotta jump through the hoops, esp. when minors are involved.

[FavreChild]

Well, I will say in the State I live in if the police are called to a domestic call, someone is going to jail.

That's true in Wisconsin, too.

The arrested party can either plead guilty or no contest to simply pay the fine. If you plead not guilty, you have to go to trial.

[Harlan Huckleby]

I've never known wrestling to include tying or taping up the individual so they can't move.

Stuff happens. Why, I've heard of wives handcuffing their husbands to bedposts.

Actually, tying-up is something that kids play around with. I don't think what the guy did is necessarily sinister. It sounds like the sister cut him loose in short order.


The guy messed up big time.

Maybe. I just don't know. It's just hard to know without being there.

[GrnBay007]

I've never known wrestling to include tying or taping up the individual so they can't move.

Stuff happens. Why, I've heard of wives handcuffing their husbands to bedposts.

Actually, tying-up is something that kids play around with. I don't think what the guy did is necessarily sinister. It sounds like the sister cut him loose in short order.


The guy messed up big time.

Maybe. I just don't know. It's just hard to know without being there.

OK HH, lets all agree we don't know all the facts. But you know what....I will alway error on the side of protecting a kid.

I mean really, how many times do you hear a guilty party come out and say they are guilty from the start?

[Freak Out]

Sorry...but the guys a fucking idiot...you don't tape a 7 year old up to a chair as a joke unless your an idiot.

[Harlan Huckleby]

Sorry...but the guys a fucking idiot...you don't tape a 7 year old up to a chair as a joke unless your an idiot.

ya, I gotta agree. not something an adult should be doing, even if intent was playful.

[Harlan Huckleby]

OK HH, lets all agree we don't know all the facts. But you know what....I will alway error on the side of protecting a kid.

it's not that we don't know the facts, exactly, it's more we don't know the atmosphere. The guy claims his wife was laughing about it at the time, and it went on for a very short period of time. "protecting the kid" is probably an overstatement.

[GoPackGo]

ohhhhhhhh looooookie loooooookie what we have here. Funny some of you were on my case for suggesting the first report wasn't the whole story. I'm glad I heard another side of the story before I crucified the guy.
I was kidding when I suggested women were crazy by the way.

For deputy Nutz::roll:
For MJZiggy::roll:
For GreenBay007::roll:

[GrnBay007]

ohhhhhhhh looooookie loooooookie what we have here. Funny some of you were on my case for suggesting the first report wasn't the whole story. I'm glad I heard another side of the story before I crucified the guy.
I was kidding when I suggested women were crazy by the way.

For deputy Nutz::roll:
For MJZiggy::roll:
For GreenBay007::roll:

:roll: :roll: back at ya!!

You can't seriously believe that because you heard his side that you NOW know the TRUTH. Give me a break. I don't care what the circumstances were......YOU DO NOT TIE OR TAPE UP A KID TO A CHAIR!!!

It's not that hard to understand. Please don't let your Packer faithfulness not let you see that.

[GoPackGo]

ohhhhhhhh looooookie loooooookie what we have here. Funny some of you were on my case for suggesting the first report wasn't the whole story. I'm glad I heard another side of the story before I crucified the guy.
I was kidding when I suggested women were crazy by the way.

For deputy Nutz::roll:
For MJZiggy::roll:
For GreenBay007::roll:

:roll: :roll: back at ya!!

You can't seriously believe that because you heard his side that you NOW know the TRUTH. Give me a break. I don't care what the circumstances were......YOU DO NOT TIE OR TAPE UP A KID TO A CHAIR!!!

It's not that hard to understand. Please don't let your Packer faithfulness not let you see that.

I never said anything about tying people up on chairs being right or wrong. This is what I said:

"My gut feeling tells me this has more to do with husband and wife and less to do with the Father/Son relationship and the Packer jersey. He was probably messing with his son, his son mouthed off and he punished the kid in a funny way. The wife was probably looking for a way to get out of the marriage."

[Deputy Nutz]

ohhhhhhhh looooookie loooooookie what we have here. Funny some of you were on my case for suggesting the first report wasn't the whole story. I'm glad I heard another side of the story before I crucified the guy.
I was kidding when I suggested women were crazy by the way.

For deputy Nutz::roll:
For MJZiggy::roll:
For GreenBay007::roll:

Actually his behavior and conduct was disorderly, thats what he pleaded quilty to.

I don't even want to know what is going on with him and his wife, but what he did do upset his son at some point and it probable became traumatic for him.

Hell, most people that are accused of domestic violence usually only get charged with disorderly conduct.

[BallHawk]

Dude got himself the #2 spot on Countdown's "Worst Person in the World"

That's quite an honor. :lol: