Silicon Valley, Jan. 20 (PTI): Spanking a child under four years of age in the US could land parents in jail under a measure to be proposed by a California lawmaker.

Sally Lieber, the Bay Area Assembly member who said she will introduce a bill that will make it illegal for parents to spank their children, has unleashed an intense public debate, with some describing it “progressive” and “inevitable” and others calling it “insanity taking control”.

The Democrat wants to make it a crime for anyone to spank young children, a misdemeanour punishable by up to a year in jail or $1,000 fine. The measure would ban hitting, punching, smack- ing, kicking, slapping and spanking.