Update: Judge William Adams has responded to the now-viral video which shows him beating his daughter with a belt. He told Corpus Christi news channel KZTV, "She's mad because I've ordered her to bring the car back, in a nutshell, but yeah that's me, I lost my temper. Her mother was there, she wasn't hurt.. it was a long time ago.. I really don't want to get into this right now because as you can see my life's been made very difficult over this child." Adams added, "In my mind I have not done anything wrong other than discipline my child when she was caught stealing. I did lose my temper, I've apologized.. it looks worse than it is."
An investigation has been launched into the allegations of abuse, but Judge Adams is not likely to be charged because the five-year statute of limitations on causing harm to a child has expired for the 7-year-old video. However, the statute of limitations on a felony is ten years, so there is still a chance Adams may face charges if the abuse were deemed a felony.
Hillary Adams, now 23, appeared on NBC's Today show with her mother, where she said she hoped her father would get help. When asked if she wanted her father to lose his job, she evaded the question, but based on the description of the Youtube video in which she wrote "Do not allow this man to ever be re-elected again," Hillary does not think her father is capable of exercising judgement in the court of law. Adams has presided over dozens of family-law cases in which he has had to make decisions regarding parental fitness.

A video posted to Youtube on October 27 shows Aransas County, TX., court-at-law Judge William Adams beating his teenage daughter with a belt. At one point Judge Adams leaves the room, only to come back and beat her more. The video, which has gotten significant attention since it was posted on the link-sharing site Reddit, was made by the victim of the abuse, Hillary Adams. Hillary caught the abuse on camera in 2004, but has held on to the footage until now. In the video description, Hillary, who has ataxic cerebral palsy, says her father beat her that night for downloading games and music. The incident, she says, was not isolated. According to Hillary, her mother, who also appears in the video and participates in the beating, was a victim of Judge Adams' emotional abuse and was manipulated into hitting her own daughter. Judge Adams has not been charged with a crime, but as video views continue to multiply and public outrage grows, he may soon be seeing the consequences of his actions.

The disturbing video can be seen here, view at your own risk.