Soldier, wife accused of forcing kids to fight

updated 11:58 a.m. ET March 24, 2006

KILLEEN, Texas - A Fort Hood soldier and his wife have been accused of injury to a child for allegedly forcing their 3-year-old daughter to beat up an older boy as they videotaped it, Killeen police said.

Dennis Michael Bittinger, 22, was arrested Wednesday and his wife, Rhonda Nicole Bittinger, 23, was taken into custody Thursday, police said.

The fight allegedly occurred Saturday while the couple babysat for the 5-year-old son of a friend, police said. When the boy's mother arrived to pick him up, she turned on the couple's video camera, which had previously been used to tape the children playing.

Police said the tape shows the soldier commanding his daughter to knock the victim down, kick him and hit him in the face. The girl follows her father's instructions as the boy cries and pleads for her to stop, police said.

The tape also shows the man declaring his daughter the "winner," and he shoves the boy and demands to know why he didn't defend himself, police said.

The incident left the boy with bruises.

Bond has been set at $100,000 each for the husband and wife, who were being held in the Bell County Jail Thursday night. It wasn't immediately clear if they had a lawyer.

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