The charges alleged that two of the children involved were just 2 months old when discipline was advocated by Caminiti. The oldest child was 5 when the practice was stopped after police intervened in November 2010.

Caminiti was not charged with having committed any abuse himself.

Instead, as leader of the church he told other parents, including his own adult children and his brother, how to discipline their children by striking them with wooden spoons and dowels. Using the rod, Caminiti told police, is mandated by the Bible and is intended to correct a child's behavior if they are exhibiting "selfish" crying.

But prosecutors said that the practice went beyond reasonable discipline.

"What we have here are babies and children trying to develop into individuals," Rusch told the jury in her closing argument, "and it's being beaten out of them."

She said Caminiti knew it was illegal, because he had advised his flock not to punish their children this way in public places because it might be seen as abuse.

"It is abuse," Rusch added.

But Lehner argued to jurors that there was no evidence of abuse, only "reasonable discipline" at the hands of parents who were doing as the Bible instructed.