ECSO: Man Videos Child Beating To Tune Of Robin Thicke Song ‘Blurred Lines’

A Molino man is facing multiple child abuse charges after allegedly beating a juvenile girl on video to the tune of the Robin Thicke song “Blurred Lines”.

Steven Grady Fillingim, age 40 of Chestnut Road, was booked into the Escambia County Jail on three counts of felony child abuse. He was being held without bond.

Escambia County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a child abuse complaint on Sunday. The victim said Fillingim came home Saturday night and became angry with her, calling her lazy, because she had not vacuumed up bugs from the carpet. He allegedly struck her on the face with a belt and his hands, but he did not leave any marks. According to an arrest report, he then made the victim hold a 20-pound weight straight out in front of her body, and then made her hold an 8-pound weight behind her. He then reportedly made the victim shovel dirt for about an hour and a half before allowing her to go to bed at 1:30 a.m.

The victim told deputies that punishments were for “being lazy” and for skipping school the previous week.

The day she skipped school, the victim said Fillingim began to hit her on the backs of both thighs with a switch about 2.5 feet long for about 40 minutes, using the switch like a whip.

As he was striking the victim, Fillingim played the Robin Thicke song “Blurred Lines”, striking her with the switch to the beat of the music, an arrest report states. At some point during the beating, Fillingim began to record the incident with his phone and sent the recording to his girlfriend via text message.

A deputy that viewed the video said it was titled “She’s Home” and what appears to be a switch is repeatedly stuck across the upper thigh area of a person’s legs. The face of the person is not visible in the video, but the deputy said the portion of the legs was the same area where the victim was bruised.

The victim also reported Fillingim struck her multiple times leaving a bruise on the upper portion of her left arm.

Fillingim’s girlfriend told deputies she observed Fillingim strike the victim with a belt before ordering her to hold a weight. The victim said she was then ordered to go to her room and “mind her own business”, the report states. The woman told deputies that she has now broken up with Fillingim and no longer wished to continue a relationship with him.

The arrest report does not specify the relationship between Fillingim and the victim.

The Department of Children and Families is also investigating the incident.