David and Mary Black are charged with the murder of 11-year-old Joseph Carsello, Mary’s son and David’s stepson (Picture:KARK)

A father told police he ‘spanked the shit’ out of his 11-year-old stepson who died of his injuries, police say.

David Black, 38, and Mary Black, 30, are were arrested for allegedly murdering their son, Joseph Carsello, who was found dead inside a trailer on June 16 in Star City, Arkansas.

On Tuesday, the pair appeared in court and were charged with capital murder. They face the death penalty or life in prison if found guilty.

Mary Black told police she and her husband whipped the boy with belts on June 15 after he tried to run away.


She said Joseph began talking back, so they battered him in the face with their hands, Arkansas Online reported.

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Two children were removed from the Black’s custody in the wake of Joseph’s death (Picture: KARK)

Joseph reportedly kicked his father in the face, then fell down a flight of stairs and hit his head on a toolbox, his mother told investigators.



The boy went swimming at a neighbor’s house the next day and swung a hammer at his stepfather when he returned home, Mary Black said.

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She told police that she and her husband ‘went a little crazy on him to teach him not to swing a hammer.’

David Black later told police that he ‘spanked the shit out of Joseph,’ adding ‘That’s why his but looked the way it did.’

Mary Black said they used their hands, belts, and a paddle to beat the boy, then told him to stand in a corner.

An autopsy ruled that Joseph Corsello died of blunt force trauma and showed he had signs of internal injuries (Picture: KARK)

They found him unresponsive a short time later and poured water on him to wake him up – but noticed he wasn’t breathing.

Joseph was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.

An autopsy ruled that he died of blunt force injuries, noting marks on the boy’s head, hemorrhaging of the abdominal cavity, laceration of the liver, and hemorrhaging of the pancreas and small bowel.

David Black was booked at the Lincoln County Jail, where he is being held without bond.

Mary Black is being held at a jail in Arkansas County without bond

They are both set to reappear in court on October 7.