One of my son's friends was persistently beaten and abused as a child by his stepfather - a man who clearly failed to realise that little boys grow into big men. The stepfather crossed the stepson's path at the wrong moment a few months ago. (The stepson is now aged 27). The court remanded the stepson for background reports, deciding that a custodial sentence was not merited. In fact, he was simply warned to be "of good behaviour". The wheel turns.