The State : Pig-Costume Mother Fined

A woman charged with punishing her 7-year-old son by dressing him in a pig costume complete with a snout has reached a plea bargain agreement in which she was fined $500 and placed on probation. Mary Bergamasco pleaded guilty in Hayward Municipal Court to a charge of lying to a police officer during a traffic stop. She was then fined and placed on probation for three years. A charge of child endangerment was dismissed in exchange for the guilty plea. Authorities said Bergamasco probably will be admitted into a counseling program. The child abuse charge was filed June 28 after Bergamasco dressed her son in a makeshift pig costume, tied his hands behind his back and forced him to sit on a bench in front of their apartment. The mother placed a sign around his neck saying that the boy was being punished for lying and stealing. Bergamasco said that she was disciplined in the same method as a child.