It’s five years in jail for a Cedar Falls mother who’s charged with assault and child endangerment. Prosecutors say 31-year-old Valerie Stanton beat her two boys for several years, and punished them in unusual ways.

A Black Hawk County District Court Judge handed down the prison sentence after Stanton pleaded guilty to charges of child endangerment with bodily injury and assault causing bodily injury. She was charged with two counts each. Stanton admitted to stuffing socks in her children’s mouths and holding their heads in the toilet to punish them.

Her husband is awaiting trial on charges connected to the same case. Daniel Stanton is accused of fondling the children repeatedly for nearly a decade. He’s charged with second-degree sexual abuse.  

Audio: Elwin Huffman report. :34 MP3