Perhaps, King Solomon was not writing literally, but rather, symbolically. This seems to make much more sense to me. Regardless of King Solomon's intentions, there is quite clearly a separation of Church and State that should not make concessions for religious beliefs that will hurt an individual or society as a whole. It is clear that a child that is punished by an adult that abuses drugs is most assuredly in physical danger. Unquestionably, a child's physical well-being is a major concern.
Corporal punishment can have very severe consequences to the physical health of a child.
It took emergency technicians three days to stabilize this young child's heart rate, breathing, and blood pressure. Another key problem with corporal punishment is that spanking evokes unhealthy sexual feelings. Spanking involves inflicting pain to a child on the buttocks, which is a very private part of the body. Oskar Pfister, a physician and psychoanalyst, asserts that since a child's sex organs are so close to where the spankings take place, regular use of corporal punishment could turn a child on sexually. No loving parent would want a life of abuse and maltreatment for their child.