ATOKA – Dating violence amongst teens has become an epidemic in the U.S. and it's hit close to home for one Atoka family. Just before Christmas, Stu Phillips received a phone call that changed his life. He found out that his 17-year-old daughter had become a statistic. "I came home from work and discovered my daughter had been beaten by an ex-boyfriend," he said. "That's a heartbreaking and miserable feeling." Phillips said on Dec. 21, 2009, the teenager lured his daughter to the family's front yard while his wife was on the back patio. And that's when he assaulted the 17-year-old. ...
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