GRANDVIEW, Mo. -- A child accidentally unplugged a power cord to a tool her father was using, and police said her father got violent and attacked her, her brother and their stepmother.

Grandview police said the father used not only his fists and feet but also a power cord, when he attacked his wife and children.

A woman who said she used to be married to Michael Hill, 27, of Grandview, said, "He wasn't aware until Sunday morning that somebody had unplugged the cord so he ended up taking it out on the whole family."

The woman said Hill abused her when they were married, and even though she suspected he was hurting their two children, she had no choice but to leave them with him and his second wife at their apartment at East 136th Street and South U.S. Highway 71.

"Do I send, you know, a child who has confessed abuse to that father because it's court ordered?" the woman said.

Sgt. Joe McKinstry, of the Grandview Police Department, said, "This is just one of those that goes beyond anything that you can comprehend."

The police report stated that on Saturday night, Hill's 8-year-old daughter accidentally tripped over the power cord, unplugging it. Sunday morning, when Hill realized it was unplugged, police said he punched and kicked his 11-year-old son. When the girl admitted it was her fault, police said Hill then went after her, swinging a vacuum cord and cutting the back of her head and then spanking her with it.

Police said when the stepmother tried to step in, he attacked her.

"She tried to intervene on the kids' behalf. She's knocked to the ground and choked. It was just absurd as to how this thing ended up being so major on the assault with the kids versus unplugging a power cord," McKinstry said.

The children's mother said that, to her, "the saddest part is they're going to have to deal with this the rest of their lives. It's going to be something that they're going to remember."

Police said Hill admitted to the attack. He said he had anger problems and hadn't taken his medication that morning.

There were two other children in the home during the attack, and police are trying to determine if they were hurt. They might draw up more charges against the father.