Child endangerment, a grave offense under Penal Code 273a PC, involves the deliberate exposure of a child to unjustifiable pain, suffering, or danger. This is a matter of utmost seriousness, and understanding the legal implications is crucial.
Under this law, you could face charges in a scenario where you allow a child to be placed in a position of unreasonable risk of harm, even if they are not physically harmed.
Quite often, PC 273a child endangerment charges are directly connected to domestic violence because these types of heated incidents will sometimes endanger a child's safety.
There are, however, other common examples, such as when a parent puts their child in a position where dangerous drugs are within their reach or neglects to provide their child with basic needs for an extended period.
As noted, endangering a child does not have to cause them physical harm; instead, just putting them in a potentially dangerous situation is sufficient to be charged with a crime.
Penal Code 273a, child endangerment, is a 'wobbler' offense that can be filed as a misdemeanor or felony. If your conduct puts a child at significant risk of bodily harm, the prosecutor is likely to file the case as a felony, carrying severe penalties.
What Must Be Proven for a PC 273a Conviction?
As noted, child endangerment is covered under Penal Code 273a PC, which says "Any person, who, under circumstances that are likely to produce great bodily harm or death, willfully causes or permits a child to suffer, or inflicts unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering, or if they have care of a child and permits them to be placed in a situation where their health is endangered, shall be imprisoned up to six years."
To obtain a conviction for PC 273a child endangerment, a prosecutor must be able to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, all the "elements of the crime" that are listed under California Criminal Jury Instructions 821, that you:
- Willfully inflicted, caused, or permitted unjustifiable pain or mental suffering on a child, or;
- While having care of a child, you willfully caused or permitted their health to be injured, or;
- While having care of a child, you willfully caused or permitted them to be put in a situation where their health was placed in danger;
- You were negligent when you caused the child to suffer or be endangered.
If you are the child's parent, the prosecutor must prove that you were not reasonably disciplining your child. Perhaps you negligently left a dangerous weapon in the home within reach of your child. Sometimes, a referral to the local Department of Children and Family Services (DCSF) will be made.
What are the Legal Penalties?
If you're found guilty of violating Penal Code 273a, the penalties can be severe. Depending on the specifics of your case, you could face a range of consequences, from jail time to hefty fines.
For example, if there was a risk of great bodily harm or death, the case could be filed as a misdemeanor or felony offense (wobbler). If convicted of a misdemeanor child endangerment, the penalties include:
- Up to six months in county jail,
- A fine of up to $1,000,
- Informal summary probation.
If convicted of a felony child endangerment case, the penalties include:
- Two, four, or six years in state prison;
- A fine of up to $10,000;
- Formal felony probation,
- A 'strike" under California's three strikes law.
If the minor child was seriously harmed, you could be facing a great bodily injury (GBI) enhancement under California Penal Code 12022.7:
- An additional three to six years in prison if you inflicted a great bodily injury on the child;
- As an additional and consecutive four years in state prison if you were negligent and caused the child's death.
What are the Related Crimes?
- Vehicle Code 23572 - DUI with a child in the car,
- Penal Code 192(b) - involuntary manslaughter,
- Penal Code 270 PC - failure to provide child care,
- Penal Code 273d PC - child abuse,
- Penal Code 273ab - child abuse resulting in death (under eight years)
What Are the Legal Defenses for this Crime?
If you were accused of Penal Code 273a PC child endangerment, our California criminal defense lawyers could potentially use a wide range of strategies on your behalf, such as the following:
- The conduct was reasonable discipline,
- It was not a willful act,
- The act was not criminally negligent,
- False accusation.
Perhaps we can argue that you were acting within your legal rights to discipline your child reasonably by showing that the punishment was warranted under the circumstances and not excessive.
Recall the elements of the crime that the prosecutor has to prove that your act was "willful" or criminally negligent. Thus, perhaps we can argue that the injuries to the child were an accident and do not rise to the level of criminal negligence.
Perhaps we can argue that you were distracted and had a momentary lapse in attending to your child, but never intended to place them in a dangerous situation.
Early intervention in your case by our lawyers could dramatically impact the outcome. Perhaps we could negotiate with the prosecutor to avoid the formal filing of criminal charges in court. (DA reject). Eisner Gorin LLP is based in Los Angeles County, California.
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