Child abuse and child endangerment are commonly confused among many Americans. However, these two terms mean and describe distinct situations and are handled differently. As addressed under California Penal Code 273(a), child endangerment refers to a behavior where a person willfully permits or causes a child under eighteen years to suffer an injury. This statute seeks to punish parents and guardians and anyone who reasonably allows a child or their health to be in danger.
On the other hand, child abuse is the willful infliction of inhuman punishment on a child resulting in a traumatic condition. Child endangerment and abuse are serious offenses that attract severe and life-changing consequences in case of a conviction. In addition to jail time, your life may turn upside down owing to a conviction for these offenses. The best way to counter a child endangerment or abuse charge is by enlisting the services of a skilled criminal defense attorney.
The most straightforward way to understand the difference between child abuse and child endangerment is to review what California law says about each offense:
Child Abuse
California Penal Code 273(d) criminalizes child abuse which occurs when you deliberately inflict harm or corporal punishment on a child causing them a traumatic condition. Child abuse is one of the most severe and life-changing crimes with which you can be charged and convicted. Under this statute, any person convicted of child abuse risks spending significant time behind bars. Additionally, you may face additional consequences, including losing child custody and your job.
When proving your guilt for child abuse, the prosecution needs to prove these elements of the crime:
- You willfully inflicted inhuman punishment or physical injury on a minor. Regardless of the explanation for your actions, the prosecutor must prove that your conduct towards the child was intentional. Corporal injury is physical punishment that is likely to cause injury. Common examples of child abuse include choking, burning, pushing, kicking, slapping, punching, hitting, burning, and shaking, among others.
- The injury or punishment caused a child to suffer a traumatic physical condition. Under this statute, a traumatic condition is any wound or bodily injury resulting from a direct force application. Some examples of a traumatic condition include a concussion, a sprain, broken bones, or internal bleeding. The damage does not need to be severe to qualify as a traumatic condition when proving child abuse.
- When you acted, you were not disciplining the child. Parents are allowed to spank their children or impose any form of discipline as long as it is reasonable. If spanking is done reasonably and there is no use of excessive force, it cannot suffice as child abuse. When proving your guilt for child abuse, it must be clear that you did not intend to discipline your child when you acted reasonably. However, it is essential to understand that the issue of punishing a child is controversial and what is considered acceptable could change in the future.
When you face charges for child abuse, it is essential to remember that prior incidences of child abuse or corporal punishment can be used to enhance your sentence. However, the court conducts a hearing before the introduction of the evidence. At the hearing, the court will consider the following factors:
- Whether or not the evidence will cause prejudice from the jury.
- The time elapsed between the prior acts and the current child abuse charges. If allegations for past actions were brought more than ten years ago, the prosecution could not present them.
- Whether past allegations were backed up by sufficient evidence
In California, child abuse is treated as a wobbler. At their discretion, the prosecution could bring felony or misdemeanor charges. Some of the factors that could affect the prosecutor’s decision include your criminal history and other case circumstances. Most minor first offenses will attract misdemeanor charges punishable by a one-year jail sentence or a fine that does not exceed $6,000 and summary probation.
If your actions against the child were cruel, you are a repeat offender, or you cause injury to the victim, you will be charged with felony child abuse. A felony conviction under this statute will cause you to spend six years in state prison. Additionally, the court may require that you pay a $6,000 fine and felony probation.
The court may impose harsh conditions if you are sentenced to probation instead of prison time after a conviction under PC 273(d). Some of the probation conditions include regular check-ins with your probation officer, a restraining order to protect the victim, and mandatory enrollment in a child abusers treatment program. If you violate any probation terms, the court could hold a hearing to revoke your probation and reinstate prison time.
Defense Against Child Abuse Charges
Child abuse is one of the most severe domestic violence offenses, and a conviction could ruin your life. Therefore, it is crucial to focus on building a defense as soon as you learn about the charges. Common defenses to this charge include:
- Wrongful accusation. Law enforcement officers take reports of child abuse seriously, and they may arrest you even before carrying out the necessary investigations. The law focuses more on protecting the children and fails to consider the many incidences of false allegations resulting from anger, jealousy, or revenge. With the guidance of a knowledgeable attorney, you can prove that the allegations are false.
- The child’s injury is not a consequence of your actions. There are conducts that could be considered abusive to a child. However, for child abuse charges to suffice, your actions must have caused a traumatic condition for the child. Sometimes, an injury resulting from an accident could be reported as abuse. If you have a reasonable explanation for the cause of your child’s injury, you can evade a conviction under this statute.
- Injuries were accidental. You will be found guilty of child abuse if you intentionally caused the child to suffer a traumatic condition. If your child was injured through a genuine accident, you could not face a conviction under this statute.
Child Endangerment
It is a crime to put a child in a dangerous situation unlawfully. The crime of child endangerment is charged under California Penal Code 273(a), and the child does not need to suffer an injury for you to be charged and convicted under this statute. California law places a great emphasis on the protection of minors. This makes child endangerment a severe crime with life-changing penalties and consequences. If you are responsible for a minor and allow them to be put in a risky situation, you can be charged with child endangerment even when your actions did not directly harm the child.
Before obtaining a successful conviction under this statute, the prosecution must prove these elements beyond a reasonable doubt:
1) You Engaged In Any Of The Following Conduct
- Willfully inflicted unjustifiable, mental, or physical suffering on a minor.
- You permitted a child to suffer unjustifiable pain.
- While a child was under your care, you put them in a situation where their health would be endangered.
Under this statute, the term willful means that your actions were intentional. However, the prosecutor need not prove that you acted with an intent to harm the child. The only thing that needs to be clear is that you acted in a manner that put the child in a dangerous situation.
2) When You Permitted Or Caused A Child To Be Injured, You Were Criminally Negligent
For child endangerment, criminal negligence is more than the ordinary carelessness or a mistake of judgment. You act with criminal negligence under the following circumstances:
- You act in a reckless way that is different from how a reasonable person would act under similar circumstances.
- Your actions at the time disregarded human life and the safety of another person.
- A reasonable person would have known that acting the way you did could harm others.
Your behavior will amount to criminal negligence if your actions go against common sense, and the test will be whether or not a reasonable person would have done the same.
3) If You Are The Child’s Parent Or Guardian, You Were Not Disciplining The Child
As a parent or guardian, you have a right to discipline your child. However, when the form of punishment is not reasonable, and you put them in a situation where they could suffer unjustifiable harm, you can be arrested and charged with child endangerment. Unjustifiable pain or suffering any pain that is not necessary or is excessive under the circumstances.
4) You Acted In A Way That Was Likely To Produce Severe Bodily Injury Or Death
Child endangerment can be charged as a felony or a misdemeanor. For you to be charged with a felony, the prosecution must prove that your actions were capable of causing significant injury to the minor. Under this statute, great bodily injury is any substantial injury. While minor injuries may fail to meet the requirement, the jury determines the likelihood of severe physical injury depending on the circumstances of your case.
It is essential to understand that the child does not need to suffer the injury or death for you to be charged with a felony under this statute. The prosecutor only needs to show that significant bodily injury was a likely consequence of your actions.
Penalties for Child Endangerment
A conviction for child endangerment attracts serious legal consequences. Since the offense is a wobbler, your penalties will vary depending on the nature of your charges. If your actions did not create a risk of significant bodily injury, you would be charged with a misdemeanor. A misdemeanor violation of Penal Code 273(a) attracts the following penalties:
- A minimum jail sentence of up to six months.
- Fines not exceeding $1,000.
As an alternative to jail time, the court could sentence you to informal probation after a conviction for child endangerment. The minimum probation period for this offense is four years. While on probation, the court may impose the following conditions:
- Issue a restraining order against you. The protective order will require that you avoid contact with the alleged victim.
- You must complete a child abusers treatment program approved by the court.
- Order for you to undergo alcohol or drug abuse counseling if you acted while under the influence.
If you comply with the probation conditions, the court may grant you an early probation termination. Terminating your probation will release you from the obligations associated with the offense and allow you to apply for expungement.
If you are charged with felony child endangerment, a conviction may result in the following penalties:
- A prison sentence of two to six years.
- Fines of up to $10,000.
- Felony probation with similar or harsher conditions than those ordered for misdemeanor probation.
Penalties Enhancements for Child Endangerment
When charged as a felony, some situations could result in enhancement of penalties for child endangerment in California:
1. Great Bodily Injury Enhancement
If a child suffers serious injuries resulting from your negligent acts, you could receive additional prison time as follows:
- Three to six years if you inflicted the injury. The amount of time added to your sentence depends on the alleged victim’s age.
- A minimum of four years if the child died due to your actions.
2. Murder or Manslaughter
The prosecutor may file criminal charges for second-degree murder or manslaughter alongside child endangerment when a child dies due to negligent acts. These offenses carry severe legal consequences, and a conviction could cause you to spend a significant amount of time behind bars.
3. California Three Strikes Law
A conviction for felony child endangerment counts as a strike under California Three Strikes Law. If you have a strike in your record, you may face penalty enhancement in subsequent felony convictions. If you accumulate up to three strikes in your record, a conviction for a felony offense in California will attract a mandatory sentence of twenty-five years to life.
How Can I Defend Against PC 273(a) Charges?
While the charges for child endangerment are taken very seriously, it is possible to fight them and avoid the harsh consequences accompanying a conviction. With the guidance of a skilled criminal attorney, you can build a defense around these arguments:
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You Did not Act Willfully
One of the critical elements that must be clear when proving your guilt under this statute is that you acted willfully or with criminal negligence. By arguing that you did not act willfully, your attorney can create reasonable doubt in the prosecutor’s case and give you a chance to fight the charges.
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False Accusations
Child endangerment charges resulting from false accusations are a common occurrence in California. If you are undergoing a divorce or child custody battle, your child's other parent may need to falsely accuse you of such a crime to have the upper hand in family court. In other cases, a child can make fake allegations due to manipulation by another person.
Whatever the explanation for false allegations, law enforcement officers will not want to be held accountable for ignoring possible harm to a minor. During your prosecution, you are responsible for showing that there is no basis for the allegations. To aid this defense, your attorney can interview all the witnesses and the alleged victim to reveal the truth of the events.
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You Were Disciplining Your Child
You can lawfully discipline your child through reasonable corporal punishment as a parent. Sometimes, a person who sees you engage in such an act could report you for child endangerment. With the guidance of a skilled attorney, you can argue that you were exercising your parental right to discipline the child.
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Mistake of Fact
Sometimes, you could be charged with child endangerment because a well-meaning individual misinterpreted a situation. Such incidents are made worse by the mama dory reporting policy, where some individuals in the society are tasked with reporting suspected child endangerment. If you can prove that the reporter was mistaken in what they saw and reported, you may be able to beat the charges.
Find a Criminal Defense Attorney Near Me
Many people do not know the difference between child abuse and child abuse, and they tend to use these terms interchangeably. While both terms describe criminal activity against minors, they are different in definition and how the law handles them. You can face arrest and criminal charges for child endangerment if you put a minor in a position to be harmed. On the other hand, the crime of child abuse is brought upon individuals who inflict physical, sexual, or emotional injuries on a child.
Understanding the difference between these offenses will help you plan how to move forward with your defense if you face criminal charges under these statutes. Seeking and retaining the services of an experienced criminal defense attorney is a crucial step in fighting and beating child abuse or endangerment charges.
At Leah Legal, we understand the level of damage that a conviction under PC 273(a) or 273(d) could cause to your life. We will review your case and build a solid defense to help you fight the charges and avoid a conviction. We serve clients battling criminal charges in Van Nuys, CA. Contact us today at 818-484-1100 to discuss more details of your case.