
California Penal Code § 273a PC prohibits child endangerment, which is intentionally placing a child under 18 in a threatening situation. The child does not have to suffer physical harm: There just has to be an unreasonable risk to their health and safety.
Examples of what could lead to child endangerment charges include:
- Leaving a weapon, such as a knife or a loaded firearm, where a child can easily reach it;
- Leaving a child with a babysitter who has a history of abusive behavior,
- Driving drunk or high with a child in the car, or
- Failing to get medical treatment for a very sick child.
Child endangerment is a separate crime from:
- Child abuse (PC 273d), which is physically hurting a child and
- Child neglect (PC 270), which is failing to provide necessities such as food, shelter, medicine, or clothing.
The sentence for child endangerment turns on the extent of the danger, as the following table shows:
273a PC Conviction |
California Penalties* |
There was no possibility of death or great bodily injury | Misdemeanor: Up to 1 year in jail and/or $1,000 |
There was a possibility of death or great bodily injury | Misdemeanor: Up to 1 year in jail and/or $1,000
or Felony: 2, 4, or 6 years in prison and/or up to $10,000 |
*Courts can grant probation in lieu of jail. |
In this article, our California criminal defense lawyers discuss the following child endangerment topics:
1. Elements of 273a PC
To convict you of child endangerment, a prosecutor must prove beyond a reasonable doubt the following three elements of California Jury Instruction (“CALCRIM”) 823.1
Element 1 of Child Endangerment
The first element is that you must have willfully endangered a child under 18. “Willfully” means you acted on purpose, even if you did not intend to break the law or cause harm. “Endangerment” means any of the following actions:
- Inflicting unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering on a child; or
- Causing or permitting a child to suffer unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering; or
- While having care or custody of a child, causing or permitting their person or health to be injured; or
- While having care or custody of a child, causing or permitting them to be placed in a situation where their person or health was endangered.2
An example may be leaving drugs on the dining room table even though children in the house could easily access them.
Element 2 of Child Endangerment
The second element is that, if you were the minor’s parent, you were not reasonably disciplining the child.
For example, it is not endangerment to send your kid to their room without supper one night as punishment for misbehaving.3
Element 3 of Child Endangerment
The third element is you were criminally negligent when you caused or permitted the child to be endangered. You act with criminal negligence when:
- Your reckless actions are a gross departure from how an ordinarily careful person would behave in the same situation; and
- Your actions amount to disregard for human life or indifference to the consequences of your actions; and
- A reasonable person would have known that behaving in that manner would naturally and likely cause harm to others.
In other words, behavior amounts to “criminal negligence” when it is so aggravated, gross, or reckless that it goes against common sense. The test is whether a “reasonable” person in a similar situation would have engaged in the same behavior.4

Leaving a loaded gun where a child can reach it may violate California’s “child endangerment” law.
Where There Is Criminal Negligence
The following examples are based on actual California court cases where the court ruled that there was criminal negligence.
Example: Edward, a man in his thirties, convinces his 14-year-old neighbor, Jason, to play “Russian Roulette.” Jason pulls the trigger and the gun goes off, killing him. Even though Jason shot himself, Edward was criminally negligent for giving a child a loaded gun and convincing him to pull the trigger.5
Example: Brian runs a methamphetamine lab in his home, where his six-year-old lives. He keeps dangerous and highly flammable chemicals throughout the house. Brian is criminally negligent for allowing a six-year-old to be in the presence of such chemicals.6
Where There Is No Criminal Negligence
If an act was the result of ordinary
- carelessness,
- inattention, or
- a mistake in judgment,
it is not criminal negligence, regardless of the consequences.7 Here is an example from an actual court case:
Example: Isabel leaves her four small children home alone while she goes to a bar. Hours later, a fire erupts, and one of the kids dies. Isabel was not criminally negligent because a reasonable person would not necessarily have foreseen the harm that arose from her actions. Thus, she is not guilty of child endangerment.8
2. Punishment
California penalties for violating 273a PC depend on whether your actions created a risk of “great bodily harm” or death to the endangered child. “Great bodily injury” is any significant or substantial physical injury.9
There Was No Risk of Great Bodily Harm or Death
Child endangerment that does not create a risk of great bodily injury or death is a California misdemeanor under 273a(b) PC, carrying:
- Up to 1 year in county jail and/or
- A fine of up to $1,000.10
There Was A Risk of Great Bodily Harm or Death
In California, child endangerment becomes a “wobbler” under 273a(a) PC if there was a risk of great bodily harm or death to the child. A prosecutor can choose to charge a “wobbler” as a misdemeanor or a felony depending on the facts of the case and your criminal history.
As stated above, misdemeanor penalties include up to one year in county jail and/or $1,000. Felony penalties include:
- 2, 4, or 6 years in California state prison and/or
- A fine of up to $10,000.11
If the child suffered a great bodily injury, the felony prison sentence will be extended by an additional:
- 3 to 6 years (depending on the child’s age and injuries) if you actually and personally inflicted great bodily injury on the victim, or
- 4 years if the child died as a result of your criminal negligence.12
Furthermore, the felony will count as a “strike” under California’s “Three Strikes” law. This means you face double penalties for a “second strike,” and a “third strike” carries 25 years to life in prison.13
Probation in Lieu of Incarceration
If you are convicted of child endangerment in California, the judge can grant you probation for a minimum of 48 months. Probation terms may include:
- A protective (restraining) order,
- Treatment, and
- Additional conditions such as drug testing.
The court may waive any of the above conditions if it finds that they would not be in the “best interests of justice.” The court may also grant early termination of probation if you comply with all the terms and conditions of probation for the first year or two.
Once you complete probation, you may expunge your criminal record.14
How the Criminal Case Affects Child Custody
Child Protective Services (CPS) may intervene and conduct an investigation if you are facing 273a PC charges. Depending on what they find, a California family court judge may then restrict, reduce, or possibly revoke your child custody rights.

Felony child endangerment penalties can include several years in prison.
3. Defenses
Here at Shouse Law Group, we have represented literally thousands of people accused of child endangerment. We have a long track record of persuading judges, juries, and prosecutors that our clients did not violate 273a PC.
Many common defenses involve police misconduct, such as failure to comply with search and seizure laws or coercing a confession. In addition, the following six defenses uniquely apply to child endangerment, abuse and neglect cases:
1) The Act Was Not Willful or Did Not Amount to Criminal Negligence
There are many ways we can establish enough reasonable doubt that you acted willfully or with criminal negligence. For instance, perhaps the child’s injury was the result of an accident or only ordinary negligence. If so, you did not violate 273a PC.
In many cases, we can get a medical expert to testify that the injuries appear to be the result of an accident rather than willful infliction.
2) You Were Reasonably Disciplining Your Child
You have the right to discipline your children in California as long as it is reasonable.15 One of the most common examples is sending a child to their room without dinner and their cell phone.
As long as what you did qualifies as reasonable discipline, criminal charges should not stand.
3) You Are a Victim of False Accusations
In our experience, many child endangerment cases start with a false allegation:
- Often a child will make up an accusation as the result of manipulation (“being coached”) by the other parent, especially during child custody cases.
- Perhaps the child is angry and wants to “get back” at you. This frequently occurs during a divorce or when you have a new partner.
- Sometimes a child’s caretaker might make a false accusation in order to cover up their own abuse.
When you are falsely accused, we review all the evidence that may prove your innocence. This includes interviewing everyone who may have witnessed the incident or who can vouch for your character.
Depending on the allegations, we may pull criminal records, school/employment records, etc. of other potentially responsible people. We also comb through the social media accounts of the child and others who may be involved.
In short, our skilled investigators and lawyers turn over every stone to find “exculpatory” evidence.

A common defense to child endangerment charges is that you had no responsibility over the child.
4) The Reporters Made a “Mistake of Fact”
California’s mandatory reporting law requires certain professionals (such as doctors, teachers, and clergy) to report suspected child endangerment to the authorities. If they do not, they can be charged with a misdemeanor and go to jail.16
Thus they are under strong pressure to report even the slightest suspicion of child endangerment. Consequently, we have seen case after case where these professionals make a mistake of fact by misinterpreting an innocent situation and reporting our blameless clients to the police.
Similar to cases where clients are falsely accused, we gather all the evidence possible to show the D.A. that nothing unlawful happened. Once they see your side of the story, the child endangerment charge may get dismissed.
5) Someone Else Endangered the Child
Overzealous police and prosecutors want to hold someone accountable when a child may be in danger. They often jump to conclusions about who is responsible.
In these cases, we rely on eyewitness testimony and surveillance video to show that you were not the person who caused the injuries.
6) You Had No Responsibility Over the Child
Child endangerment charges attach only to people who are responsible for a child’s welfare, such as parents, guardians, babysitters, etc. Even if a child was endangered, you should not be held responsible if you had no lawful obligation to look after the child.
In these cases, the most important factors are your relationship to the child and the timing of the accident. If we can show that you had no legal obligations to look after the child at the time they were endangered, then the prosecutors should drop the case.

Leaving a child with someone abusive may constitute child endangerment under California Penal Code 273a PC.
4. Related Crimes
- Arranging a meeting with a minor for lewd purposes – PC 288.4: Arranging a meeting with a minor under the age of 18 with the intent to engage in sexual conduct at the meeting.
- Contacting a minor with intent to commit a felony – PC 288.3: Contacting or communicating with a child while having reason to know that the person is a minor, with the intent to commit a sex crime or other serious felony involving that minor.
- Driving under the influence – VC PC 23152: Driving a motor vehicle under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
- Driving with young children without restraint systems – VC 27360: Operating a motor vehicle with children that are not in the child seat appropriate for their age and size.
- DUI with a child under 14 – VC 23572: Operating a motor vehicle under the influence of drugs or alcohol with a child under 14 in the automobile.
- Furnishing dangerous fireworks to a minor – HS 12702: Selling, giving, or delivering dangerous fireworks to minors.
- Involuntary manslaughter – PC192(b): Unlawfully causing the death of another person by acting with criminal negligence.
- Lewd acts with a minor – PC 288: Lewd and lascivious acts with a child.
- Murder – PC 187: Unlawful killing with malice.
- Oral copulation with a minor – PC 287: Engaging in oral sex with a child under 18.
- Relinquishing a vehicle to a minor – PC193.8a: Relinquishing a motor vehicle to a minor when the adult knows the minor is intoxicated, the minor has previously been convicted of certain crimes (such as reckless driving or DUI), or the minor is otherwise not lawfully allowed to drive.
- Statutory rape – PC 261.5: Having sexual intercourse with anyone other than your spouse who is under 18 years old.
- Voluntary manslaughter – PC 192: The unlawful killing of a human being that occurs during a sudden quarrel, in the heat of passion, or based on an honest but unreasonable belief in the need to defend yourself.

Child neglect is often charged along with child endangerment in California.
Additional Resources
For more information, refer to the following:
- Office of Child Abuse Prevention (OPAC) – A department within the California Department of Social Services that works to prevent and address child abuse and neglect in California.
- Local Child Protective Services – Department of Social Services – The agency in California responsible for investigating reports of child abuse and neglect.
- Prevent Child Abuse America – A national organization that works to promote public policies, public awareness, and community education to prevent child abuse and neglect.
- Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline – 800-4-a-child – A 24-hour confidential hotline that provides crisis intervention, information, literature, and referrals to thousands of emergency, social service, and support resources for children and adults affected by child abuse.
- Child Abuse and Neglect – Informational article by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC.gov).
Legal References:
- California Penal Code 273a PC. The language of the statute reads as follows:
(a) Any person who, under circumstances or conditions likely to produce great bodily harm or death, willfully causes or permits any child to suffer, or inflicts thereon unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering, or having the care or custody of any child, willfully causes or permits the person or health of that child to be injured, or willfully causes or permits that child to be placed in a situation where his or her person or health is endangered, shall be punished by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, or in the state prison for two, four, or six years.
(b) Any person who, under circumstances or conditions other than those likely to produce great bodily harm or death, willfully causes or permits any child to suffer, or inflicts thereon unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering, or having the care or custody of any child, willfully causes or permits the person or health of that child to be injured, or willfully causes or permits that child to be placed in a situation where his or her person or health may be endangered, is guilty of a misdemeanor.
(c) If a person is convicted of violating this section and probation is granted, the court shall require the following minimum conditions of probation:
(1) A mandatory minimum period of probation of 48 months.
(2) A criminal court protective order protecting the victim from further acts of violence or threats, and, if appropriate, residence exclusion or stay-away conditions.
(3)(A) Successful completion of no less than one year of a child abuser’s treatment counseling program approved by the probation department. The defendant shall be ordered to begin participation in the program immediately upon the grant of probation. The counseling program shall meet the criteria specified in Section 273.1. The defendant shall produce documentation of program enrollment to the court within 30 days of enrollment, along with quarterly progress reports.
(B) The terms of probation for offenders shall not be lifted until all reasonable fees due to the counseling program have been paid in full, but in no case shall probation be extended beyond the term provided in subdivision (a) of Section 1203.1. If the court finds that the defendant does not have the ability to pay the fees based on the defendant’s changed circumstances, the court may reduce or waive the fees.
(4) If the offense was committed while the defendant was under the influence of drugs or alcohol, the defendant shall abstain from the use of drugs or alcohol during the period of probation and shall be subject to random drug testing by his or her probation officer.
(5) The court may waive any of the above minimum conditions of probation upon a finding that the condition would not be in the best interests of justice. The court shall state on the record its reasons for any waiver.
See also California Criminal Jury Instructions (CALCRIM) 823 (2024 Edition). Child Abuse.
To prove that the defendant is guilty of this crime, the People must prove that:
The defendant willfully inflicted unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering on a child;]
[1. The defendant willfully caused or permitted a child to suffer unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering;]
[1. The defendant, while having care or custody of a child, willfully caused or permitted the child’s person or health to be injured;]
[1. The defendant, while having care or custody of a child, willfully caused or permitted the child to be placed in a situation where the child’s person or health was endangered;]
[AND]
[2. The defendant was criminally negligent when (he/she) caused or permitted the child to (suffer[,]/ [or] be injured[,]/ [or] be endangered)(;/.)][AND
(2/3). The defendant did not act while reasonably disciplining a child.]See also People v. Collins (California Supreme Court, 2025) S279737. Bom v. Superior Court (Cal. App. 2d Dist., 2020) 44 Cal.App.5th 1; Diaz-Rodriguez v. Garland (9th Cir., 2021) 12 F.4th 1126. See also Johnson v. Barr (9th Cir., 2023) 73 F.4th 644; In re O’Connor (Cal. App. 6th Dist. 2022) 87 Cal. App. 5th 90. See also Walker v. Superior Court (1988) 47 Cal. 3d 112. Penal Code 1203 PC. See also, for example, People v. Collins (Cal. 2025) 561 P.3d 801. - See note 1. Penal Code 7 PC, subsection 1. People v. Valdez (2002) 27 Cal.4th 778. See CALCRIM 821, Child Endangerment Likely to Produce Great Bodily Harm or Death: “[Unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering is pain or suffering that is not reasonably necessary or is excessive under the circumstances.]”
- See note 1.
- CALCRIM 821 (“Criminal negligence involves more than ordinary carelessness, inattention, or mistake in judgment. A person acts with criminal negligence when: 1. He or she acts in a reckless way that is a gross departure from the way an ordinarily careful person would act in the same situation; 2. The person’s acts amount to disregard for human life or indifference to the consequences of his or her acts; AND 3. A reasonable person would have known that acting in that way would naturally and probably result in harm to others.”). People v. Valdez, endnote 2. (“The negligence must be aggravated, culpable, gross, or reckless, that is, the conduct of the accused must be such a departure from what would be the conduct of an ordinarily prudent or careful [person] under the same circumstances as to be incompatible with a proper regard for human life … or an indifference to consequences.”). See also People v. Penny (1955) 44 Cal. 2d 861.
- Based on People v. Hansen (1997) 59 Cal.App.4th 473.
- Based on People v. Toney (1999) 76 Cal.App.4th 618.
- People v. Odom (1991) 226 Cal.App.3d 1028. (“The facts must be such that the consequences of the negligent conduct could reasonable have been foreseen and it must appear that the [death] [danger to human life] was not the result of inattention, mistaken judgment or misadventure but the natural and probable result of aggravated, reckless or flagrantly negligent conduct.”) See also People v. Peabody (1975) 48 Cal.App.3d 43 (“The conduct must be aggravated or reckless; that is, it must be such a departure from what would be the conduct of an ordinarily prudent person under the same circumstances as to be incompatible with a proper regard for human life. The conduct must show an indifference to the consequences, and this has been said to require knowledge, actual or imputed, that the act tends to endanger another’s life. See also People v. Rodriguez (1961) 186 Cal.App.2d 433 (“Mere inattention or mistake in judgment … is not criminal unless the quality of the act makes it so. The fundamental requirement fixing criminal responsibility is knowledge, actual or imputed, that the act of the accused tended to endanger life.”)
- Based on People v. Rodriguez, endnote 7.
- Penal Code 12022.7(f) PC. See also California Jury Instructions CALCRIM 3160 – Infliction of great bodily injury. People v. Escobar (1992) 3 Cal.4th 740, 750. (“Whether the harm resulting to the victim … constitutes great bodily injury is a question of fact for the jury.”). People v. Jaramillo (1979) 98 Cal.App.3d 830. (“For the felony punishment there is no requirement that the actual result be great bodily injury. The statute is intended to protect a child from an abusive situation in which the probability of serious injury is great.”). Penal Code 273a PC.
- Penal Code 273a(b) PC. See also Penal Code 19 PC: (“Except in cases where a different punishment is prescribed by any law of this state, every offense declared to be a misdemeanor is punishable by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding six months, or by fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both.”)
- Penal Code 273a PC. See also Penal Code 19 PC: (“Except in cases where a different punishment is prescribed by any law of this state, every offense declared to be a misdemeanor is punishable by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding six months, or by fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both.”). Penal Code 672 PC – Offenses for which no fine prescribed; fine authorized in addition to imprisonment. See also People v. Jaramillo (1979) 98 Cal.App.3d 830 (“For the felony punishment there is no requirement that the actual result be great bodily injury. The statute is intended to protect a child from an abusive situation in which the probability of serious injury is great.”)
- Penal Code 12022.7 PC – Enhancement for great bodily injury. Penal Code 12022.95 PC — Willful harm to a child resulting in death: “Any person convicted of a violation of Section 273a, who under circumstances or conditions likely to produce great bodily harm or death, willfully causes or permits any child to suffer, or inflicts thereon unjustifiable physical pain or injury that results in death, or having the care or custody of any child, under circumstances likely to produce great bodily harm or death, willfully causes or permits that child to be injured or harmed, and that injury or harm results in death, shall receive a four-year enhancement for each violation, in addition to the sentence provided for that conviction. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed as affecting the applicability of subdivision (a) of Section 187 or Section 192. This section shall not apply unless the allegation is included within an accusatory pleading and admitted by the defendant or found to be true by the trier of fact.”
- Penal Code 667.5(c) PC. Penal Code 667(e)(1) PC. Penal Code 667(e)(2) PC.
- See note 1. Penal Code 273a(c) PC. Penal Code 1203.3 PC. Penal Code 1203.4 PC. Penal Code 672 PC – Offenses for which no fine prescribed; fine authorized in addition to imprisonment.
- People v. Whitehurst (1992) 9 Cal.App.4th 1045, 1050 (“A parent has a right to reasonably discipline by punishing a child and may administer reasonable punishment without being liable for a battery…[W]hether the corporal punishment falls within the parameters of a parent’s right to discipline involves consideration of not only the necessity for the punishment but also whether the amount of punishment was reasonable or excessive. Reasonableness and necessity therefore are not two separate defenses but rather two aspects of the single issue of parental right to discipline by physical punishment.”)
- See also 80 Ops.Cal.Atty.Gen. 203 (1997). Penal Code 11165 PC and subsequent sections.