We all know children can be a handful. But when someone reacts violently or fails to provide the proper care, the child can be put in danger, which may come with legal repercussions.
Sometimes the way you deal with children crosses a legal line. When a parent, or other adult responsible for a child’s wellbeing, does not protect the child from danger or fails to provide the basics, food, clothing, and shelter, they can be charged with child endangerment in Florida, a form of domestic abuse for which you can lose custody if convicted. If the Winter Park Police Department shows up at your door and arrest you for this crime, do not offer any explanation until you speak with a Winter Park child endangerment lawyer.
Parents and guardians are expected to provide their children with appropriate food, clothing, and shelter, in addition to keeping them safe from harm in dangerous situations. Florida considers any act of harming, physically abusing, neglecting, or depriving a child of the essentials as child endangerment. This does not just apply to parents. Teachers, babysitters, and anyone tasked with caring for a child can be charged.
Expanding on this crime, you can also be charged with endangerment if you have knowledge that someone is abusing a child but do not report it, or if you put a child in a situation you should know endangers them but you choose to do it anyway. To get ahead of these serious charges, contact a Winter Park child endangerment attorney now.
If you spank a child, Florida law permits it if the child is not harmed to the point of disfigurement, broken bones, or severe bruising. The act must be willful, which refers to the intent to execute an action; it does not mean the intent to cause the injury. However, Florida Statutes § 39.01(34) broadens the definition of harm to include emotional and mental harm. Some examples there are seen as doing harm to a child include:
Florida also recognizes legal harm to a child, which can include neglecting or abandoning them. If you are charged with child endangerment, a skilled Winter Park lawyer works tirelessly to exonerate you by building a credible defense and protecting your constitutional rights.
You are granted by law the opportunity to a defense before your peers. A defense is tailored to the facts. You might be breaking up with the child’s other parent and they want custody, so they lie about you. A nosy neighbor may have heard or seen something out of context and reported you erroneously. You may not have willfully perpetrated the harm because it was an accident. Your constitutional rights may have been violated if the officer who arrests you fails to read you your rights or does not have a search warrant to enter your home. A good defense is crucial because child endangerment is a felony in Florida.
According to Fla. Stat. § 775.082, willful neglect or endangerment that causes great harm or permanent disfigurement to a child is a second-degree felony. Those convicted will spend up to 15 years in prison, face fines, lose custody, and other sanctions the judge will determine.
The charge drops to a third-degree felony if the child is endangered but does not suffer great harm. A conviction comes with up to five years in prison, fines, and additional sanctions if the judge rules for them. The first call you should make after an arrest is to a Winter Park child endangerment attorney.
As a parent, the line between appropriate punishment or care can be exceeded in a moment of anger or frustration. In some cases, determining mental and emotional harm, as prescribed in Florida’s laws, may be interpreted differently by a prosecutor than a parent. Do not try to reason with the prosecutor if you are arrested for child endangerment.
If the Florida Department of Children and Families knocks on your door, its operatives are investigating you for neglecting, abusing, or endangering a child. At this stage, you could benefit from criminal defense legal advice, too. A Winter Park child endangerment lawyer is ready to defend your right to a fair trial and fight for your freedom. Call now.
The Umansky Law Firm Criminal Defense & Injury Attorneys
