Child abuse
Multiple punishment
PC273d and PC273a(a) are not LIOs of each other. (People v. Lofink (1988) 206 Cal.App.3d 161, 166.)
Penal Code 273a
(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.
Elements
Felony child abuse pursuant to Penal Code section 273a subdivision (1) “can occur in a wide variety of situations: the definition broadly includes both active and passive conduct, i.e., child abuse by direct assault and child endangering by extreme neglect. Two threshold considerations, however, govern all types of conduct prohibited by this law: first, the conduct must be willful; second, it must be committed ‘under circumstances or conditions likely to produce great bodily harm or death.’ (§ 273a, subd. (1).) Absent either of these elements, there can be no violation of the statute.” (People v. Smith (1984) 35 Cal.3d 798, 806)
Penal Code section 273a, subdivision (1) is intended to protect children from situations in which the “probability of serious injury is great.” (People v. Jaramillo (1979) 98 Cal.App.3d 830, 835, 159 Cal.Rptr. 771.) The risk need not be life threatening, as long as there are risks of great bodily harm. (People v. Caffero (1989) 207 Cal.App.3d 678, 683–684, 255 Cal.Rptr. 22.) One can be criminally culpable for violating the statute through a course of conduct as well as by a specific act. (People v. Sheffield, supra, 168 Cal.App.3d at p. 167, 214 Cal.Rptr. 40; People v. Ewing, supra, 72 Cal.App.3d 714, 717, 140 Cal.Rptr. 299.) Further, “[f]or the felony punishment there is no requirement that the actual result be great bodily injury.” (People v. Jaramillo, supra, 98 Cal.App.3d at p. 835, 159 Cal.Rptr. 771; People v. Hernandez (1980) 111 Cal.App.3d 888, 895, 168 Cal.Rptr. 898.)
Examples
Dirty house Guns in house Drugs in house People v. Odom (1991) 226 Cal.App.3d 1028.)
Hearsay
Evidence Code section 1360
(a) In a criminal prosecution where the victim is a minor, a statement made by the victim when under the age of 12 describing any act of child abuse or neglect performed with or on the child by another, or describing any attempted act of child abuse or neglect with or on the child by another, is not made inadmissible by the hearsay rule if all of the following apply: (1) The statement is not otherwise admissible by statute or court rule.
(2) The court finds, in a hearing conducted outside the presence of the jury, that the time, content, and circumstances of the statement provide sufficient indicia of reliability.
(3) The child either:
(A) Testifies at the proceedings.
(B) Is unavailable as a witness, in which case the statement may be admitted only if there is evidence of the child abuse or neglect that corroborates the statement made by the child.
(b) A statement may not be admitted under this section unless the proponent of the statement makes known to the adverse party the intention to offer the statement and the particulars of the statement sufficiently in advance of the proceedings in order to provide the adverse party with a fair opportunity to prepare to meet the statement. (c) For purposes of this section, “child abuse” means an act proscribed by Section 273a, 273d, or 288.5 of the Penal Code, or any of the acts described in Section 11165.1 of the Penal Code, and “child neglect” means any of the acts described in Section 11165.2 of the Penal Code.