In San Diego, California and throughout the United States there are
many laws that are designed to protect children. Parents and
guardians can be charged with child neglect if they fail to
provide food, clothing, shelter, medical treatment, and
supervision for any child in their care. If they mistreat or
abuse children in their care they can be charged with child
abuse.
Child abuse laws cover a range of activities that can
jeopardize the safety of children in our communities.
California, and San Diego County, law protects minors from physical and emotional
abuse, sexual abuse, exploitation, and holds
parents/guardians responsible for the wellbeing of their child(ren). Parents and guardians may also be charged with
child abuse if they do not do everything in their means to
protect a child from an abuser.
California law also requires that anyone who suspects a
child is being, or has been, abused must report the abuse to
the appropriate authorities. This includes teachers,
doctors, nurses, child care workers, and social workers and
there are civil and criminal penalties for anyone who fails
to do so.
Under the California Penal Code child abuse or neglect
includes:
- Physical injury inflicted by other than accidental
means upon a child by another person;
- Willful harming or injury of the child or the
endangering of the person or health of the child;
- Unlawful corporal punishment or injury;
Willful harming or injuring of a child or the endangering
of the person or health of a child means:
- A situation in which any person willfully causes or
permits any child to suffer, or inflicts thereon,
unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering;
- Having the care or custody of any child, willfully
causes or permits the person or health of the child to
be placed in a situation in which his or her person or
health is endangered;
Sexual Abuse means the sexual assault or sexual
exploitation of a minor including:
- Sexual assault includes rape, statutory rape, rape in
concert, incest, sodomy, lewd or lascivious acts upon a
child, oral copulation, sexual penetration, or child
molestation;
- Sexual exploitation refers to:
-
Depicting a minor engaged
in obscene acts; preparing, selling, or distributing
obscene matter that depicts minors; employing a minor to
perform obscene acts;
-
Knowingly permitting or
encouraging a child to engage in, or assisting others to
engage in, prostitution or a live performance involving
obscene sexual conduct, or to either pose or model alone
or with others for purposes of preparing a film,
photograph, negative, slide, drawing, painting, or other
pictorial depiction, involving obscene sexual conduct;
-
Depicting a child in, or
knowingly developing, duplicating, printing, or
exchanging any film, photograph, video tape, negative,
or slide in which a child is engaged in an act of
obscene sexual conduct;
Emotional Abuse means that serious emotional damage is
evidenced by states of being or behavior including, but not
limited to, severe anxiety, depression, withdrawal, or
untoward aggressive behavior toward self or others.
For more information on any of these issues please contact
your county support agency or consult with your attorney. An
attorney can help ensure that any allegations are properly
reported and thoroughly investigated. A California family
law attorney can also inform you of your legal rights and
responsibilities, while helping to protect the safety of the
child. If you have have knowledge, or suspicions, of
child abuse, please immediately contact The California Department
of Family and Children Services. Emergency
Response Hotline Numbers for County Child Protective
Services
Please also contact our
attorneys with any questions you have about the prosecution
of child abuse crimes in San Diego, California.
Contact us online or call us
at 1-800-221-0469.
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Orders
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