Facing a child endangerment charge can permanently impact your life in many ways. Whether you are accused as a parent or supervisor of someone else’s child, a conviction will have significant consequences.

In these situations, calling a Manchester child endangerment lawyer should be a priority. An attorney can work to get a child endangerment charge reduced or dropped. Prosecutors often bring a child endangerment charge as an “add-on” to other charges, often with little evidence of harm to a child.

Ruane Attorneys is prepared to help protect your rights and combat the charges against you. We work to achieve the most favorable resolution possible in your case.

Child Endangerment Laws in Manchester

The law is harsh on those accused of harming children. However, the child endangerment law is written so broadly that some common events and activities could come within the definition of endangering a child.

Connecticut General Statute §53-21 defines the crime of child endangerment as a felony. The law defines a child as anyone under 16, but the younger the child, the more severe the likely penalty. There are three sections to the law.

Exposing a Child to Risk of Injury

The law makes it a crime to put a child in a situation that poses a risk of illness or physical or moral injury. This includes causing or allowing a child to be exposed to the risk of injury or acting in a way that could cause an injury.

Police and prosecutors could interpret this law to cover various behaviors. Someone could face child endangerment charges if they:

• Hoard or keep an untidy home
• Leave a child unattended
• Commit a criminal offense while a child is present
• Drive while impaired with a child in the vehicle
• Use illegal drugs in the presence of a child
• Expose a child to pornography
• Send sexualized texts to someone under 16

In addition, prosecutors often bring child endangerment charges when a domestic violence incident occurs while children are at home. An attorney at our firm could push back against prosecutorial overreach in these cases and work to get the child endangerment charges dismissed.

Sexual Contact with a Child

Child endangerment charges could also occur when a person purposefully makes physical contact with the intimate parts of someone under 16 or induces the minor to make contact with their intimate parts. Intimate parts are the genitals, buttocks, anus, inner thighs, groin, and breasts. The contact must be intentional, sexual, and likely to impair the child’s morals.

Selling a Child

Permanently transferring custody of a child in exchange for money or another benefit is also illegal under the child endangerment statute.

Consequences of Child Endangerment Charges

Child endangerment is a felony with a potential prison sentence upon conviction. The sentence depends on which section of the law the defendant allegedly violated.

Exposing a minor to a risk of injury or selling a child is a Class C felony with a potential sentence of up to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. If the crime involved sexual contact with a minor, it is a Class B felony, and a prison sentence could extend up to 40 years. If the child was under 13, the offender must serve a mandatory minimum of five years in prison. Conviction of a Class B felony also could result in a $15,000 fine.

For parents, one of the most serious consequences of a child endangerment charge is a Department of Children and Families (DCF) investigation. Police must report a child endangerment charge to DCF, and the agency could remove a child from the home. Even if the child remains with the parents while the investigation proceeds, a DCF investigation is intrusive and stressful. Our child endangerment lawyers in Manchester could help parents prepare for and respond to a DCF investigation.

Depend on a Manchester Attorney to Fight Child Endangerment Charges

Child endangerment charges could have a devastating impact on your reputation, family life, and future. You must proactively respond to the charges with legal representation by your side.

A Manchester child endangerment lawyer works to resolve the charges and protect your rights, reputation, and freedom. Call Ruane Attorneys now if you face these allegations.