Risk of injury to a minor refers to any situation where an individual places a minor in harm’s way. The severity of the offense depends on the degree of danger that the minor is exposed to, and whether they have sustained an injury as a result or not. The consequences of a risk of injury to a minor conviction can be quite severe. If you want to know more about West Palm Beach risk of injury to a minor penalties, reach out to a knowledgeable risk of injury to a minor lawyer. A capable Attorney could mitigate the penalties that you face.
Risk of Injury Felony Offenses
Whether a risk of injury to a minor charge is handled as a Misdemeanor or a Felony depends on the facts of the case. The main factors are the degree of risk and the presence of an injury. If there was injury and/or if the minor was exposed to danger and harm, that could result in a Felony charge. The degree of injury would make a difference as to whether the charge is a misdemeanor or a Felony. The presence of a weapon is also relevant to the severity of the charges. When assessing whether to charge the person with a Misdemeanor or Felony, the Prosecution looks at the potential injury to the child as well as the method by which the child was exposed to that injury, the degree of recklessness or intention with which the act was conducted, and the specific details regarding how the act occurred.
Where Risk of Injury Cases Are Heard
Typically, a circuit court Judge in West Palm Beach would hear risk of injury to a minor cases. Those are more serious cases in which a child has been abused or injured. Child endangerment, which would be something like having a child in the car while driving impaired, would more likely be a Misdemeanor, as long as no one was hurt or as long as there was no accident. A Judge would hear that case. A Judge also would hear it if the Department of Children and Families wanted action against the parent to strip the parent of their parental rights over the minor. Risk of injury to a minor cases are usually heard by a Judge and they will decide the appropriate sentence and penalties in West Palm Beach, which is why an individual should contact a local Attorney that could argue on their behalf in front of a local Judge.
Penalties Associated with Risk of Injury to a Minor
If the risk of injury case is not sexual in nature, then the individual could be looking at a conviction and Jail time. If there is no injury, the risk of injury to a minor penalties in West Palm Beach would depend upon the severity of the risk and the Court would more likely be amenable or open to having the person educated through parenting classes. There are many people that never intended to become parents and became parents accidentally. Or perhaps they did not want to become a parent and are trying to do the right thing but they really just do not know how to be a parent. Sometimes, even though they know how to do the right thing, they are not able to because of financial circumstances or other reasons. The court may use educational classes as a way to help these parents learn better practices.
The Court may also want to look for any underlying reasons as to why a person would endanger their child or expose their child to any risk of injury. It is not uncommon to see a Judge, a Prosecutor, or even a defense Lawyer offer up a mental health evaluation to make sure that there is no psychological condition that is causing this type of deviant behavior or behavior that causes unnecessary and illegal risk to a minor. If there is a problem, then it could be properly diagnosed and properly treated, which would diminish the risk of reoccurrence.
Reach out to Leifert & Leifert to learn more about defenses for West Palm Beach risk of injury to a minor penalties.
