2980. Contributing to Delinquency of Minor
The defendant is charged [in Count ______] with contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
To prove that the defendant is guilty of this crime, the People must prove that:
<Alternative A—caused or encouraged minor to come under jurisdiction of juvenile court>
[1. The defendant (committed an act/ [or] failed to perform a duty);
AND
2. In (doing so/ [or] failing to do so)[,] the defendant (caused[,]/ [or] encouraged[,]/ [or] contributed to (causing/ [or] encouraging)) a minor to become [or continue to be] a (dependent /delinquent) child of the juvenile court.]
<Alternative B—induced minor to come or remain under jurisdiction of juvenile court or not to follow court order>
[ The defendant by (act[,]/ [or] failure to act[,]/ [or] threat[,]/ [or] command[,]/ [or] persuasion) induced or tried to induce a (minor/delinquent child of the juvenile court/dependent child of the juvenile court) to do either of the following:
1. Fail or refuse to conform to a lawful order of the juvenile court;
OR
2. (Do any act/Follow any course of conduct/Live in a way) that would cause or obviously tend to cause that person to become or remain a (dependent /delinquent) child of the juvenile court.]
In order to commit this crime, a person must act with [either] (general criminal intent/ [or] criminal negligence).
[In order to act with general criminal intent, a person must not only commit the prohibited act [or fail to do the required act], but must do so intentionally or on purpose. However, it is not required that he or she intend to break the law.]
[Criminal negligence involves more than ordinary carelessness, inattention, or mistake in judgment. A person acts with criminal negligence when:
1. He or she acts in a reckless way that creates a high risk of death or great bodily injury;
AND
2. A reasonable person would have known that acting in that way would create such a risk.
In other words, a person acts with criminal negligence when the way he or she acts is so different from the way an ordinarily careful person would act in the same situation that his or her act amounts to disregard for human life or indifference to the consequences of that act.]
A minor is a person under 18 years old.
[Under the law, a person becomes one year older as soon as the first minute of his or her birthday has begun.]
[A parent [or legal guardian] has a duty to exercise reasonable care, supervision, protection, and control over his or her minor child.]
[A guardian means the legal guardian of a child.]
<A. Dependent Child Defined: Physical Abuse>
[A minor may become a dependent child if his or her parent [or guardian] has intentionally inflicted serious physical harm on him or her, or there is a substantial risk that the parent [or guardian] will do so.
[The manner in which a less serious injury, if any, was inflicted, any history of repeated infliction of injuries on the child or the child's siblings, or a combination of these and other actions by the parent or guardian may be relevant to whether the child is at substantial risk of serious physical harm.]
[Serious physical harm does not include reasonable and age-appropriate spanking of the buttocks when there is no evidence of serious physical injury.]]
<B. Dependent Child Defined: Neglect>
[A minor may become a dependent child if he or she has suffered, or is at substantial risk of suffering, serious physical harm or illness as a result of [one of the following]:
[1.] [The failure or inability of his or her parent [or guardian] to adequately supervise or protect the child(;/.)]
[OR]
[(1/2).] [The willful or negligent failure of his or her parent [or guardian] to provide the child with adequate food, clothing, shelter, or medical treatment(;/.)]
[OR]
[(1/2/3).] [The inability of his or her parent [or guardian] to provide regular care for the child due to the parent's [or guardian's] (mental illness[,]/ [or] developmental disability[,]/ [or] substance abuse).]
[A minor cannot become a dependent child based only on the fact that there is a lack of emergency shelter for the minor's family.]
[Deference must be given to a parent's [or guardian's] decision to give medical treatment, nontreatment, or spiritual treatment through prayer alone in accordance with the tenets and practices of a recognized church or religious denomination, by one of its accredited practitioners. A minor cannot be found to be a dependent child unless such a finding is necessary to protect the minor from suffering serious physical harm or illness. The following factors may bear on such a determination:
1. The nature of the treatment proposed by the parent [or guardian];
2. The risks, if any, to the child posed by the course of treatment or nontreatment proposed by the parent [or guardian];
3. The risks, if any, of any alternative course of treatment being proposed for the child by someone other than the parent [or guardian];
AND
4. The likely success of the course of treatment or nontreatment proposed by the parent [or guardian].]
[A minor may be a dependent child only as long as necessary to protect him or her from the risk of suffering serious physical harm or illness.]]
<C. Dependent Child Defined: Serious Emotional Damage>
[A minor may become a dependent child if (his or her parent's [or guardian's] conduct[,]/ [or] the lack of a parent [or guardian] who is capable of providing appropriate care[,]) has caused the minor to suffer serious emotional damage or to face a substantial risk of suffering serious emotional damage. Serious emotional damage may be shown by severe anxiety, depression, withdrawal, or unruly, aggressive behavior toward himself, herself, or others. [However, a minor cannot become a dependent child on this basis if the parent [or guardian] willfully fails to provide mental health treatment to the minor based on a sincerely held religious belief and a less-intrusive intervention is available.]]
<D. Dependent Child Defined: Sexually Abused>
[A minor may become a dependent child if he or she:
1. Has been sexually abused;
2. Faces a substantial risk of being sexually abused by (his or her (parent/ [or] guardian)/ [or] a member of his or her household);
OR
3. Has a parent [or guardian] who has failed to adequately protect him or her from sexual abuse when the parent [or guardian] knew or reasonably should have known that the child was in danger of sexual abuse.]
<E. Dependent Child Defined: Severe Physical Abuse Under Age Five>
[A minor may become a dependent child if he or she is under five years old and has suffered severe physical abuse by a parent or by any person known by the parent if the parent knew or reasonably should have known that the person was physically abusing the child.
As used here, the term severe physical abuse means any of the following:
1. A single act of abuse that causes physical trauma of sufficient severity that, if left untreated, would cause permanent physical disfigurement, permanent physical disability, or death;
2. A single act of sexual abuse that causes significant bleeding, deep bruising, or significant external or internal swelling;
3. More than one act of physical abuse, each of which causes bleeding, deep bruising, significant external or internal swelling, bone fracture, or unconsciousness;
OR
4. The willful, prolonged failure to provide adequate food.]
<F. Dependent Child Defined: Parent or Guardian Caused Death>
[A minor may become a dependent child if his or her parent [or guardian] caused the death of another child through abuse or neglect.]
<G. Dependent Child Defined: Left Without Support>
[A minor may become a dependent child if he or she has been left without any provision for support.]
[A minor may become a dependent child if he or she has been voluntarily surrendered according to law and has not been reclaimed within the 14-day period following that surrender.]
[A minor may become a dependent child if his or her parent [or guardian] has been incarcerated or institutionalized and cannot arrange for the child's care.]
[A minor may become a dependent child if his or her relative or other adult custodian with whom he or she resides or has been left is unwilling or unable to provide care or support for the child, the parent's whereabouts are unknown, and reasonable efforts to locate the parent have been unsuccessful.]
<H. Dependent Child Defined: Freed for Adoption>
[A minor may become a dependent child if he or she has been freed for adoption by one or both parents for 12 months by either relinquishment or termination of parental rights, or an adoption petition has not been granted.]
<I. Dependent Child Defined: Acts of Cruelty>
[A minor may become a dependent child if he or she has been subjected to an act or acts of cruelty by (his or her (parent/ [or] guardian)/ [or] a member of his or her household), or the parent [or guardian] has failed to adequately protect the child from an act or acts of cruelty when the parent [or guardian] knew or reasonably should have known that the child was in danger of being subjected to an act or acts of cruelty.]
<J. Dependent Child Defined: Sibling Abused>
[A minor may become a dependent child if his or her sibling has been abused or neglected, as explained above, and there is a substantial risk that the child will be abused or neglected in the same way. The circumstances surrounding the abuse or neglect of the sibling, the mental condition of the parent [or guardian], and other factors may bear on whether there is a substantial risk to the child.]
<Delinquent Child Defined>
[A delinquent child is a minor whom a court has found to have committed a crime.]
[A delinquent child is [also] a minor who has violated a curfew based solely on age.]
[A delinquent child is [also] a minor who persistently or habitually refuses to obey the reasonable and proper orders or directions of his or her parent [or guardian or custodian], or who is beyond the control of that person.]
[A delinquent child is [also] a minor who <insert other grounds for delinquency from Welf. & Inst. Code, § 601>.]
<Sexual Abuse Defined>
[Sexual abuse includes (rape[,]/ [and] statutory rape[,]/ [and] rape in concert[,]/ [and] incest[,]/ [and] sodomy[,]/ [and] lewd or lascivious acts on a child[,]/ [and] oral copulation[,]/ [and] sexual penetration [,]/ [and] child molestation[,]/ [and] employing a minor to perform obscene acts[,]/ [and] preparing, selling, or distributing obscene matter depicting a minor).
To decide whether the (parent/guardian/ <insert description of person alleged to have committed abuse> committed (that/one of those) crime[s], please refer to the separate instructions that I (will give/have given) you on (that/those) crime[s].
[Sexual abuse also includes, but is not limited to, the following:
[Any penetration, however slight, of the vagina or anal opening of one person by the penis of another person, whether or not semen is emitted(;/.)]
[Any sexual contact between the genitals or anal opening of one person and the mouth or tongue of another person(;/.)]
[Any intrusion by one person into the genitals or anal opening of another person, including the use of any object for this purpose[, unless it is done for a valid medical purpose](;/.)]
[The intentional touching of the genitals or intimate parts (including the breasts, genital area, groin, inner thighs, and buttocks), or the clothing covering them, of a child, or of the perpetrator by a child, for purposes of sexual arousal or gratification(;/.) [However, sexual abuse does not include touching that may be reasonably construed as normal caretaker responsibilities, interactions with, or demonstrations of affection for the child, or acts performed for a valid medical purpose(;/.)]]
[The intentional masturbation of the perpetrator's genitals in the child's presence(;/.)]
[Conduct by (someone who knows that he or she is aiding, assisting, employing, using, persuading, inducing, or coercing/a person responsible for a child's welfare who knows that he or she is permitting or encouraging) a child to engage in[, or assist others to engage in,] (prostitution[,]/ [or] a live performance involving obscene sexual conduct[,]/ [or] posing or modeling, alone or with others, for purposes of preparing a film, photograph, negative, slide, drawing, painting, or other pictorial depiction involving obscene sexual conduct)(;/.) [A person responsible for a child's welfare is a (parent[,]/ [or] guardian[,]/ [or] foster parent[,]/ [or] licensed administrator or employee of a public or private residential home, residential school, or other residential institution)(;/.)]]
[Photographing, developing, duplicating, printing, depicting, or exchanging, any film, photograph, videotape, negative, or slide knowing that it shows a child engaged in an act of obscene sexual conduct. [However, sexual abuse does not include (conduct by a person engaged in legitimate medical, scientific, or educational activities[;]/ [or] lawful conduct between spouses[;]/ conduct by a person engaged in law enforcement activities[;]/ [or] conduct by an employee engaged in work for a commercial film developer while acting within the scope of his or her employment and as instructed by his or her employer, provided that the employee has no financial interest in the commercial developer who employs him or her).]]
Bench Notes
Instructional Duty
The court has a sua sponte duty to give this instruction defining the elements of the crime.
If more than one act is alleged as a basis for the charge, the court has a sua sponte duty to give a unanimity instruction. (People v. Madden (1981) 116 Cal.App.3d 212, 215-216 [171 Cal.Rptr. 897].) Give CALCRIM No.
3500, Unanimity. A unanimity instruction is not required if the acts "constitute a continuing course of conduct." (Ibid.) See the discussion in the Bench Notes for CALCRIM No. 3500. (See also People v. Schoonderwood (1945) 72 Cal.App.2d 125, 127 [164 P.2d 69] [continuous course of conduct exception applied to charge of contributing to delinquency of a minor]; People v. Dutra (1946) 75 Cal.App.2d 311, 321- 322 [171 P.2d 41] [exception did not apply].)
If the case involves allegations of child molestation and the evidence has been presented in the form of "generic testimony" about recurring events without specific dates and times, the court should determine whether it is more appropriate to give CALCRIM No. 3501, Unanimity: When Generic Testimony of Offense Presented. (People v. Jones (1990) 51 Cal.3d 294, 321-322 [270 Cal.Rptr. 611, 792 P.2d 643].) See discussion in the Related Issues section of CALCRIM No. 3500, Unanimity.
Give the bracketed paragraph about calculating age if requested. (Fam. Code, § 6500; In re Harris (1993) 5 Cal.4th 813, 849-850 [21 Cal.Rptr.2d 373, 855 P.2d 391].)
The remaining bracketed paragraphs should be given on request if relevant.
Authority
Elements and Definitions. Pen. Code, § 272.
Willfully Defined. Pen. Code, § 7, subd. 1; People v. Lara (1996) 44 Cal.App.4th 102, 107 [51 Cal.Rptr.2d 402].
Sexual Abuse Defined. Pen. Code, § 11165.1.
Delinquent/Ward of Court Defined. Welf. & Inst. Code, §§ 601-602.
Dependent Child Defined. Welf. & Inst. Code, § 300.
Minor Defined. Pen. Code, § 270e; Fam. Code, § 6500.
Secondary Sources
2 Witkin & Epstein, California Criminal Law (3d ed. 2000) Sex Crimes and Crimes Against Decency, § 153.
6 Millman, Sevilla & Tarlow, California Criminal Defense Practice, Ch. 142, Crimes Against the Person, § 142.20[8], Ch. 144, Crimes Against Order, § 144.10[1] (Matthew Bender).
Related Issues
Lesser Offense of Rape or Lewd Acts
There is disagreement regarding whether a violation of Penal Code section 272 is a necessarily lesser included offense of rape or lewd and lascivious acts. The Supreme Court concluded that it was in People v. Greer (1947) 30 Cal.2d 589, 597-598 [184 P.2d 512], overruled on other grounds in People v. Fields (1996) 13 Cal.4th 289, 308, fn. 6 [52 Cal.Rptr.2d 282, 914 P.2d 832]. However, in People v. Bobb (1989) 207 Cal.App.3d 88, 92 [254 Cal.Rptr. 707], disapproved on other grounds by People v. Barton (1995) 12 Cal.4th 186, 198, fn. 7 [47 Cal.Rptr.2d 569, 906 P.2d 531], the Court of Appeal expressly declined to follow Greer, concluding that "the calculus has been altered" by an intervening amendment to Welfare and Institutions Code section 601 and further faulting Greer for failing to analyze the elements of the lesser included offenses.
(New January 2006)