Second Degree Cruelty to Juveniles Defense Attorney
Second Degree Cruelty to juveniles is a very serious charge. A parent who has been charged with this offense is facing the risk of losing parent rights and going to prison.
What is Second Degree Cruelty to Juveniles?
Second degree cruelty to juveniles is the intentional or criminally negligent mistreatment or neglect by anyone over the age of seventeen to any child under the age of seventeen which causes serious bodily injury or neurological impairment to that child.
“Serious bodily injury” means bodily injury involving protracted and obvious disfigurement or protracted loss or impairment of the function of a bodily member, organ, or mental faculty, or substantial risk of death.
Note: The providing of treatment by a parent or tutor in accordance with the tenets of a well-recognized religious method of healing, in lieu of medical treatment, shall not for that reason alone be considered to be intentional or criminally negligent mistreatment or neglect and shall be an affirmative defense to a prosecution under this Section.
Penalties / Sentencing Second Degree Cruelty to Juveniles
Whoever commits the crime of second degree cruelty to juveniles shall be imprisoned at hard labor for not more than 40 years.
This offense is considered a Crime of Violence, therefore it is not expungeable. However, it is a crime for which jail time is not mandatory — one may receive probation only.
Contact
If you or a loved one has been charged with Second Degree Cruelty to a Juvenile, contact New Orleans Criminal Defense Attorney, Elizabeth B. Carpenter today. 504-599-5955
Related Offenses
Contributing to the Delinquency of a Juvenile