Penal Code § 270 PC – California Child Neglect Laws

Under Penal Code § 270 PC, child neglect occurs when a parent or legal guardian willfully (and without lawful excuse) fails to provide necessities such as clothing, food, medicine, and shelter. Child neglect is generally a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail.

The full language of the code section states that:

270. If a parent of a minor child willfully omits, without lawful excuse, to furnish necessary clothing, food, shelter or medical attendance, or other remedial care for his or her child, he or she is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not exceeding two thousand dollars ($2,000), or by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding one year, or by both such fine and imprisonment. If a court of competent jurisdiction has made a final adjudication in either a civil or a criminal action that a person is the parent of a minor child and the person has notice of such adjudication and he or she then willfully omits, without lawful excuse, to furnish necessary clothing, food, shelter, medical attendance or other remedial care for his or her child, this conduct is punishable by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding one year or in a state prison for a determinate term of one year and one day, or by a fine not exceeding two thousand dollars ($2,000), or by both such fine and imprisonment. This statute shall not be construed so as to relieve such parent from the criminal liability defined herein for such omission merely because the other parent of such child is legally entitled to the custody of such child nor because the other parent of such child or any other person or organization voluntarily or involuntarily furnishes such necessary food, clothing, shelter or medical attendance or other remedial care for such child or undertakes to do so.

Proof of abandonment or desertion of a child by such parent, or the omission by such parent to furnish necessary food, clothing, shelter or medical attendance or other remedial care for his or her child is prima facie evidence that such abandonment or desertion or omission to furnish necessary food, clothing, shelter or medical attendance or other remedial care is willful and without lawful excuse.

The court, in determining the ability of the parent to support his or her child, shall consider all income, including social insurance benefits and gifts.

The provisions of this section are applicable whether the parents of such child are or were ever married or divorced, and regardless of any decree made in any divorce action relative to alimony or to the support of the child. A child conceived but not yet born is to be deemed an existing person insofar as this section is concerned.

The husband of a woman who bears a child as a result of artificial insemination shall be considered the father of that child for the purpose of this section, if he consented in writing to the artificial insemination.

If a parent provides a minor with treatment by spiritual means through prayer alone in accordance with the tenets and practices of a recognized church or religious denomination, by a duly accredited practitioner thereof, such treatment shall constitute “other remedial care”, as used in this section.

Examples of neglect

• a dad does not take his 12-year-old son to the doctor when he is ill.
• an adoptive parent does not give her daughter warm clothes during winter.
• a mom does not properly feed her 8-year-old despite having the means to do so.

Defenses to child abuse & neglect

You can raise a legal defense to challenge a 270 PC charge. Common defenses include:

• no willful act,
• lawful excuse, and/or
• falsely accused.

Penalties for child maltreatment

Most violations of these state laws are misdemeanors. This is opposed to a felony charge or an infraction.

The neglect of children is punishable by:

• custody in county jail for up to one year, and/or
• a maximum fine of $2,000.

A judge can award misdemeanor (or summary) probation in lieu of jail time.

Our California criminal defense attorneys will discuss the following in this article:

• 1. What is child neglect?
• 2. Are there defenses?
• 3. Can I go to jail?
• 4. Are there immigration consequences?
• 5. Can I get a conviction expunged?
• 6. Does a conviction affect gun rights?
• 7. Can CPS remove a neglected child?
• 8. Are there related offenses?

1. What is child neglect?

A prosecutor must prove the following to convict you of child neglect:

1. you were the parent of a minor child,
2. you failed to provide a necessity for that minor, and
3. the failure to provide was willful and without lawful excuse.¹

A “necessity” under this statute includes such basic needs as:

• clothing,
• food,
• shelter,
• medical care / health care / dental care, and
• remedial care (such as help from an official religion).²

Note that “willfully,” as used above, means when you commit an act:

• willingly, or
• on purpose.³

A “willful” failure to do something contrasts with something that is done negligently.

Questions often arise under these laws on the meaning of the statute’s use of:

• “minor” and “parent,” and
• “lawful excuse.”

Minor and parent

A minor, for purposes of this statute, is a person under 18 years of age.⁴

Note that the statute also protects unborn children. This means:

• an unborn child’s parents are obligated to,
• provide necessities for that child.⁵

“Parent” is defined quite broadly under PC 270. It includes all:

• legal parents of children,
• adoptive parents,
• foster care parents,
• and others who hold themselves out as parents.⁶

It also includes:

• the husband of any woman who gives birth to a baby,
• while the husband is living with her.⁷

A parent does not include:

• someone who no longer has any parental rights or obligations in connection with the minor,
• due to a court declaration.⁸

An example is a former foster parent or caregiver, such as a babysitter.

Lawful excuse

Penal Code 270 requires you as a parent to:

• do all that is reasonable,
• in order to provide necessities for your minor children.⁹

You have a lawful excuse for failing to do so if:

1. through no fault of your own,
2. you are unable to earn enough money, and
3. do not have other income or assets to pay for the child’s needs.¹⁰

It is not a lawful excuse if:

• you are unable to provide necessities because
• you have unreasonably chosen to spend money on other things or have failed to diligently seek work.

Example: Mark is a single father living paycheck to paycheck. He suddenly loses his job and has no other source of income. He fails to adequately feed his seven-year-old daughter after a few weeks of unemployment.

Here, law enforcement should not arrest Mark for neglect. He has a legal excuse because he lost his job through no fault of his own and he had no other source of income. He would be guilty, though, if he kept his job but failed to provide food because he spent his earnings on expensive car payments, fancy clothing, or illegal substance use.

Note that:

• the law presumes there is no lawful excuse, and
• you have the burden of proving otherwise.¹¹

Note that even though neglect of a child is different from sexual abuse, emotional abuse, domestic violence, or physical abuse and maltreatment, neglect can negatively affect a child’s health and well-being and have a detrimental effect on mental health and child welfare.

Lack of supervision and emotional support and other types of maltreatment by family members can be risk factors for the child developing mental illness, substance abuse issues, and other impairments.

2. Are there defenses?

You can try to beat a neglect charge with a good legal defense.

Three common defenses are:

1. no willful act,
2. lawful excuse, and/or
3. falsely accused.

No willful act

Recall that you are only guilty under 270 PC if you willfully fail to provide a necessity. This means it is a defense to say that:

• while you failed to provide a necessity,
• you did not do so on purpose.

Perhaps, for example, you suddenly lost a job and had no money.

Lawful excuse

Also recall that it is not a crime under these laws if:

• you to provide a necessity, but
• had a lawful excuse for that failure.

A legal excuse, therefore, can form a valid defense. Perhaps, for example, you were involved in a horrible accident and could not provide proper care for your child for a few weeks.

Falsely accused

False accusations are common under these laws. It may be the situation that your co-parent falsely blames you for not keeping your child safe because

• they wanted more money after a divorce, or
• they were jealous or sought revenge.

It is a defense, then, for you to say that you were unjustly blamed.

3. Can I go to jail for child neglect?

Child neglect can bring both administrative and criminal penalties. Most violations of Penal Code 270 are misdemeanors.

The offense is punishable by:

• custody in county jail for up to one year, and/or
• a maximum fine of $2,000.¹²

In rare cases, Penal Code 270 may be punished as a felony. This happens if you fail to provide care after a court decides that you are a parent.¹³ This would happen, for instance, if:

• the judge in a paternity suit determined that a man was a minor’s father, and
• the father still refused to provide necessities for the child.

As a felony, child neglect can be punished by:

• up to one year in county jail, or
• one year plus one day in state prison, and/or
• a fine of up to $2,000.¹⁴

4. Are there immigration consequences?

A conviction under these laws will generally not harm your immigration status.

Sometimes a non-citizen can be:

• deported, or
• marked as inadmissible

after being convicted of a California crime.

An example is when a non-citizen gets convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude.

PC 270 violations, however, are not this type of crime.

5. Can I get a conviction expunged?

You can get an expungement if convicted of child neglect.

An expungement is favorable since it:

• removes many of the hardships,
• associated with a conviction.

A judge will grant expungement if you successfully complete:

• probation, or
• your jail term (whichever was imposed).

6. Does a conviction affect gun rights?

A conviction under 270 PC will only impact your gun rights if it is for felony child neglect.

California law says that convicted felons cannot:

• own a gun, or
• possess a gun.

Note, though, a conviction for misdemeanor neglect will not hurt your gun rights.

7. Can CPS remove a neglected child?

California’s Child Protective Services (CPS) can remove a child if neglected.

The law states that removal is permitted in instances of child abuse. According to CPS, abuse occurs if:

• a child is neglected by a parent or caretaker,
• who fails to provide adequate food, clothing, shelter, medical care or supervision.¹⁵

Prior to removal, CPS will try to provide support to keep a child in the family’s home.

But if it is determined that:

• the child cannot remain in the home,
• even after support has been given,

foster placement gets arranged.

8. Are there related offenses?

There are three criminal charges related to child neglect laws. These are:

1. child abuse – PC 273d,
2. child endangerment – PC 273a, and
3. failure to supervise child’s school attendance – PC 270.1a.

Child abuse – PC 273d

Penal Code 273d PC is California’s law against child abuse. This section makes it a crime to:

• impose physical injury, or
• cruel punishment

on a child.

Reasonable, good faith corporal punishment is legal.

Note that child neglect does not require any type of physical injury on a child or disfigurement.

Child endangerment – PC 273a

Penal Code 273a PC is California’s criminal “child endangerment” law. It punishes willfully exposing a child to:

• pain,
• suffering, or
• danger.

Note that:

• this statute punishes the possibility of harm to a child,
• while PC 273d punished actual harm to a child.

Failure to supervise child’s school attendance – PC 270.1a

Penal Code 270.1(a) PC is the California truancy law that makes it a crime if:

• a parent or guardian,
• provides inadequate supervision of a “child’s” school attendance.

A “child” for purposes of this section is a minor age six years or older and in grades kindergarten through 8th grade.

Additional Resources

Also see the California Health and Human Services Agency (chhs.ca.gov), Child Protection Services, Child Welfare Information Gateway, and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Children’s Bureau.

Report child abuse at the National Child Abuse Hotline.

For information on child neglect charges in Nevada and Colorado, please see our articles on:

• “Child Abuse, Neglect & Endangerment Laws in Nevada (NRS 200.508),” and
• “Colorado child abuse laws 18-6-401 C.R.S.”

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