A Proven Criminal Defense Team

Child Abuse in Colorado, changes in the criminal system

On Behalf of | Sep 28, 2009 | Child Abuse |

A mom stops by a pharmacy and runs in to get her prescription. She doesn’t want to get her child out of the safety seat and get the stroller since she’ll be back in 3 minutes. Two parents are arguing loudly in their home in front of their child when a neighbor decides to call the police. A teenager is babysitting his younger sister when his friends come over and offer to smoke marijuana. This happens in front of the little sister. A married couple get intimate in their bedroom and don’t realize that their bedroom door is ajar and their child sees them in bed together. What do all of these and a host of other relatively simple situations have in common? The state of Colorado recognizes them all as Child Abuse and they are all crimes that can carry jail sentences, not to mention a permanent criminal record.

Child Abuse is not necessarily the act of striking your kid, and it doesn’t mean that you are a bad parent. In the state of Colorado there are many forms of criminal Child Abuse. Child Abuse can involve neglect. Child Abuse can also involve Reckless or Intentional behavior. Gone are the days when a severe spanking was required, and gone are the days when a parent could raise their child as “they saw fit”.

The issue that makes them even harder to defend is that the majority of Child Abuse charges are misdemeanors in Colorado. Almost all misdemeanor level District Attorneys are fresh out of law school and generally speaking in their mid to late twenties. And most misdemeanor District Attorneys are therefore not parents, which makes it much harder to engage in meaningful negotiations with them since they are not personally aware of the rigors and stresses that come with raising children, and they are also usually not aware of how easy it can be for an otherwise “good” parent to have a lapse in judgment.

If you are charged with Child Abuse, seek legal advice and take the charge seriously. More often than not, you are dealing with a state criminal system that handles these cases quite harshly.

While we hope you benefit from the information we posted above, it is important to note that we always suggest you contact an attorney to advise you and walk you through the legal process so that you can achieve the best possible result.

This blog was posted by Shazam Kianpour, the owner and managing partner at Shazam Kianpour & Associates, P.C. You may contact him directly at our law firm at 720-407-2582 or at http://www.shazamlaw.com/

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