Child endangerment in Michigan is a form of child abuse, and child endangerment charges can impact your child custody arrangement.
Whether you or your child’s other parent end up facing child endangerment charges, it can have some severe consequences from a legal perspective. However, it can also play a major role in child custody. Even if you are a married couple raising your child together, you can end up having to deal with custody issues stemming from a child endangerment charge or conviction.
Common Child Endangerment Issues in Michigan
Sadly, there are many different ways in which a child can be put at risk. While there are extreme cases of child endangerment that make the headlines of the news, there are many other instances where child endangerment charges are brought against parents. Some of the more common situations include:
OWI Cases and Child Endangerment
If you drive your car drunk with a child under the age of 16 in the car, this is OWI child endangerment. The child endangerment issue serves as an additional charge to the OWI case rather than an enhancement, and can result in stiff penalties. In addition to the sentencing for the OWI charge, you could face:
- Up to $1,000 in fines
- Up to 1 year in jail
- Up to 90 days of community service
This sentence can be exacerbated by penalties from the Secretary of State, which can include restriction of driving privileges, fines, and most likely a serious increase in your car insurance rates.
The child endangerment charges can also carry jail time and other penalties, but also cause temporary changes to your child custody arrangement, including supervised visitation. If you do not have a court mandated child custody arrangement, you may still end up with disruptions in your parental rights, which can include temporary guardianship being assigned.
Exposure to Dangerous Substances or Inappropriate Content
If you or your child’s other parent, or both, are using illegal drugs, do not properly secure firearms, or allow your child to consume alcohol underage, you may be at risk of facing child endangerment charges. While the penalties for these original charges are no joke, if a child is put at risk as a result of them, the consequences will assuredly be more dire.
Likewise, exposing a child to pornographic content can be another way child endangerment charges are filed. In the age of the internet, this has sadly become a more common occurrence.
Domestic Violence in the Presence of a Child or Failure to Protect a Child From Harm
Exposing a child to domestic violence situations, where they witness or are caught in the middle of violent acts between adults, can lead to endangerment charges. This exposure is seen as harmful to a child’s emotional and psychological well-being.
Likewise, if your child’s other parent is in a situation where domestic violence is occurring, if you fail to take the necessary precautions, you can also face child endangerment charges.
Leaving a Child Unattended in a Vehicle
Leaving a young child alone in a car, especially in extreme weather conditions (hot or cold), can result in child endangerment charges. This situation poses significant risks such as overheating, hypothermia, or even abduction. It is not uncommon to hear about these situations in the summer months, and sadly many children die as a result of this type of child endangerment.
One important note: Your child does not need to be harmed in order for child endangerment charges to be brought.
Child Endangerment & Termination of Parental Rights
In extreme cases, particularly where there is a pattern of behavior that poses a threat to the child’s well-being, child endangerment charges could lead to a termination of parental rights. This is of course not common, as there are steps and processes to go through in order to terminate the rights of a parent to their children. However, in some cases, the court will step in when the child is at risk.
Temporary Guardianship & Child Endangerment
Often, when a child endangerment case comes before the court, temporary guardianship will be ordered. In these cases, a trusted friend or loved one can be appointed as the child’s temporary guardian. In these scenarios, the parent or parents are given specific actions to take in order to have their parental rights reinstated. These can include:
- Mandatory counseling or therapy
- Drug or alcohol treatment and/or rehabilitation
- Driver’s safety courses
- Parenting classes
- Anger management
If the parent or parents complete the requirements to the court’s satisfaction, full parental rights are usually reinstated.