Montana Code 45-5-628. Criminal child endangerment
45-5-628. Criminal child endangerment. (1) A person commits the offense of criminal child endangerment if the person purposely, knowingly, or negligently causes substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury to a child under 14 years of age by:
Terms Used In Montana Code 45-5-628
- Knowingly: means only a knowledge that the facts exist which bring the act or omission within the provisions of this code. See Montana Code 1-1-204
- Person: includes a corporation or other entity as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 1-1-201
- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201
(a)failing to seek reasonable medical care for a child suffering from an apparent acute life-threatening condition;
(b)placing a child in the physical custody of another who the person knows has previously purposely or knowingly caused bodily injury to a child;
(c)placing a child in the physical custody of another who the person knows has previously committed an offense against the child under 45-5-502 or 45-5-503;
(d)manufacturing or distributing dangerous drugs in a place where a child is present;
(e)operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol or dangerous drugs in violation of 61-8-1002 or committing aggravated driving under the influence as defined in 61-8-1001 with a child in the vehicle; or
(f)failing to attempt to provide proper nutrition for a child, resulting in a medical diagnosis of nonorganic failure to thrive.
(2)A person may not be charged under subsection (1)(b) or (1)(c) if the person placed the child in the other person’s custody pursuant to a court order.
(3)A person convicted of the offense of criminal child endangerment shall be fined an amount not to exceed $50,000 or be imprisoned in the state prison for a term not to exceed 10 years, or both.
(4)For purposes of this section, “nonorganic failure to thrive” means inadequate physical growth that is a result of insufficient nutrition and is not secondary to a diagnosed medical condition.