When a DUI involves a child in the car, the prosecution can add a charge of child endangerment under Penal Code 273a, and that single addition changes the seriousness of the whole case. I am Joel Brand, and here is what the statute says, how it attaches to a DUI, and how I defend against it.
The text of the law
Penal Code 273a. (a) Any person who, under circumstances or conditions likely to produce great bodily harm or death, willfully causes or permits any child to suffer, or inflicts thereon unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering, or having the care or custody of any child, willfully causes or permits the person or health of that child to be injured, or willfully causes or permits that child to be placed in a situation where his or her person or health is endangered, shall be punished by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, or in the state prison for two, four, or six years. (b) Any person who, under circumstances or conditions other than those likely to produce great bodily harm or death, willfully causes or permits any child to suffer ... or ... to be placed in a situation where his or her person or health may be endangered, is guilty of a misdemeanor.
Two versions: felony and misdemeanor
The statute has two tiers. Subdivision (a) is the felony version, which applies when the circumstances were "likely to produce great bodily harm or death," and it carries up to six years in state prison as a felony. Subdivision (b) is the misdemeanor version, for circumstances that do not reach that level. Which one a prosecutor files turns on the specific facts: the child's age, the BAC, whether there was an accident, and how dangerous the driving actually was. Steering the case toward the misdemeanor tier, or off the 273a charge entirely, is a central goal of the defense.
How it attaches to a DUI
Driving under the influence with a child in the car can trigger two separate consequences. One is the DUI sentencing enhancement under Vehicle Code 23572, which adds mandatory jail to the DUI itself. The other is a stand-alone child endangerment charge under 273a. Prosecutors do not always file both, but the presence of a child gives them the option, and a 273a count raises the stakes far beyond an ordinary DUI, especially if it is charged as a felony.
The key word is "willfully"
The statute requires that the defendant "willfully" caused or permitted the endangerment. That is an important limit. It is not enough that a child happened to be in the car. The prosecution has to show the conduct was willful and that the circumstances genuinely endangered the child. A careful, uneventful drive with a properly restrained child, even by a driver later found to be over the limit, is a very different case from impaired driving that actually put the child at risk, and that distinction is where the defense lives.
Why the felony tier is so serious
The felony version under subdivision (a) is a wobbler that can bring state prison, and it carries collateral consequences a DUI alone does not, including potential involvement of child protective services and family-law fallout. Because the difference between the felony and misdemeanor tiers is measured in years and in lasting consequences, scrutinizing whether the facts truly meet the "likely to produce great bodily harm or death" standard is one of the most important things I do in these cases.
How I defend a 273a-with-DUI case
I defend on two fronts. First, the underlying DUI, through the lawfulness of the stop, the field sobriety testing, and the breath or blood evidence. If the DUI itself is weak, the endangerment theory built on it weakens too. Second, the 273a elements directly: whether the conduct was willful, whether the circumstances genuinely endangered the child, and whether the facts support the felony tier or only the misdemeanor, if any charge at all. See my top DUI defenses.
The probation conditions are strict
If there is a conviction with probation, the statute imposes its own mandatory minimum conditions, including a lengthy probation term, a protective order, and completion of a child-abuser treatment counseling program. These are serious, ongoing obligations on top of anything ordered for the DUI, which is one more reason to fight the 273a charge hard rather than treat it as a minor add-on.
Mitigation matters here
Because so much turns on prosecutorial and judicial discretion, mitigation carries real weight. A clean record, a safely restrained child, responsible behavior at the scene, and early steps to address any alcohol issue all help steer the case toward the least serious outcome. The difference between a felony 273a and no endangerment charge at all is enormous, and it is often shaped in the early negotiations. I work from the start to present the full, accurate picture to the prosecutor, because a charging decision made on incomplete facts can be far harsher than the situation warrants, and once a felony 273a is filed it is much harder to walk back.
The family-law and CPS dimension
A 273a charge reaches beyond the criminal court in a way an ordinary DUI does not. An arrest involving a child can trigger a report to child protective services, and the allegation can surface in a custody or family-law dispute. These collateral effects sometimes worry clients more than the criminal penalties themselves, and they are a major reason to take the charge seriously from the first day. I keep these downstream consequences in view while defending the criminal case, because how the 273a count is resolved can affect them directly.
Charged with child endangerment and a DUI? Let's talk.
A 273a charge raises a DUI to a different level of seriousness, and how it is handled early shapes everything. Use the free case analysis on this page, or call me directly at (888) 271-6644. I answer my own phone, 24/7.