STATE IN the INTEREST OF D.M., a Juvenile

**6In this appeal, we consider whether a juvenile can be adjudicated delinquent for endangering the welfare of a child in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:24-4(a)(1) when the juvenile and his alleged victim are fewer than four years apart in age and the Family Part judge makes no findings of sexual penetration, force, or coercion. We also consider the impact of the Family Part's conflicting characterizations, at the adjudication and disposition hearings, of its factual findings regarding the juvenile's conduct.

The State charged fourteen-year-old D.M. with delinquency based on conduct which, if…