People v. Peabody

Opinion

FRANSON, J.

The issue is the standard of conduct required for a violation of Penal Code section 273 a, subdivision (1), which proscribes “wilfully” causing or permitting a child to be placed in a situation likely to produce great bodily harm or death. We hold that the standard of conduct condemned by the statute is that of criminal negligence and that the trial court’s failure to so instruct the jury compels a reversal.

Because we are reversing on a point of law, we need only briefly summarize the evidence; Appellant brought her four-month-old child to the hospital because “the baby…