Legal Question in Family Law in California
In the state of california, county of los angeles, can the birth mother be prosecuted or arrested for giving birth to a baby and that baby testing positive for an illegal substance (amphetamines)?
i know the baby is removed from the household, and d.c.f.s. takes over,creating an open case. so knowing the newborn baby is taken into "custody" what can or will happen to mother?
in this particular case, the birth parents pre planned to place the baby up for adoption. that decision was made as soon as they realized she was pregnant. they even spoke with families wanting to adopt, and chose the family they wanted to adopt their baby. at the hospital, they phoned that family announcing the birth, and they came and stayed with them til they were discharged. so does the fact that adoption was already discussed and agreed upon, compromise or effect the mother?
are abuse or any other criminal charges allowed to be pressed by dcfs or by the juvenille court that handles dcfs cases?
1 Answer from Attorneys
The mother could theoretically be prosecuted for child endangerment if it can be proved that she voluntarily ingested controlled substances after the fetus was viable (i.e. after it would be illegal to abort), but I've never heard of it happening.
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