Enhanced Penalties When Children Witness Domestic Violence

Alaska

Alaska Stat. §12.55.155

Included in factors that may aggravate presumptive sentences, “the offense was a felony… that is a crime involving domestic violence and was committed in the physical presence or hearing of a child under 16 years of age who was, at the time of the offense, living within the residence of the victim, the residence of the perpetrator, or the residence where the crime involving domestic violence occurred.”

Arizona

Ariz. Rev. Stat. Ann. §13-702, §13-3601(A)

Included in list of aggravating circumstances for the crime of domestic violence, “the offense was committed in the presence of a child…”

Arkansas

Ark. Stat. Ann. §5-4-701 through §5-4-702

§5-4-702:  Any person who commits a felony offense involving assault, battery, domestic battery, or assault on a family member or household member…may be subject to an enhanced sentence of an additional term of imprisonment of not less than one year and not greater than ten years if the offense is committed in the presence of a child.

§5-4-701 defines a child as a person under 16 years of age, and “in the presence of a child” means “in the physical presence of a child or knowing or having reason to know that a child is present and may see or hear an act of assault, battery, domestic violence, or assault on a family member or household member.”

California

Calif. Pen. Code §1170.76

If a domestic violence offense “contemporaneously occurred in the presence of, or was witnessed by, the minor shall be considered a circumstance in aggravation of the crime in imposing a term…”

Colorado

Colo. Rev. Stat. §18-6-401(7)(e)

"If a person commits child abuse by engaging in one of the following acts, then such person shall be punished for a second or subsequent conviction…

(IV) A continued pattern of acts of domestic violence committed by such person as that term is defined in section 18-6-800.3, in the presence of a child…"

Delaware

Del. Code Ann. Tit. 11, §1102(a)(4) (separate crime)

“A person is guilty of endangering the welfare of a child when the person commits any violent felony, or reckless endangering second degree, assault third degree, terroristic threatening, or unlawful imprisonment second degree against a victim, knowing that such felony or misdemeanor was witnessed by a child less than 18 years of age who is a member of the person’s family or the victim’s family.”

Florida

Fla. Stat. Ann. §921.0024

“If the offender is convicted of the primary offense and the primary offense is a crime of domestic violence… which was committed in the presence of a child under 16 years of age who is a family household member … with the victim or perpetrator, the subtotal sentence points are multiplied by 1.5.”

Georgia

Ga. Code Ann. §16-5-70(c) (separate crime)

Any person commits the offense of cruelty to children in the second degree when: (1) Such person, who is the primary aggressor, intentionally allows a child under the age of 18 to witness the commission of a forcible felony, battery, or family violence battery; or (2) Such person, who is the primary aggressor, having knowledge that a child under the age of 18 is present and sees or hears the act, commits a forcible felony, battery, or family violence battery.

Hawaii

Hawaii Rev. Stat. §706-606.4

The court is directed to consider as an aggravating factor when sentencing a person for abuse of a family or household member whether “the offense contemporaneously occurred in the presence of a minor.”  “’In the presence of a minor’ means in the actual physical presence of a child or knowing that a child is present and may hear or see the offense.”

Idaho

Idaho Code §18-918(7)(b)

“The maximum penalties provided in this section shall be doubled where the act of domestic assault or battery for which the person is convicted or pleads guilty took place in the presence of a child.  For purposes of this section, ‘in the presence of a child’ means in the physical presence of a child or knowing that a child is present and may see or hear an act of domestic assault or battery.  For purposes of this section, ‘child’ means a person under 16 years of age.”

Indiana

Ind. Code §35-42-2-1.3

Increases crime to a class D felony from a class A misdemeanor if the person "committed the offense in the physical presence of a child less than sixteen (16) years of age knowing that the child was present and might be able to see or hear the offense."

Louisiana

Louisiana Rev. Stat. §14:35.3(I)

"When the state proves…that a minor child age thirteen or younger was present at the residence or any other scene at the time of the commission of the offense, of the sentence imposed by the court, the execution of the minimum mandatory sentence… shall not be suspended.

Mississippi

Miss. Code Ann. §97-3-7

When sentencing persons guilty of simple or aggravated domestic violence, “the court shall consider as an aggravating factor whether the crime was committed in the physical presence or hearing of a child under 16 years of age who was, at the time of the offense, living within either the residence of the victim, the residence of the perpetrator, or the residence where the offense occurred.”

Montana

Mont. Code Ann. §45-5-206

“If the offense was committed within the vision or hearing of a minor, the judge shall consider the minor’s presence as a factor at the time of sentencing.”

North Carolina

N.C. Gen. Stat. §14-33 (g)

Specifies that any person committing an act of domestic violence "in the presence of a minor, shall be placed on supervised probation in addition to any other punishment imposed by the court… In the presence of a minor means that the minor was in a position to have observed the assault…'minor' is any person under the age of 18 years who is residing with, or is under the care and supervision of, and who has a personal relationship with, the person assaulted or the person committing the assault."

Oklahoma

Okla. Stat. Ann. Tit. 21 §644

“Any person convicted of domestic abuse as defined in subsection C of this section that was committed in the presence of a child shall be punished by imprisonment in the county jail for not less than six (6) months nor more than one (1) year, or by a fine not exceeding Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000), or by both such fine and imprisonment.  Any person convicted of a second or subsequent domestic abuse as defined in subsection C of this section that was committed in the presence of a child shall be punished by imprisonment in the custody of the Department of Corrections for not less than one (1) year nor more than five (5) years, or by a fine not exceeding Seven Thousand Dollars ($7,000) or by both such fine and imprisonment…As used in the this section, ‘in the presence of a child’ means in the physical presence of a child; or having knowledge that a child is present and may see or hear an act of domestic violence.”

Oregon

Or. Rev. Stat. §163.160(3)

“…assault in the fourth degree is a Class C felony if the person commits the crime of assault in the fourth degree and…the assault is committed in the immediate presence of, or is witnessed by, the person’s or the victim’s minor child or stepchild or a minor child residing within the household of the person or victim.  For purposes of subsection 3 of this section, an assault is witnessed if the assault is seen or directly perceived in any other manner by the child.”

Utah

Utah Code Ann. §76-5-109.1 (separate crime)

“A person is guilty of child abuse if the person: commits or attempts to commit criminal homicide…against a cohabitant in the presence of a child; or intentionally causes serious bodily injury to a cohabitant or uses a dangerous weapon…or other means or force likely to produce death or serious bodily injury against a cohabitant, in the presence of a child; or …commits an act of domestic violence in the presence of a child…A charge under this section is separate and distinct from, and is in addition to, a charge of domestic violence where the victim is the cohabitant.”

“’In the physical presence of a child’ means: in the physical presence of a child; or having knowledge that a child is present and may see or hear an act of domestic violence.”

Washington

Wash. Rev. Code Ann. §9.94A.535

In the list of aggravating factors to be considered when sentencing, “The current offense involved domestic violence…and one or more of the following was present:…The offense occurred within sight or sound of the victim’s or the offender’s minor children under the age of eighteen years.”