Endangering the welfare of a child; defense · as in force on May 31, 2026
§ 260.15 Endangering the welfare of a child; defense.
In any prosecution for endangering the welfare of a child, pursuant to section 260.10 of this article, based upon an alleged failure or refusal to provide proper medical care or treatment to an ill child, it is an affirmative defense that the defendant (a) is a parent, guardian or other person legally charged with the care or custody of such child; and (b) is a member or adherent of an organized church or religious group the tenets of which prescribe prayer as the principal treatment for illness; and (c) treated or caused such ill child to be treated in accordance with such tenets.
In a § 260.10 child-endangerment prosecution based on failing or refusing proper medical care, it is an affirmative defense that the defendant was legally responsible for the child, belonged to an organized church or religious group prescribing prayer as the principal treatment for illness, and treated the child according to those tenets. ★
Marked in the text: penalties, time limits, sums of money. Editorial emphasis added by this edition; it does not appear in the statute as enacted.
This provision appears in Volume 4 — The Court Clerk: Penal Law; Volume 1 — The Court Officer in Plain English; Volume 3 — The Court Officer: Penal Law; Volume 3 — Your Career: Penal Law in Plain English.