Felony Defense

Children are vulnerable members of society, and Tulsa has strict laws to protect them. You could be charged with child endangerment in Oklahoma if you expose minors to situations or acts that are perceived under law as harmful to children.

Child endangerment, though not as severe as abuse, is still a serious felony in Oklahoma. If you are charged with child abuse, you may also face separate charges of endangerment.

Not every act that may put a child at risk in the opinion of others is considered endangerment under Oklahoma laws, however. For instance, relying on spiritual means for a child’s healing is not considered a crime in Oklahoma, if it is done in good faith.

Defining Child Endangerment in Oklahoma

A person responsible for a child can be found guilty of child endangerment if one of the following occurs.

• If a parent, guardian, or a person having control of a child allows the child to be present in an environment where controlled dangerous substances are being manufactured or where an attempt has been made to produce them.
• A person responsible for a child knowingly lets the child be present in a vehicle that is being operated by someone under the influence of alcohol or drugs or who is impaired.

Okla. Stat. tit. 21 § 852.1

However, there is an affirmative defense here if the defendant can state that they permitted child endangerment because they reasonably believed that trying to stop it would have endangered the child further.

Elements of the Crime

The state must prove the following elements beyond a shadow of a doubt to obtain a conviction for child endangerment in Oklahoma.

• A parent, guardian, or other person having custody or control of a minor
• knowingly
• permitted
• abuse of a physical or sexual nature
• of the child.

OR

• A parent, guardian, or another person who has custody or control of a child
• knowingly
• allowed
• a minor to be at a place where a controlled dangerous substance was being manufactured or where an attempt was being made to produce a controlled dangerous substance.

OR

• A parent, guardian, or other person having control and custody of a minor
• knowingly
• allowed
• a minor to be present in a vehicle that was driven by someone who was impaired or under the influence of an intoxicating substance.

OR

• A parent, guardian, or someone who had control or custody of a minor
• operated a vehicle
• n violation of Oklahoma laws such as driving under the influence of an intoxicating substance
• while there was a minor in the car.

Penalties for Child Endangerment in Oklahoma

Endangering a child is tried as a felony in Oklahoma. The crime carries a penalty of up to four years in prison, a fine of up to $5,000 or both fines. Okla. Stat. tit. 21 § 852.1C

If you are facing charges of child endangerment in Oklahoma, you need to talk to an experienced Tulsa criminal attorney immediately. We make it easy to get answers to your questions and chart the way forward in your case.

Initial Consultation: Tulsa Felony Defense Lawyer

When you are facing charges of any kind, it is always better to do it with the help of an experienced criminal defense attorney. Options are available to you. Call for a low-cost initial strategy session with an experienced Tulsa felony defense lawyer to discuss your available legal options.

Call the Tulsa Criminal Defense Law Firm at 918-756-9600.

If you prefer, you can use the box in the upper right-hand corner of this page to send a question or brief message.

Theft is tried as either petit or grand larceny in Oklahoma. Petit means small. A defendant is charged with petit larceny if the value of the property stolen is worth less than $1,000 and is not picked from the person of the victim. All other larceny is grand. Okla. Stat. tit. 21 § 1703

Grand Larceny in Oklahoma FAQs

The law in Oklahoma defines larceny as the taking of another person’s property by stealth or fraud, with the intent to defraud the owner. Okla. Stat. tit. 21 § 1701

Keeping something that does not belong to you is sufficient grounds to be charged with larceny in Tulsa, Oklahoma. If you find an item that belongs to someone else and have adequate information to return it to the owner, but choose to keep it, you could be charged with larceny. Okla. Stat. tit. 21 § 1702

A defendant faces grand larceny charges when the value of the property stolen is $1,000 or more, or when it is stolen from the person of another. Larceny of one or more firearms is tried as grand larceny in Oklahoma.

Elements of the Crime

The state must prove each of the following seven elements beyond a shadow of a doubt to get a conviction on charges of grand larceny.

The prosecutor must prove that a defendant took and carried away the personal property of someone else, valued at $1,000 or more or from the person of another, by stealth or fraud, with the intent to deprive permanently. OUJI-CR 5-93

If any of the elements is not proven, there can be no conviction. “Carrying away” has been added by case law as a significant element, though it has not been mentioned in the statute. Even a slight taking away of an item is sufficient to meet this element of the crime.

An item does not also have to be taken from its actual owner. It is sufficient to be charged with larceny if an item is taken from any other person who possesses it lawfully.

Penalties for Grand Larceny

The punishment for grand larceny is up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $5,000, or both. The item stolen must be worth $1,000 to $14,999. If the value of what was stolen is $15,000 or more, the maximum prison time is eight years.

If the value of the item stolen was less than $1,000, the penalty is up to a year in jail. At the court’s discretion, the time may be served on nights and weekends. Also, a judge can impose a fine of up to $1,000 in addition to or in lieu of incarceration.

Regardless of the value of the stolen property, the defendant is also be expected to make restitution to the victim. Okla. Stat. tit. 21 § 1705

Talk to an experienced criminal defense lawyer in Tulsa, OK, if you are facing charges of grand larceny. Your freedom is worth protecting. It is a rather expensive affair to get convicted and sent to jail. You could pay hefty fines and end up spending a lot of time in prison, which will also cost you a lot in lost income and opportunities.

A criminal record is devastating to your life after prison. Your reputation could be severely dented, and you could end up with a poor credit rating, be unable to access certain employment opportunities, and lose some of your rights such as the right to vote or carry firearms.

Let an experienced Tulsa criminal attorney stand up for you in court to significantly improve your chances of getting a favorable outcome in your case.

Initial Consultation: Tulsa Felony Defense Lawyer

When you are facing charges of any kind, it is always better to do it with the help of an experienced criminal defense attorney. Options are available to you. Call for a low-cost initial strategy session with an experienced Tulsa felony defense lawyer to discuss your available legal options.

Call the Tulsa Criminal Defense Law Firm at 918-756-9600.

If you prefer, you can use the box in the upper right-hand corner of this page to send a question or brief message.

The state of Oklahoma considers minors vulnerable members of society and has strict laws that protect them. Child neglect in Tulsa is one crime against children addressed in Oklahoma laws, and one that carries severe penalties if convicted.

You could spend the rest of your life in prison if you are found guilty of child neglect. Talk to an experienced Tulsa child neglect lawyer if you are charged with neglect of a child. A knowledgeable lawyer can help you navigate the justice system and help you get the most favorable outcome in your case.

What is Child Neglect in Tulsa?

Under Oklahoma law, neglect is defined as the failure to provide adequately for a child. Sometimes, a person responsible for the welfare and wellbeing of a child willfully and maliciously provides inadequate affection, nurture, supervision, shelter, sanitation, hygiene, medical treatment, and education to the child.

For instance, Oklahoma laws describe abandonment of a minor as neglect. Okla. Stat. tit. 10a § 1-1-105

Also, failure to protect a child from activities or materials that might harm them is also treated as child neglect in Tulsa. Illegal activities or drugs and sexual activities are examples of influences that could harm a minor. Parents who fail to protect minors from such influences could be found guilty of neglect.

Elements of the Crime

A prosecutor must prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, the following elements of the crime to obtain a conviction on child neglect charges.

• A person responsible for a child’s health, safety, or welfare
• willfully
• refused to provide
• adequate care, food, clothing, shelter, education, or medical care as described by Oklahoma laws
• for a minor (a child under 18 years of age).

OR

• Failed to protect
• a child under the age of 18 from
• exposure to the use, possession, sale, or manufacture of illegal drugs, illegal activities, or sexual acts and materials that could be harmful to the child.

OR

• Abandoned
• a minor (a person under the age of 18).

OUJI-CR 4-37

Enabling Child Neglect in Tulsa

Enabling child neglect is also considered a serious crime under Oklahoma law. Thus, a defendant can be convicted of enabling child neglect if they are found to have caused, permitted, or procured willfully and maliciously any act of child neglect.

A prosecutor must prove the following elements beyond a shadow of a doubt to obtain a conviction on charges of enabling child neglect.

• A person willfully and maliciously caused or procured
• an omission or failure that is willful by a person responsible for a child’s wellbeing, welfare, and safety
• to provide adequate care, medical treatment, education, and other necessities of life for the child as described in the laws
• for a minor child, not yet 18 years of age.

OR

• A willful and malicious failure or omission by a person responsible for a child’s wellbeing, welfare, and safety
• to protect the child from exposure to
• the use, sale, production, or possession of illegal drugs and illegal activities such as sexual acts or materials that could harm the minor.

OR

• The malicious and willful abandonment by a person responsible for a child’s welfare, safety, and health
• of a child not yet 18 years of age.

Penalties

Punishment is severe for a defendant convicted of child neglect or enabling it. If convicted, a defendant may be punished with life in prison or a year in county jail. A fine between $500 and $5,000 may be assessed in addition to or in lieu of incarceration. Okla. Stat. tit. 21 § 843.5

Child neglect charges carry rather severe punishment on conviction. Therefore, if you are facing such charges, talk to a child neglect lawyer in Tulsa, OK, immediately. Do not fumble with your side of the story or engage the prosecution with having legal representation.

Only an experienced lawyer can determine the best course of action in your particular case. Do not let the severity of the charges you face scare you to believing that you have no options. Possible defenses can be explored with an experienced Tulsa criminal attorney.

Initial Consultation: Tulsa Felony Defense Lawyer

When you are facing charges of any kind, it is always better to do it with the help of an experienced criminal defense attorney. Options are available to you. Call for a low-cost initial strategy session with an experienced Tulsa felony defense lawyer to discuss your available legal options.

Call the Tulsa Criminal Defense Law Firm at 918-756-9600.

If you prefer, you can use the box in the upper right-hand corner of this page to send a question or brief message.

Juvenile Offenders and the Law

In Oklahoma, Juvenile offenders can be treated in a number of different ways as minors. They can be tried as adults for some crimes. For others, they can be tried or adjudicated as juvenile delinquents. In Oklahoma, adjudicated delinquents are prohibited from possessing a firearm. To do so is a felony in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

What the Law Says

When a minor is adjudicated as a delinquent for a crime that would have been a felony if that crime had been committed by an adult, that adjudicated delinquent may not have any type of firearm or any other type of dangerous or deadly weapon within their possession, custody, or control. They are prohibited from having any such weapon within their residence. And they are prohibited from having any such weapon within a car in which they are a passenger or driving, whether they are aware of the presence of the weapon or not, for a period of 10 years after the adjudication. Okla. Stat. tit. 21 § 1283

A juvenile offender or an adjudicated delinquent must be careful to ensure the people in their environment are not carrying any firearms. The law does not require the offender to have knowledge of a possible weapon. Its presence is enough for that youthful offender to be convicted of a felony.

Penalties for Juvenile Offenders

The crime is a felony offense in Oklahoma; it is punishable by 1 to 10 years in prison. Okla. Stat. tit. 21 § 1284

The penalty is harsh, but there are things you can do if you are facing charges. Hiring an experienced attorney can make the difference between your freedom and further jail time.

Initial Consultation: Tulsa Criminal Defense Attorney

When you are facing charges of any kind, it is always better to do it with the help of an experienced criminal defense attorney. Options are available to you. Call for a low-cost initial strategy session with an experienced Tulsa criminal defense attorney to discuss your available legal options.

Call the Tulsa Criminal Defense Law Firm at 918-756-9600.

If you prefer, you can use the box in the upper right-hand corner of this page to send a question or brief message.

Sexual communication with children is a crime that Oklahoma prosecutors combat fiercely. There are several statutes in Oklahoma law that target this type of behavior. One of them is a prohibition against making a lewd or indecent proposal to a child.

Lewd or Indecent Proposals are Against the Law

In Oklahoma, knowingly and intentionally making a sexual, lewd, or indecent proposal to a child under 16 years of age, or believed to be under 16 years of age, is a felony. Okla. Stat. tit. 21 § 1123

This crime can take place in person, by phone, on Snapchat or other social media, by computer, or any other method of communication. No physical contact is required for the crime to occur. The sexual communication is all that is required.

So, what constitutes a lewd or indecent proposal to a child in Tulsa?

Oklahoma statute provides a long list of prohibited suggested acts, including:

• touching;
• mauling;
• ejaculating;
• lasciviously looking at a child’s private parts;
• engaging in any sexual act;
• forcing a child to view or engage in a sexual act;
• viewing pornography;
• urinating or defecating;
• sexually exposing yourself to a child;
• enticing a child to a private location with the intent to have sexual contact; or
• another type of sexual communication.

Penalties for Lewd or Indecent Proposal to a Child

In Oklahoma, prison sentences for crimes involving children are especially harsh. If the child is under 16 years of age, you could face a prison term from 3 to 10 years. If the child is under 12, you could face at least 25 years in prison.

And these aforementioned sentences are for a first conviction. A subsequent conviction could mean life in prison without parole.

The offender is not eligible for probation or suspended or deferred sentences.

In addition, because this is a sex crime, once released from prison, you must register with the sex offender registry in Oklahoma. This makes the effects of the crime last much longer for the defendant.

If you are facing charges, do not talk to the police without an attorney present. It is important that you hire an experienced Tulsa criminal defense attorney as soon as possible to help you build a strong defense against the charges.

Initial Consultation: Tulsa Criminal Defense Attorney

When you are facing charges of any kind, it is always better to do it with the help of an experienced criminal defense attorney. Options are available to you. Call for a low-cost initial strategy session with an experienced Tulsa criminal defense attorney to discuss your available legal options.

Call the Tulsa Criminal Defense Law Firm at 918-756-9600 or toll free at 1-888-Wirth-Law (1-888-947-8452).

If you prefer, you can use the box in the upper right-hand corner of this page to send a question or brief message.