Chapter 18 - Mara’s child-endangerment case
Locking a child behind a gate is not automatically a felony.
Context matters.
Duration.
Weather.
Safety.
Intent.
Age.
Here, Olivia was physically safe from traffic.
The gate itself was not hazardous.
But evidence showed the confinement was deliberately used to provoke emotional distress for recording.
That changed how prosecutors viewed it.
Mara ultimately pleaded to:
Misdemeanor child endangerment.
A coercive-control-related misdemeanor under the available local theory? Better not invent unusual law. Keep simple:
And a related child-welfare offense tied to punitive confinement.
She received:
Two years probation.
Parenting education.
Individual therapy.
Community service.
No unsupervised disciplinary authority over Olivia during the family-court review.
No prison.
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The case was serious.
It was not a kidnapping case.
