READ FIRST TIME 02/19/09.   

     AN ACT Relating to creating the new crime of abandonment of a dependent person in the fourth degree; adding a new section to chapter 9A.42 RCW; and prescribing penalties.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 9A.42 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, a person is guilty of the crime of abandonment of a dependent person in the fourth degree if:
     (a) The person is the parent of a child, a person entrusted with the physical custody of a child or other dependent person, a person who has assumed the responsibility to provide to a dependent person the basic necessities of life, or a person employed to provide to the child or other dependent person any of the basic necessities of life; and
     (b) The person with criminal negligence, abandons the child or other dependent person; and
     (c) As a result of being abandoned, the person either (i) creates an imminent and substantial risk of bodily harm to the child or other dependent person, or (ii) causes bodily harm or extreme emotional distress manifested by more than transient physical symptoms.
     (2) A parent of a newborn who transfers the newborn to a qualified person at an appropriate location pursuant to RCW 13.34.360 is not subject to criminal liability under this section.
     (3) For purposes of this section, the term "child" means any person under the age of eight.
     (4) Abandonment of a dependent person in the fourth degree is a misdemeanor.