It’s not uncommon for teenagers to want to do things they are not allowed to do and drinking alcohol is definitely one of those. One 16-year-old boy had expressed his growing desire to drink and his parents decided to let him in order to teach his a lesson. The boy’s biological father was an alcoholic, so his mother was hoping the drinking would make him sick and lose his interest in alcohol. When they checked on him around 11:00 p.m., he gave his mom the thumbs up indicating all was well. However, at about 3:45 a.m. his step-father found him unresponsive. An ambulance was called, but the 16 year old did not make it. Now, both parents are being charged with Manslaughter. They are lucky not to be facing Child Abuse Resulting in Death. This is a class 2 felony when the death of a child occurs.
What is Manslaughter in Larimer County?
The Colorado law definition of Manslaughter – C.R.S. 18-3-104 – is:
(a) Such person recklessly causes the death of another person; or
(b) Such person intentionally causes or aids another person to commit suicide.
An important term in this definition is ‘recklessly.’ According to Colorado law, ‘recklessly’ is defined as:
In the case above, the District attorney would probably argue that the parents ignored the risk involved in allowing their teenage son to drink without supervision and that such disregard ultimately caused the boy’s death. Situations like this are so heartbreaking. I truly believe those parents never meant for anything like this to happen. Now, they not only have to grieve over the untimely death of their son, they also have to face the harrowing court system and an uncertain future.
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As a class 4 felony in Larimer, Boulder, and Grand County, Manslaughter is punishable by 2 to 6 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections and up to $500,000 in fines.