Bill Text: IL SB1834 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Chaptered

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Bill Title: Amends the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. Provides that a neglected minor includes any minor (rather than a minor under 14 years) whose parent or other person responsible for the minor's welfare leaves the minor without supervision for an unreasonable period of time without regard for the mental or physical health, safety, or welfare of that minor. Provides that a minor shall not be considered neglected for the sole reason that the minor was engaged in independent activities, except if the person responsible for the minor's health, safety, or welfare willfully disregards danger that the independent activity poses to the physical or mental health of the minor under circumstances when the danger is sufficiently obvious that no reasonable person would cause or permit the minor to be unsupervised in such a situation given the minor's level of maturity, physical condition, or mental abilities. Provides factors that must be considered in determining if a minor's needs can be sufficiently met during an independent activity. Amends the Criminal Code of 2012 to change the child abandonment statute. Deletes language providing that a person commits child abandonment by leaving a child who is under the age of 13 without supervision by a responsible person over the age of 14 for a period of 24 hours or more. Provides instead that a person commits child abandonment when he or she, as a parent, guardian, or other person having physical custody or control of a child, without regard for the mental or physical health, safety, or welfare of that child, knowingly permits a child to engage in independent activities that were unreasonable under the circumstances or for an unreasonable period of time without regard for the minor's mental or physical health, safety or well-being. Provides that no specific age shall be determinative of reasonableness, and that reasonableness shall be determined by the maturity of each individual child. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-0)

Status: (Passed) 2023-06-30 - Public Act . . . . . . . . . 103-0233 [SB1834 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-SB1834-Chaptered.html

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Public Act 103-0233
SB1834 Enrolled LRB103 06072 RLC 51103 b
AN ACT concerning minors.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 1. Legislative findings. The General Assembly
finds that:
(1) There has been a longstanding misinterpretation of
Illinois law regarding when and under what conditions children
left home alone may be considered to be neglected pursuant to
the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 and regarding the conditions
under which parents and guardians may be charged criminally
with abandonment.
(2) Illinois law has been widely misinterpreted as stating
that children cannot be left home alone, under any
circumstances, unless the children are at least 14 years old.
This interpretation is inaccurate.
(3) Whether a child is sufficiently mature to be safely
left home alone varies based on the circumstances and many
factors, including, but not limited to, the age of the child,
the child's individual developmental capacity, the length of
time the child will be alone, and the safety conditions of the
home.
Section 5. The Juvenile Court Act of 1987 is amended by
changing Section 2-3 as follows:

(705 ILCS 405/2-3) (from Ch. 37, par. 802-3)
Sec. 2-3. Neglected or abused minor.
(1) Those who are neglected include any minor under 18
years of age or a minor 18 years of age or older for whom the
court has made a finding of probable cause to believe that the
minor is abused, neglected, or dependent under subsection (1)
of Section 2-10 prior to the minor's 18th birthday:
(a) any minor under 18 years of age or a minor 18 years
of age or older for whom the court has made a finding of
probable cause to believe that the minor is abused,
neglected, or dependent under subsection (1) of Section
2-10 prior to the minor's 18th birthday who is not
receiving the proper or necessary support, education as
required by law, or medical or other remedial care
recognized under State law as necessary for a minor's
well-being, or other care necessary for his or her
well-being, including adequate food, clothing and shelter,
or who is abandoned by his or her parent or parents or
other person or persons responsible for the minor's
welfare, except that a minor shall not be considered
neglected for the sole reason that the minor's parent or
parents or other person or persons responsible for the
minor's welfare have left the minor in the care of an adult
relative for any period of time, who the parent or parents
or other person responsible for the minor's welfare know

is both a mentally capable adult relative and physically
capable adult relative, as defined by this Act; or
(b) any minor under 18 years of age or a minor 18 years
of age or older for whom the court has made a finding of
probable cause to believe that the minor is abused,
neglected, or dependent under subsection (1) of Section
2-10 prior to the minor's 18th birthday whose environment
is injurious to his or her welfare; or
(c) any newborn infant whose blood, urine, or meconium
contains any amount of a controlled substance as defined
in subsection (f) of Section 102 of the Illinois
Controlled Substances Act, as now or hereafter amended, or
a metabolite of a controlled substance, with the exception
of controlled substances or metabolites of such
substances, the presence of which in the newborn infant is
the result of medical treatment administered to the mother
or the newborn infant; or
(d) any minor under the age of 14 years whose parent or
other person responsible for the minor's welfare leaves
the minor without supervision for an unreasonable period
of time without regard for the mental or physical health,
safety, or welfare of that minor. Whether the minor was
left without regard for the mental or physical health,
safety, or welfare of that minor or the period of time was
unreasonable shall be determined by considering the
following factors, including, but not limited to:

(1) the age of the minor;
(2) the number of minors left at the location; ; or
(3) special needs of the minor, including whether
the minor is a person with a physical or mental
disability, or otherwise in need of ongoing prescribed
medical treatment such as periodic doses of insulin or
other medications;
(4) the duration of time in which the minor was
left without supervision;
(5) the condition and location of the place where
the minor was left without supervision;
(6) the time of day or night when the minor was
left without supervision;
(7) the weather conditions, including whether the
minor was left in a location with adequate protection
from the natural elements such as adequate heat or
light;
(8) the location of the parent or guardian at the
time the minor was left without supervision, the
physical distance the minor was from the parent or
guardian at the time the minor was without
supervision;
(9) whether the minor's movement was restricted,
or the minor was otherwise locked within a room or
other structure;
(10) whether the minor was given a phone number of

a person or location to call in the event of an
emergency and whether the minor was capable of making
an emergency call;
(11) whether there was food and other provision
left for the minor;
(12) whether any of the conduct is attributable to
economic hardship or illness and the parent, guardian
or other person having physical custody or control of
the child made a good faith effort to provide for the
health and safety of the minor;
(13) the age and physical and mental capabilities
of the person or persons who provided supervision for
the minor;
(14) whether the minor was left under the
supervision of another person;
(15) any other factor that would endanger the
health and safety of that particular minor; or
(e) any minor who has been provided with interim
crisis intervention services under Section 3-5 of this Act
and whose parent, guardian, or custodian refuses to permit
the minor to return home unless the minor is an immediate
physical danger to himself, herself, or others living in
the home.
Whether the minor was left without regard for the mental
or physical health, safety, or welfare of that minor or the
period of time was unreasonable shall be determined by

considering the following factors, including but not limited
to:
(1) the age of the minor;
(2) the number of minors left at the location;
(3) special needs of the minor, including whether the
minor is a person with a physical or mental disability, or
otherwise in need of ongoing prescribed medical treatment
such as periodic doses of insulin or other medications;
(4) the duration of time in which the minor was left
without supervision;
(5) the condition and location of the place where the
minor was left without supervision;
(6) the time of day or night when the minor was left
without supervision;
(7) the weather conditions, including whether the
minor was left in a location with adequate protection from
the natural elements such as adequate heat or light;
(8) the location of the parent or guardian at the time
the minor was left without supervision, the physical
distance the minor was from the parent or guardian at the
time the minor was without supervision;
(9) whether the minor's movement was restricted, or
the minor was otherwise locked within a room or other
structure;
(10) whether the minor was given a phone number of a
person or location to call in the event of an emergency and

whether the minor was capable of making an emergency call;
(11) whether there was food and other provision left
for the minor;
(12) whether any of the conduct is attributable to
economic hardship or illness and the parent, guardian or
other person having physical custody or control of the
child made a good faith effort to provide for the health
and safety of the minor;
(13) the age and physical and mental capabilities of
the person or persons who provided supervision for the
minor;
(14) whether the minor was left under the supervision
of another person;
(15) any other factor that would endanger the health
and safety of that particular minor.
A minor shall not be considered neglected for the sole
reason that the minor has been relinquished in accordance with
the Abandoned Newborn Infant Protection Act.
(1.5) A minor shall not be considered neglected for the
sole reason that the minor's parent or other person
responsible for the minor's welfare permits the minor to
engage in independent activities unless the minor was
permitted to engage in independent activities under
circumstances presenting unreasonable risk of harm to the
minor's mental or physical health, safety, or well-being.
"Independent activities" includes, but is not limited to:

(a) traveling to and from school including by walking,
running, or bicycling;
(b) traveling to and from nearby commercial or
recreational facilities;
(c) engaging in outdoor play;
(d) remaining in a vehicle unattended, except as
otherwise provided by law;
(e) remaining at home or at a similarly appropriate
location unattended; or
(f) engaging in a similar independent activity alone
or with other children.
In determining whether an independent activity presented
unreasonable risk of harm, the court shall consider:
(1) whether the activity is accepted as suitable for
minors of the same age, maturity level, and developmental
capacity as the involved minor;
(2) the factors listed in items (1) through (15) of
paragraph (d) of subsection (1); and
(3) any other factor the court deems relevant.
(2) Those who are abused include any minor under 18 years
of age or a minor 18 years of age or older for whom the court
has made a finding of probable cause to believe that the minor
is abused, neglected, or dependent under subsection (1) of
Section 2-10 prior to the minor's 18th birthday whose parent
or immediate family member, or any person responsible for the
minor's welfare, or any person who is in the same family or

household as the minor, or any individual residing in the same
home as the minor, or a paramour of the minor's parent:
(i) inflicts, causes to be inflicted, or allows to be
inflicted upon such minor physical injury, by other than
accidental means, which causes death, disfigurement,
impairment of physical or emotional health, or loss or
impairment of any bodily function;
(ii) creates a substantial risk of physical injury to
such minor by other than accidental means which would be
likely to cause death, disfigurement, impairment of
emotional health, or loss or impairment of any bodily
function;
(iii) commits or allows to be committed any sex
offense against such minor, as such sex offenses are
defined in the Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code
of 2012, or in the Wrongs to Children Act, and extending
those definitions of sex offenses to include minors under
18 years of age;
(iv) commits or allows to be committed an act or acts
of torture upon such minor;
(v) inflicts excessive corporal punishment;
(vi) commits or allows to be committed the offense of
involuntary servitude, involuntary sexual servitude of a
minor, or trafficking in persons as defined in Section
10-9 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of
2012, upon such minor; or

(vii) allows, encourages or requires a minor to commit
any act of prostitution, as defined in the Criminal Code
of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012, and extending those
definitions to include minors under 18 years of age.
A minor shall not be considered abused for the sole reason
that the minor has been relinquished in accordance with the
Abandoned Newborn Infant Protection Act.
(3) This Section does not apply to a minor who would be
included herein solely for the purpose of qualifying for
financial assistance for himself, his parents, guardian or
custodian.
(4) The changes made by this amendatory Act of the 101st
General Assembly apply to a case that is pending on or after
the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 101st General
Assembly.
(Source: P.A. 101-79, eff. 7-12-19.)
Section 10. The Criminal Code of 2012 is amended by
changing Section 12C-10 as follows:
(720 ILCS 5/12C-10) (was 720 ILCS 5/12-21.5)
Sec. 12C-10. Child abandonment.
(a) A person commits child abandonment when he or she, as a
parent, guardian, or other person having physical custody or
control of a child, without regard for the mental or physical
health, safety, or welfare of that child, knowingly permits a

child to engage in independent activities that were
unreasonable under the circumstances or for an unreasonable
period of time without regard for the minor's mental or
physical health, safety, or well-being. For the purposes of
this Section, no specific age shall be determinative of
reasonableness. Reasonableness shall be determined by the
maturity of each individual child leaves that child who is
under the age of 13 without supervision by a responsible
person over the age of 14 for a period of 24 hours or more. It
is not a violation of this Section for a person to relinquish a
child in accordance with the Abandoned Newborn Infant
Protection Act.
(b) For the purposes of determining whether the child was
left without regard for the mental or physical health, safety,
or welfare of that child, the trier of fact shall consider the
following factors:
(1) the age of the child;
(2) the number of children left at the location;
(3) special needs of the child, including whether the
child is a person with a physical or mental disability, or
otherwise in need of ongoing prescribed medical treatment
such as periodic doses of insulin or other medications;
(4) the duration of time in which the child was left
without supervision;
(5) the condition and location of the place where the
child was left without supervision;

(6) the time of day or night when the child was left
without supervision;
(7) the weather conditions, including whether the
child was left in a location with adequate protection from
the natural elements such as adequate heat or light;
(8) the location of the parent, guardian, or other
person having physical custody or control of the child at
the time the child was left without supervision, the
physical distance the child was from the parent, guardian,
or other person having physical custody or control of the
child at the time the child was without supervision;
(9) whether the child's movement was restricted, or
the child was otherwise locked within a room or other
structure;
(10) whether the child was given a phone number of a
person or location to call in the event of an emergency and
whether the child was capable of making an emergency call;
(11) whether there was food and other provision left
for the child;
(12) whether any of the conduct is attributable to
economic hardship or illness and the parent, guardian or
other person having physical custody or control of the
child made a good faith effort to provide for the health
and safety of the child;
(13) the age and physical and mental capabilities of
the person or persons who provided supervision for the

child;
(14) any other factor that would endanger the health
or safety of that particular child;
(15) whether the child was left under the supervision
of another person.
(c) Child abandonment is a Class 4 felony. A second or
subsequent offense after a prior conviction is a Class 3
felony. A parent, who is found to be in violation of this
Section with respect to his or her child, may be sentenced to
probation for this offense pursuant to Section 12C-15.
(Source: P.A. 98-756, eff. 7-16-14; 99-143, eff. 7-27-15.)
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.
INDEX
Statutes amended in order of appearance