Cal Pen Code § 272 (2004)
§ 272. Contributing to delinquency of minor
(a)(1) Every person who commits any act or omits the performance
of any duty, which act or omission causes or tends to cause or encourage any
person under the age of 18 years to come within the provisions of Section 300, 601, or 602 of the Welfare and Institutions
Code or which act or omission contributes thereto, or any person who, by any
act or omission, or by threats, commands, or persuasion, induces or endeavors
to induce any person under the age of 18 years or any ward or dependent child
of the juvenile court to fail or refuse to conform to a lawful order of the
juvenile court, or to do or to perform any act or to follow any course of
conduct or to so live as would cause or manifestly tend to cause that person to
become or to remain a person within the provisions of Section 300, 601, or 602
of the Welfare and Institutions Code, is guilty of a misdemeanor and
upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine not exceeding two thousand
five hundred dollars ($ 2,500), or by imprisonment in the county jail for not
more than one year, or by both fine and imprisonment in a county jail, or may
be released on probation for a period not exceeding five years.
(2) For purposes of this subdivision, a parent or legal
guardian to any person under the age of 18 years shall have the duty to
exercise reasonable care, supervision, protection, and control over their minor
child.
(b)(1) An adult stranger who is 21 years of age or older, who
knowingly contacts or communicates with a minor who is 12 years of age or
younger, who knew or reasonably should have known that the minor is 12 years of
age or younger, for the purpose of persuading and luring, or transporting, or
attempting to persuade and lure, or transport, that minor away from the minor's
home or from any location known by the minor's parent, legal guardian, or
custodian, to be a place where the minor is located, for any purpose, without
the express consent of the minor's parent or legal guardian, and with the
intent to avoid the consent of the minor's parent or legal guardian, is guilty
of an infraction or a misdemeanor.
(2) This subdivision shall not apply in an emergency
situation.
(3) As used in this subdivision, the following terms are
defined to mean:
(A) "Emergency situation" means a situation where
the minor is threatened with imminent bodily harm, emotional harm, or
psychological harm.
(B) "Contact" or "communication"
includes, but is not limited to, the use of a telephone or the Internet, as
defined in Section 17538 of the Business and
Professions Code.
(C) "Stranger" means a person of casual
acquaintance with whom no substantial relationship exists, or an individual
with whom a relationship has been established or promoted for the primary
purpose of victimization, as defined in subdivision (e) of Section 6600 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(D) "Express consent" means oral or written
permission that is positive, direct, and unequivocal, requiring no inference or
implication to supply its meaning.
(4) This section shall not be interpreted to criminalize acts
of persons contacting minors within the scope and course of their employment,
or status as a volunteer of a recognized civic or charitable organization.
(5) This section is intended to protect minors and to help
parents and legal guardians exercise reasonable care, supervision, protection,
and control over minor children.