by Rand E Oertle

Created on: April 14, 2011   Last Updated: May 03, 2011

By definition, criminal behavior is a specific kind of behavior and has legal ramifications.  The word responsible has a precise meaning as well and has both legal connotations and parental fitness implications.  In making a judgment about these two specific issues and other parental accountability questions, the determination of relevant factors that make up the answer must be identified and addressed.

The parental side of the equation includes: parental control options, child accessibility, time, mental and physical well-being of the child, siblings, family financial conditions, parental health capabilities, child peer interaction, family discipline protocols and perhaps one of the most crucial issues impacting a child’s behavior, parental cohesion.    

A child’s side of the equation involves similar issues including: self-control, access to parental input, mental and physical issues, peer resistance and submission capabilities, acceptance of and submission to parental discipline and finally a child’s innate determination to either be a positive functioning member of his or her family group or not.  

Unfortunately, what some children’s defense organizations seem to want to actively ignore is the fact that some children are much more aggressive than others or put in perhaps a more positive light, act out with excessive inquisitivity.  But, parents of more than one child know from experience that each child brings its own set of qualities into a family.  Some can be positive and some negative.  The parent’s responsibility is to modify those personality aspects to conform to societal obligations.

Legal ramifications

Perhaps legal ramifications are the easier part of the responsibility issue to answer.  The law prescribes certain restitution requirements if the criminal activity is property damage related to and caused by a child below the age of eighteen.   A child usually does not have the financial capacity to provide restitution; the parents usually have homeowners insurance that can provide the financial coverage to pay for child-inflicted property damage.

Crimes against persons are a whole different criminal issue.  The question of whether there is a health or mental issue involving the child and their chemical or “DNA” make up comes into play.  Frequently, mental health care professionals are relied upon to determine if one of these types of

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