CALCRIM No. 822. Inflicting Physical Punishment on Child (Pen. Code, § 273d(a))
Judicial Council of California Criminal Jury Instructions (2025 edition)
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822.Inflicting Physical Punishment on Child (Pen. Code,
§ 273d(a))
The defendant is charged [in Count ] with inflicting on a child
cruel or inhuman physical punishment or injury that caused a traumatic
condition [in violation of Penal Code section 273d(a)].
To prove that the defendant is guilty of this crime, the People must
prove that:
1. The defendant willfully inflicted (cruel or inhuman physical
punishment/ [and/or] an injury) on a child;
[AND]
2. The (punishment/ [and/or] injury) inflicted by the defendant
caused a traumatic physical condition to the child(;/.)
<Give element 3 when instructing on parental right to discipline>
[AND
3. When the defendant acted, (he/she) was not reasonably
disciplining a child.]
Someone commits an act willfully when he or she does it willingly or on
purpose.
Achild is any person under the age of 18 years.
[Under the law, a person becomes one year older as soon as the first
minute of his or her birthday has begun.]
Atraumatic physical condition is a wound or other bodily injury, whether
minor or serious, caused by the direct application of physical force.
A (punishment/ [and/or] injury) caused a traumatic physical condition if:
1. The traumatic condition was the natural and probable
consequence of the (punishment/ [and/or] injury);
2. The (punishment/ [and/or] injury) was a direct and substantial
factor in causing the condition;
AND
3. The condition would not have happened without the (punishment/
[and/or] injury).
Anatural and probable consequence is one that a reasonable person
would know is likely to happen if nothing unusual intervenes. In
deciding whether a consequence is natural and probable, consider all of
the circumstances established by the evidence.
547
Asubstantial factor is more than a trivial or remote factor. However, it
does not need to be the only factor that caused the traumatic condition.
New January 2006
BENCH NOTES
Instructional Duty
The court has a sua sponte duty to give an instruction defining the elements of the
crime.
If there is sufficient evidence, the court has a sua sponte duty to instruct on the
defense of disciplining a child. (People v. Whitehurst (1992) 9 Cal.App.4th 1045,
1049 [12 Cal.Rptr.2d 33].) Give bracketed element 3 and CALCRIM No. 3405,
Parental Right to Punish a Child.
Give the bracketed paragraph about calculating age if requested. (Fam. Code,
§ 6500; In re Harris (1993) 5 Cal.4th 813, 849-850 [21 Cal.Rptr.2d 373, 855 P.2d
391].)
AUTHORITY
• Elements. Pen. Code, § 273d(a).
• Willful Defined. Pen. Code, § 7, subd. 1; see People v. Lara (1996) 44
Cal.App.4th 102, 107 [51 Cal.Rptr.2d 402].
• Child Defined. People v. Thomas (1976) 65 Cal.App.3d 854, 857-858 [135
Cal.Rptr. 644] [victim’s size and age relevant to reasonableness of corporal
punishment]; see Fam. Code, § 6500.
• Duty to Define Traumatic Condition. People v. Burns (1948) 88 Cal.App.2d 867,
873-874 [200 P.2d 134].
• General Intent Crime. People v. Atkins (1975) 53 Cal.App.3d 348, 358 [125
Cal.Rptr. 855].
• Traumatic Condition Defined. People v. Thomas (1976) 65 Cal.App.3d 854, 857
[135 Cal.Rptr. 644]; People v. Stewart (1961) 188 Cal.App.2d 88, 91 [10
Cal.Rptr. 217]; see People v. Gutierrez (1985) 171 Cal.App.3d 944, 951-953
[217 Cal.Rptr. 616] [in context of Pen. Code, § 273.5].
LESSER INCLUDED OFFENSES
• Attempted Infliction of Corporal Punishment. Pen. Code, §§ 664, 273d.
• Simple Assault. Pen. Code, § 240.
• Simple Battery. Pen. Code, § 242; see People v. Sargent (1999) 19 Cal.4th 1206,
1220 [81 Cal.Rptr.2d 835, 970 P.2d 409]; People v. Stewart (1961) 188
Cal.App.2d 88, 89 [10 Cal.Rptr. 217].
Willfully causing or permitting a child to suffer, or willfully inflicting on a child,
unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering under circumstances other than those
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548
likely to produce great bodily harm or death (Pen. Code, § 273a(b)) is not a lesser
included offense of Penal Code section 273d. (See People v. Lofink (1988) 206
Cal.App.3d 161, 166 [253 Cal.Rptr. 384].)
RELATED ISSUES
Spanking
It is not unlawful for a parent to spank a child for disciplinary purposes with an
object other than the hand. The punishment, however, must be necessary and not
excessive in relation to the individual circumstances. (80 Ops.Cal.Atty.Gen. 203
(1997).)
SECONDARY SOURCES
2 Witkin & Epstein, California Criminal Law (4th ed. 2012) Sex Offenses and
Crimes Against Decency, §§ 170-172.
6 Millman, Sevilla & Tarlow, California Criminal Defense Practice, Ch. 142, Crimes
Against the Person, §§ 142.13[2], 142.23[7] (Matthew Bender).
Couzens & Bigelow, Sex Crimes: California Law and Procedure § 12:17 (The Rutter
Group).
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© Judicial Council of California.
