Endangering the welfare of a child is often charged alongside a drug case. In Missouri, possessing methamphetamine or fentanyl in a home where a child lives, or in a child’s presence, is itself a felony, and since a 2025 amendment, a fentanyl-related charge is a class B felony with at least five years before parole eligibility.
This guide covers first and second degree endangering under RSMo 568.045 and 568.050, the penalties, the fentanyl provision added in 2025, and how these charges are defended.
First degree
What is endangering the welfare of a child in the first degree?
Knowing conduct that puts a child at substantial risk, and certain drug activity around children.
Under RSMo 568.045, a person commits first degree endangering if they:
- Knowingly act in a manner that creates a substantial risk to the life, body, or health of a child under 18;
- Knowingly engage in sexual conduct with a person under 18 in their care or custody;
- Knowingly encourage, aid, or cause a child under 18 to violate Missouri’s weapons or drug laws; or
- In the presence of a child under 18, or in a residence where a child under 18 lives, unlawfully manufacture, possess, produce, prepare, sell, transport, test, or analyze fentanyl, carfentanil, amphetamine, or methamphetamine, or an analogue.
That last category means a drug possession case in a home where children live can carry a separate felony count, even if the child was never exposed to the drug.
Penalties
Is endangering the welfare of a child a felony in Missouri?
First degree is always a felony. The class depends on the facts.
Class D felony
The baseline for first degree endangering, up to seven years.
Class C felony
If physical injury to the child results, for a second or subsequent offense, or when the offense is part of an established pattern of activity by two or more people.
Class B felony
If the offense involves fentanyl or carfentanil, with no conditional release or parole until at least five years are served, or if serious physical injury to the child results.
Class A felony
If the offense results in the death of a child.
Second degree
What is second degree endangering in Missouri?
Criminally negligent conduct, usually a misdemeanor.
Under RSMo 568.050, second degree endangering includes acting with criminal negligence in a way that creates a substantial risk to the life, body, or health of a child under 17, and certain failures by a parent or guardian to supervise a child. It is a class A misdemeanor, or a class E felony when committed as part of an established pattern of activity by two or more people.
The difference between first and second degree is often the mental state: “knowingly” versus “criminal negligence.” That difference can turn a felony into a misdemeanor.
Defenses
How do you defend an endangering charge in Missouri?
Possession, residence, mental state, and the drug itself.
- The underlying drug case. If the State cannot prove the person possessed the drug, the drug-based endangering count fails with it.
- The residence. The drug category requires that a child live in the residence or be present. Whether a child actually resided there is a fact question.
- The substance. The drug category applies only to fentanyl, carfentanil, amphetamine, and methamphetamine. Lab results matter, especially for the fentanyl class B enhancement.
- Knowledge versus negligence. First degree generally requires knowing conduct; negligent conduct may only support second degree.
- The search. As in any drug case, an unlawful search can suppress the evidence.
An endangering charge can also trigger a Children’s Division investigation and affect custody, which runs on a separate track from the criminal case. What a parent says in either setting can affect the other.
FAQ
Child endangerment questions
Is having meth in a house with kids a felony in Missouri?
Yes. Unlawfully possessing methamphetamine in a residence where a child under 18 lives, or in a child’s presence, is first degree endangering, a class D felony, separate from the drug charge.
What is the penalty when fentanyl is involved?
Since 2025 H.B. 495, first degree endangering involving fentanyl or carfentanil is a class B felony, and a person sentenced under that provision must serve at least five years before conditional release or parole.
Does marijuana count for child endangerment?
The specific drug provision lists fentanyl, carfentanil, amphetamine, and methamphetamine. Other conduct involving a child and drugs can still be charged under the general substantial-risk provision depending on the facts.
Will an endangering charge affect custody?
It can. A criminal charge often comes with a Children’s Division investigation, and the outcome of the criminal case can affect family court proceedings.
Is DWI with a child in the car child endangerment?
Missouri’s DWI statute separately raises a DWI to a class A misdemeanor when a person under 17 is in the vehicle, and other charges may also apply depending on the facts.
See our drug crime defense page, or call 573-638-8529.
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If you are facing an endangering charge, especially alongside a drug case or a Children’s Division investigation, call before you talk to anyone about it.
Attorney advertising. The choice of a lawyer is an important decision and should not be based solely upon advertisements. This article is general information about Missouri law as of October 2026, not legal advice, and it does not create an attorney-client relationship. The outcome of any case depends on its facts.
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