[2] Recently, a mother joined a paid sleep guidance group, having her three-month-old baby sleep in a separate room while she watched the monitor outside, training the infant to fall asleep independently.

[3] The baby, sleeping on its stomach, had its mouth and nose covered. The mother watched the monitor from outside the room and even recorded a video to ask group members, "Is this crying okay?" A group member replied, "If it's not loud crying, it's fine." So the mother felt reassured and let the child cry heart-wrenchingly, continuing to "unlock stomach sleeping."

[4] A screenshot from the monitor showed the baby's left leg stuck outside the crib railing, dangling in the air, making it difficult to pull back. Imagine whether the left leg could still push off the ground to flip over. The right leg couldn't flip either, as the left was stuck. The folded corner of the blanket was likely grabbed by the baby during its struggle. But such easily folded thick bedding couldn't help it crawl forward; instead, it risked covering its mouth and nose at any moment.

[5] Two hours later, the mother went to feed the child but found the baby had already died.

A lawyer from Guangdong Zhiming Law Firm stated,[6] Strictly speaking, this mother's actions constitute suspected negligent homicide. As a guardian, she had a legal duty to rescue the infant, and there was a possibility to do so. From her chat in the WeChat group, it was clear she could foresee the potential harm but still "lightly believed it could be avoided," ultimately causing the infant's death. Her behavior reflects overconfident negligence.
 
In fact, cases where children are seriously injured or die due to guardian negligence occur from time to time, such as "child left in car and suffocated," "twin drownings in Qingdao," and "child falling from height while home alone." Whether guardian negligence resulting in minor casualties should be criminalized has also sparked heated debate.

 

 
The current status of accountability for guardian negligence
 
Judge's perspective: Civil liability is required, but very few parents are held accountable
 
Judge Li Huijun from the Nancheng Court of the First People's Court of Dongguan analyzed that, according to legal provisions and judicial practice, if an incident is deemed an accident, parents generally do not bear criminal liability. However, parents must bear civil liability if the accident occurs due to their failure to fulfill guardianship duties.
 
Although parents are negligent, they are also victims. Since the subject of civil compensation rights and obligations is the parents themselves, in judicial practice, corresponding civil liability issues generally do not arise. Considering the special nature of this situation, actual accountability is extremely rare.
 
Prosecutor's perspective: The law does not clearly specify what specific responsibility is to be borne
 
In this regard, Chen Chunlai, a prosecutor from the Juvenile Procuratorial Department of the Jiangyin City Court in Jiangsu Province, introduced that China's requirements for the responsibilities of child guardians are stipulated in the General Principles of Civil Law, the Criminal Law, the Law on the Protection of Minors, the Anti-Domestic Violence Law, the Public Security Administration Punishments Law, and relevant judicial interpretations.
 
"For infringements occurring in guardianship, the perpetrator must bear corresponding criminal, administrative, and civil liabilities," Chen Chunlai said. "However, under current circumstances, the penalties for dereliction of guardianship duties are relatively crude. Only the General Principles of Civil Law stipulates that guardians who fail to fulfill their duties shall bear legal responsibility, yet it does not specify what specific legal responsibilities these are."
 
In summary, it can be found that the accountability of guardians primarily focuses on the civil level, with specific measures mostly involving warnings, reprimands, and educational criticism. Criminal liability is rarely pursued against the guardians involved, and cases truly resulting in death by negligence are extremely rare.
 
Issues with criminalization:

The purpose of criminal punishment is primarily concentrated on preventing and punishing crimes.

(1) From the perspective of crime prevention, even if such situations are not punished, they are unlikely to provoke widespread imitation. Parents' love for their children does not differ based on whether the act is criminalized, and criminal punishment cannot achieve the general preventive function. On the other hand, for ordinary guardians, the inner guilt and pain caused by their own negligence or oversight leading to a child's accidental death far exceed the negative evaluation and punishment of criminal law. Punishing perpetrators who lack the necessity for prevention cannot achieve the special preventive purpose of legislation.
 
(2) Another practical issue lies in the fact that both parents are legal guardians, raising questions about who should be punished. This is especially problematic for divorced families, adoptive families, etc., where practical implementation is even more lacking. Issues such as the determination of negligence, selection of responsible parties, and allocation of criminal penalties all pose certain difficulties under the current judicial environment.
 
Author's viewpoint:

The discussion of this issue actually reflects the conflict between traditional concepts and modern human rights. The general public believes that parents suffer the most when their child is harmed, and holding them accountable goes against humanitarian principles. The author argues that the line between emotion and law should not be blurred. Chinese law does not treat guardianship status as a ground for exemption from liability. Minors, as independent individuals, enjoy basic natural rights, and guardians who fail in their duties resulting in injury or death of minors should be held legally responsible.

At the same time, overemphasizing the principle of restraint in criminal law amounts to indulgence of wrongdoing. It is inappropriate to view every negligent guardian through the lens of simple kindness. Therefore, entering the judicial process is the most fair and reasonable choice at present. This helps to realize the punitive and educational guiding functions of conviction and sentencing, and by punishing the negligence of some guardians, it forces parents to earnestly fulfill their guardianship duties.
 
Moreover, China's Criminal Law includes specific offenses in the domestic sphere, such as the crime of violent interference with marriage freedom, the crime of abuse, and the crime of abandonment. Thus, including parental negligence leading to child injury or death within the criminal scope is not abrupt.