Hall v. State

In Hall v. State, 268 Ga. 89 (485 S.E.2d 755) (1997), the defendant left her three children, ages five, three and one, with their older brother who was not quite twelve years old. The three-year-old child suffered a severe head injury while in the older brother's care, and the mother was charged with reckless conduct. The court held that the vague and indefinite language in the statute as to what risks are "substantial" and "unjustifiable" permitted law enforcement officials to selectively and arbitrarily prosecute the defendant. The opinion stated that the defendant's actions "were deemed to be unjust and unreasonable only when viewed in retrospect." Id. at 94. Compare State v. Boyer, 270 Ga. 701 (512 S.E.2d 605) (1999) (Reckless Conduct Statute not subject to vagueness challenge where day care center employee roughly handled 12-month-old child).