KIDS THESE DAYS:

Depending on your point of view, the woman is thoughtless and evil, or she is the victim of a program gone wild.

The woman in this case is Treffly Coyne, of Tinley Park, a suburb of Chicago. Coyne was arrested Dec. 8 and charged with child endangerment after she left her 2-year-old sleeping daughter, Phoebe, locked in her car.

No one would argue with punishing a parent for locking a small child in a car, but in this case there are some extenuating circumstances.

According to reports, Coyne got out of her car with her two other daughters so they could walk 10 yards to a Salvation Army kettle to deposit about $8 in donations. The car was locked and alarmed and at no time was it out of Coyne’s sight. Coyne was out of the car for only a few minutes when she was confronted by a community police officer who saw Phoebe alone in the car.

This incident was reported in the same week that a video revealed a mother disciplining her child by spraying her with the water from a wand at a self-service car wash. I read that the spray was not powerful enough to hurt the child, but then there are the humiliation and psychological factors.

Strictly enforced, every parent is guilty at one time or another of child endangerment. Strictly enforced most parents are guilty of child endangerment at least dozens of times before their child turns 18.

But what is “strictly enforced?” Exactly what are the rules for parents as to what they can and cannot do with — or without — their children.

To find the answer, I spoke to Costa Mesa Lt. Clay Epperson.

Epperson confirmed what most parents already know; good judgment is any parent’s guide to what is safe and what is not. But after watching the video of the mom in the car wash, “good judgment” goes up for grabs.

California Penal Code 273A describes offenses to children that put children in harm’s way. Parents or guardians can get busted for:

• Willfully causing or allowing a child to suffer unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering;

• Willfully allowing a child in one’s custody to have his/her person or health injured;

• Willfully allowing a child in one’s custody to have his/her health or safety endangered.

Parents can also get busted under 273A for allowing or failing to stop another parent from harming a child.

The wiggle room in 273A is the term “willful.” If a parent knows what he or she is doing will cause harm to a child, then the law is broken. But willful is not the only deciding factor. Coyne is an example of a mother who never thought she was harming her child, but was arrested anyway. In the strict interpretation of the law, however, Coyne could be considered guilty by some. Apparently, the Cook County prosecutor disagreed because the charges were dropped last week.

Coyne’s arrest answered a question about which many parents wonder from time to time — that is, whether the officer in the field has some leeway in deciding what is or is not child endangerment.

“Absolutely,” Epperson said.

So, parents and guardians, here’s your wake-up call: Any time you leave your child alone in your car for any length of time, you are in violation of the child endangerment guidelines in California penal code section 273A.

I also believe there should be some child endangerment law against naming a child “Phoebe,” but that’s another story.

STEVE SMITH is a Costa Mesa resident and a freelance writer. Send story ideas to dailypilot@latimes.com.