Constitutional mandates require that each element be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
They mean needing the necessaries of life, and the necessaries of life cover not only primitive physical needs, but also those things which are in fact necessary to the particular person having the right to demand support and maintenance. Where the facts warrant, a child is deemed to be in necessitous circumstances if the child would have been in that condition had he or she not been provided for by someone else. The common-law obligation to support a child continues despite divorce and any child support orders issued by the divorce court. Opinion filed December 1, 2000. Lisa Bailey, of Topeka, for appellant.