Part 2: Prevention, investigation and prosecution of crime Chapter 4: Other provisions Section 50: Criminal damage to memorials: mode of trial
This section amends section 22 and paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 to the 1980 Act to ensure that where criminal damage is caused to a memorial, courts can sentence appropriately and reflect the true level of harm and culpability and thereby address the concern around the current limits on mode of trial and sentencing.
	Subsection (1) amends paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 to the 1980 Act with the effect that an offence under section 1 of the Criminal Damage Act 1971 which is committed by destroying or damaging a memorial ("a memorial offence") is not a scheduled offence for the purposes of sections 22 and 33 of the 1980 Act.
	Subsection (2) inserts the new subsections (11A), (11B), (11C) and (11D) into section 22 of the 1980 Act which define a "memorial" to include buildings, other structures, moveable objects, gardens or other things planted or grown on land. This Section also set out that memorials should have a commemorative purpose such as to commemorate individual(s), animal(s) or event(s).
	Subsection (3) provides that the amendments do not apply in relation to offences committed before it comes into force.
	Destruction or damage to memorials continues to include acts of desecration as was the position in law prior to the amendments made to section 22 and paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 to the 1980 Act. Whether or not a memorial has in fact been destroyed or damaged will, if necessary, remain a matter for determination by the court.