Commentary Part 1 – Amendments to Mental Health Act 1983 Chapter 8 - Miscellaneous Section 42: Offence of ill-treatment: increase in maximum penalty on conviction on indictment
170.Section 42 increases the maximum penalty for imprisonment on conviction on indictment for the offence of ill treatment of patients in section 127 in the 1983 Act. The maximum penalty on imprisonment on summary conviction for the same offence will increase from six months to one year on the commencement of sections 154 and 282 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003. The maximum penalties on summary conviction for the offences at sections 126 (forgery, false statements etc) and 128 (assisting patients to absent themselves without leave etc) of the 1983 Act will also increase on the commencement of those provisions of the 2003 Act.