CORONERS AND JUSTICE BILL 2009 PART 2 CHAPTER 1

Suicide 59 Encouraging or assisting suicide (England and Wales) (1) The Suicide Act 1961 (c. 60) is amended as follows. (2) In section 2 (criminal liability for complicity in anothers suicide), for subsection (1) substitute (1) A person (D) commits an offence if (a) D does an act capable of encouraging or assisting the suicide or attempted suicide of another person, and (b) Ds act was intended to encourage or assist suicide or an attempt at suicide. (1A) The person referred to in subsection (1)(a) need not be a specific person (or class of persons) known to, or identified by, D. (1B) D may commit an offence under this section whether or not a suicide, or an attempt at suicide, occurs. (1C) An offence under this section is triable on indictment and a person convicted of such an offence is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 14 years. (3) In subsection (2) of that section, for it to the end substitute of a person it is proved that the deceased person committed suicide, and the accused committed an offence under subsection (1) in relation to that suicide, the jury may find the accused guilty of the offence under subsection (1). (4) After that section insert 2A Acts capable of encouraging or assisting (1) If D arranges for a person (D2) to do an act that is capable of encouraging or assisting the suicide or attempted suicide of another person and D2 does that act, D is also to be treated for the purposes of this Act as having done it. (2) Where the facts are such that an act is not capable of encouraging or assisting suicide or attempted suicide, for the purposes of this Act it is to be treated as so capable if the act would have been so capable had the facts been as D believed them to be at the time of the act or had subsequent events happened in the manner D believed they would happen (or both).
Coroners and Justice Act 2009 (c. 25) Part 2 Criminal offences Chapter 1 Murder, infanticide and suicide

36 (3) A reference in this Act to a person (P) doing an act that is capable of encouraging the suicide or attempted suicide of another person includes a reference to P doing so by threatening another person or otherwise putting pressure on another person to commit or attempt suicide. 2B Course of conduct A reference in this Act to an act includes a reference to a course of conduct, and a reference to doing an act is to be read accordingly.

SCHEDULE 22 Suicide
8 The reference to aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring suicide in the following enactments is to be read as including a reference to an offence under section 2(1) of the Suicide Act 1961 (encouraging or assisting suicide)

in connection with the death of a person (a) section 70(4) of the Army Act 1955 (3 & 4 Eliz. 2 c. 18); (b) section 70(4) of the Air Force Act 1955 (3 & 4 Eliz. 2 c. 19); (c) section 48(2) of the Naval Discipline Act 1957 (c. 53). 9 Until such time as the following provisions of the Coroners Act 1988 (c. 13) are repealed by this Act, they have effect with the following amendments (a) in section 16(1)(a)(iii) for consisting of aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring the suicide of the deceased substitute (encouraging or assisting suicide) in connection with the death of the deceased, (b) in section 17(1)(c) for consisting of aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring the suicide of another substitute (encouraging or assisting suicide) in connection with a death, and (c) in section 17(2)(c) for consisting of aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring the suicide of another substitute (encouraging or assisting suicide) in connection with a death. 10 (1) In this paragraph old offence means an offence under section 2(1) of the Suicide Act 1961 as that section had effect before the section 59 commencement date, or an attempt to commit such an offence; new offence means an offence under section 2(1) of that Act as that Act is amended by section 59 of this Act. (2) Sub-paragraph (3) applies where (a) a person (the defendant) is charged in respect of the same conduct with both an old offence and a new offence, (b) the only thing preventing the defendant from being found guilty of the new offence is the fact that it has not been proved beyond reasonable doubt that the offence was committed wholly after the section 59 commencement date, and (c) the only thing preventing the defendant from being found guilty of the old offence is the fact that it has not been proved beyond reasonable doubt that the offence was committed wholly or partly before the section 59 commencement date.
Coroners and Justice Act 2009 (c. 25) Schedule 22 Transitional, transitory and saving provisions Part 2 Criminal offences

247 (3) For the purpose of determining the guilt of the defendant it is to be conclusively presumed that the offence was committed wholly or partly before the section 59 commencement date. (4) For this purpose the section 59 commencement date means the day appointed under section 182 for the coming into force of section 59. 11 (1) In this paragraph old offence means an offence under section 13(1) of the Criminal Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 1966 (c. 20) as that section had effect before the section 60 commencement date, or an attempt to commit such an offence; new offence means an offence under section 13(1) of that Act as that Act is amended by section 60 of this Act. (2) Sub-paragraph (3) applies where (a) a person (the defendant) is charged in respect of the same conduct with both an old offence and a new offence, (b) the only thing preventing the defendant from being found guilty of the new offence is the fact that it has not been proved beyond reasonable doubt that the offence was committed wholly after the section 60 commencement date, and

(c) the only thing preventing the defendant from being found guilty of the old offence is the fact that it has not been proved beyond reasonable doubt that the offence was committed wholly or partly before the section 60 commencement date. (3) For the purpose of determining the guilt of the defendant it is to be conclusively presumed that the offence was committed wholly or partly before the section 60 commencement date. (4) For this purpose the section 60 commencement date means the day appointed under section 182 for the coming into force of section 60.

SCHEDULE 22
ENCOURAGING OR ASSISTING SUICIDE: PROVIDERS OF INFORMATION SOCIETY SERVICES Domestic service providers: extension of liability 1 (1) This paragraph applies where a service provider is established in England and Wales (an E&W service provider). (2) Section 2 of the Suicide Act 1961 (c. 60) (criminal liability for complicity in anothers suicide) applies to an E&W service provider who (a) does an act, in an EEA state other than the United Kingdom, which is capable of encouraging or assisting the suicide or attempted suicide of another person and which is intended to encourage or assist suicide or an attempt at suicide, and (b) does that act in the course of providing information society services, as well as to persons (of any description) who do such acts in England and Wales. (3) In the case of an offence under that section, as it applies to an E&W service provider by virtue of sub-paragraph (2) (a) proceedings for the offence may be taken at any place in England and Wales, and (b) the offence may for all incidental purposes be treated as having been committed at any such place. (4) Nothing in this paragraph is to be read as affecting the operation of any of paragraphs 4 to 6. 2 (1) This paragraph applies where a service provider is established in Northern Ireland (a NI service provider).
Coroners and Justice Act 2009 (c. 25) Schedule 12 Encouraging or assisting suicide: providers of information society services

161 (2) Section 13 of the Criminal Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 1966 (c. 20) (criminal liability for complicity in anothers suicide) applies to a NI service provider who (a) does an act, in an EEA state other than the United Kingdom, which is capable of encouraging or assisting the suicide or attempted suicide of another person and which is intended to encourage or assist suicide or an attempt at suicide, and (b) does that act in the course of providing information society services, as well as to persons (of any description) who do such acts in Northern Ireland. (3) In the case of an offence under that section, as it applies to a NI service provider by virtue of sub-paragraph (2) (a) proceedings for the offence may be taken at any place in Northern Ireland, and (b) the offence may for all incidental purposes be treated as having been committed at any such place.

(4) Nothing in this paragraph is to be read as affecting the operation of any of paragraphs 4 to 6. Non-UK service providers: restriction on institution of proceedings 3 (1) This paragraph applies where a service provider is established in an EEA state other than the United Kingdom (a non-UK service provider). (2) Proceedings for a relevant offence may not be instituted against a non-UK service provider in respect of anything done in the course of the provision of information society services unless the derogation condition is satisfied. (3) Relevant offence means an offence under (a) section 2 of the Suicide Act 1961 (c. 60) (criminal liability for complicity in anothers suicide), or (b) section 13 of the Criminal Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 1966 (c. 20) (criminal liability for complicity in anothers suicide). (4) The derogation condition is satisfied where the institution of proceedings (a) is necessary for the purposes of the public interest objective, (b) relates to an information society service that prejudices that objective or presents a serious and grave risk of prejudice to that objective, and (c) is proportionate to that objective. (5) The public interest objective means the pursuit of public policy. Exceptions for mere conduits 4 (1) A service provider is not capable of being guilty of a relevant offence in respect of anything done in the course of providing so much of an information society service as consists in (a) the provision of access to a communication network, or (b) the transmission in a communication network of information provided by a recipient of the service, if the condition in sub-paragraph (2) is satisfied. (2) The condition is that the service provider does not
Coroners and Justice Act 2009 (c. 25) Schedule 12 Encouraging or assisting suicide: providers of information society services

162 (a) initiate the transmission, (b) select the recipient of the transmission, or (c) select or modify the information contained in the transmission. (3) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (1) (a) the provision of access to a communication network, and (b) the transmission of information in a communication network, includes the automatic, intermediate and transient storage of the information transmitted so far as the storage is solely for the purpose of carrying out the transmission in the network. (4) Sub-paragraph (3) does not apply if the information is stored for longer than is reasonably necessary for the transmission. Exception for caching 5 (1) This paragraph applies where an information society service consists in the transmission in a communication network of information provided by a recipient of the service. (2) The service provider is not capable of being guilty of a relevant offence in respect of the automatic, intermediate and temporary storage of information so provided, if (a) the storage of the information is solely for the purpose of making more efficient the onward transmission of the information to other recipients of the service at their request, and (b) the condition in sub-paragraph (3) is satisfied. (3) The condition is that the service provider (a) does not modify the information,

(b) complies with any conditions attached to having access to the information, and (c) (where sub-paragraph (4) applies) expeditiously removes the information or disables access to it. (4) This sub-paragraph applies if the service provider obtains actual knowledge that (a) the information at the initial source of the transmission has been removed from the network, (b) access to it has been disabled, or (c) a court or administrative authority has ordered the removal from the network of, or the disablement of access to, the information. Exception for hosting 6 (1) A service provider is not capable of being guilty of a relevant offence in respect of anything done in the course of providing so much of an information society service as consists in the storage of information provided by a recipient of the service if (a) the service provider had no actual knowledge when the information was provided that the information was capable of, and provided with the intention of, encouraging or assisting suicide or an attempt at suicide, or
Coroners and Justice Act 2009 (c. 25) Schedule 12 Encouraging or assisting suicide: providers of information society services

163 (b) on obtaining such knowledge, the service provider expeditiously removed the information or disabled access to the information. (2) Sub-paragraph (1) does not apply if the recipient of the service is acting under the authority or control of the service provider. Interpretation 7 (1) This paragraph applies for the purposes of this Schedule. (2) Relevant offence has the same meaning as in paragraph 3. (3) Information society services (a) has the meaning given in Article 2(a) of the E-Commerce Directive (which refers to Article 1(2) of Directive 98/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 1998 laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field of technical standards and regulations), and (b) is summarised in recital 17 of the E-Commerce Directive as covering any service normally provided for remuneration, at a distance, by means of electronic equipment for the processing (including digital compression) and storage of data, and at the individual request of a recipient of a service; and the E-Commerce Directive means Directive 2000/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2000 on certain legal aspects of information society services, in particular electronic commerce, in the Internal Market (Directive on electronic commerce). (4) Recipient, in relation to a service, means any person who, for professional ends or otherwise, uses an information society service, in particular for the purposes of seeking information or making it accessible. (5) Service provider means a person providing an information society service. (6) For the purpose of construing references in this Schedule to a service provider who is established in a part of the United Kingdom or in some other EEA state (a) a service provider is established in a particular part of the United Kingdom, or in a particular EEA state, if the service provider (i) effectively pursues an economic activity using a fixed

establishment in that part of the United Kingdom, or that EEA state, for an indefinite period, and (ii) is a national of an EEA state or a company or firm mentioned in Article 48 of the Treaty establishing the European Community; (b) the presence or use in a particular place of equipment or other technical means of providing an information society service does not, of itself, constitute the establishment of a service provider; (c) where it cannot be determined from which of a number of establishments a given information society service is provided, that service is to be regarded as provided from the establishment at the centre of the service providers activities relating to that service.