97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012
SB0117

 

Introduced 1/27/2011, by Sen. Martin A. Sandoval

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
720 ILCS 5/12-21  from Ch. 38, par. 12-21

    Amends the Criminal Code of 1961. Makes a technical change in the Section concerning the offense of criminal abuse or neglect of an elderly person or person with a disability.


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A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning criminal law.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Criminal Code of 1961 is amended by changing
5Section 12-21 as follows:
 
6    (720 ILCS 5/12-21)  (from Ch. 38, par. 12-21)
7    Sec. 12-21. Criminal abuse or neglect of an elderly person
8or person with a disability.
9    (a) A person commits the the offense of criminal abuse or
10neglect of an elderly person or person with a disability when
11he or she is a caregiver and he or she knowingly:
12        (1) performs acts that cause the elderly person or
13    person with a disability's life to be endangered, health to
14    be injured, or pre-existing physical or mental condition to
15    deteriorate; or
16        (2) fails to perform acts that he or she knows or
17    reasonably should know are necessary to maintain or
18    preserve the life or health of the elderly person or person
19    with a disability and such failure causes the elderly
20    person or person with a disability's life to be endangered,
21    health to be injured or pre-existing physical or mental
22    condition to deteriorate; or
23        (3) abandons the elderly person or person with a

 

 

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1    disability; or
2        (4) physically abuses, harasses, intimidates, or
3    interferes with the personal liberty of the elderly person
4    or person with a disability or exposes the elderly person
5    or person with a disability to willful deprivation.
6    Criminal abuse or neglect of an elderly person or person
7with a disability is a Class 3 felony. Criminal neglect of an
8elderly person or person with a disability is a Class 2 felony
9if the criminal neglect results in the death of the person
10neglected for which the defendant, if sentenced to a term of
11imprisonment, shall be sentenced to a term of not less than 3
12years and not more than 14 years.
13    (b) For purposes of this Section:
14        (1) "Elderly person" means a person 60 years of age or
15    older who is incapable of adequately providing for his own
16    health and personal care.
17        (2) "Person with a disability" means a person who
18    suffers from a permanent physical or mental impairment,
19    resulting from disease, injury, functional disorder or
20    congenital condition which renders such person incapable
21    of adequately providing for his own health and personal
22    care.
23        (3) "Caregiver" means a person who has a duty to
24    provide for an elderly person or person with a disability's
25    health and personal care, at such person's place of
26    residence, including but not limited to, food and

 

 

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1    nutrition, shelter, hygiene, prescribed medication and
2    medical care and treatment.
3        "Caregiver" shall include:
4            (A) a parent, spouse, adult child or other relative
5        by blood or marriage who resides with or resides in the
6        same building with or regularly visits the elderly
7        person or person with a disability, knows or reasonably
8        should know of such person's physical or mental
9        impairment and knows or reasonably should know that
10        such person is unable to adequately provide for his own
11        health and personal care;
12            (B) a person who is employed by the elderly person
13        or person with a disability or by another to reside
14        with or regularly visit the elderly person or person
15        with a disability and provide for such person's health
16        and personal care;
17            (C) a person who has agreed for consideration to
18        reside with or regularly visit the elderly person or
19        person with a disability and provide for such person's
20        health and personal care; and
21            (D) a person who has been appointed by a private or
22        public agency or by a court of competent jurisdiction
23        to provide for the elderly person or person with a
24        disability's health and personal care.
25        "Caregiver" shall not include a long-term care
26    facility licensed or certified under the Nursing Home Care

 

 

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1    Act or a facility licensed or certified under the MR/DD
2    Community Care Act, or any administrative, medical or other
3    personnel of such a facility, or a health care provider who
4    is licensed under the Medical Practice Act of 1987 and
5    renders care in the ordinary course of his profession.
6        (4) "Abandon" means to desert or knowingly forsake an
7    elderly person or person with a disability under
8    circumstances in which a reasonable person would continue
9    to provide care and custody.
10        (5) "Willful deprivation" has the meaning ascribed to
11    it in paragraph (15) of Section 103 of the Illinois
12    Domestic Violence Act of 1986.
13    (c) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to limit the
14remedies available to the victim under the Illinois Domestic
15Violence Act.
16    (d) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to impose
17criminal liability on a person who has made a good faith effort
18to provide for the health and personal care of an elderly
19person or person with a disability, but through no fault of his
20own has been unable to provide such care.
21    (e) Nothing in this Section shall be construed as
22prohibiting a person from providing treatment by spiritual
23means through prayer alone and care consistent therewith in
24lieu of medical care and treatment in accordance with the
25tenets and practices of any church or religious denomination of
26which the elderly person or person with a disability is a

 

 

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1member.
2    (f) It is not a defense to criminal abuse or neglect of an
3elderly person or person with a disability that the accused
4reasonably believed that the victim was not an elderly person
5or person with a disability.
6(Source: P.A. 96-339, eff. 7-1-10.)