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107.   Duty to supply necessaries of health and life

Revised Laws of Saint Lucia (2022)

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107.   Duty to supply necessaries of health and life

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    (1)   A person is under a legal duty—

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      (a)     as a parent, foster parent, guardian or head of a family, to provide necessaries of life for a child under the age of 16 years;

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      (b)     as a married person, to provide necessaries of life to his or her spouse; and

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      (c)     to provide necessaries of life to a person under his or her charge, if that person—

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        (i)     is unable, by reason of detention, age, illness, mental disorder or other cause, to withdraw himself or herself from that charge, and

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        (ii) is unable to provide himself or herself with necessaries of life.

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    (2)   Every one commits an offence who, being under a legal duty within the meaning of subsection (1), fails without lawful excuse, the proof of which lies upon him or her, to perform that duty, if—

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      (a)     with respect to a duty imposed by paragraph (1)(a) or (b)—

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        (i)     the person to whom the duty is owed is in destitute or necessitous circumstances, or

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        (ii)     the failure to perform the duty endangers the life of the person to whom the duty is owed, or causes or is likely to cause the health of that person to be endangered permanently; or

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      (b)     with respect to a duty imposed by paragraph (1)(c), the failure to perform the duty endangers the life of the person to whom the duty is owed or causes or is likely to cause the health of that person to be injured permanently.

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    (3)   A person who commits an offence under subsection (2) commits an indictable offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years.

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    (4)   For the purpose of proceedings under this section—

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      (a)     evidence that a person has cohabited with a person of the opposite sex or has in any way recognized that person as being his or her spouse is, in the absence of any evidence to the contrary, proof that they are lawfully married;

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      (b)     evidence that a person has in any way recognized a child as being his or her child is in the absence of any evidence to the contrary, proof that the child is his or her child;

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      (c)     evidence that a person has left his or her spouse and has failed, for a period of one month subsequent to the time of his or her so leaving, to make provision for the maintenance of his or her spouse or for the maintenance of any child of his or hers under the age of 16 years is, in the absence of any evidence to the contrary, proof that he or she has failed without lawful excuse to provide for necessaries of life for them; and

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      (d)     the fact that a spouse or child is receiving or has received necessaries of life from another person who is not under a legal duty to provide for them is not a defence.

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    (5)   A woman, who gives birth to a child, is under a duty to do all that is necessary and reasonable to protect and preserve the newly born child from harm by exposure, exhaustion, or otherwise.

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    (6)   Without prejudice to subsection (5) the woman is under a duty to support and take reasonable care of the child until it can safely be weaned.

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    (7)   A person who unlawfully imprisons another person is under a duty to supply him or her with the necessaries of health and life.

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    (8)   A person who agrees or undertakes to supply any of the necessaries of health and life to another person, either as his or her apprentice, or otherwise, is under a duty to supply them accordingly.

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    (9)   If a person who is under a duty to supply the necessaries of health and life in accordance with this section does not have the means to do so and there is any other person or public authority bound to provide him or her with such means, he or she is under a duty to take all reasonable steps to obtain such means from that person or public authority.

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    (10)   If a person, being under a duty to supply any of the necessaries of health and life to another person, lawfully charges his wife or her husband, or any other person with the supply of such necessaries, and furnishes the means for that purpose, the wife or husband, or other person so charged is under a duty to supply such necessaries accordingly.

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    (11)   “Necessaries of health and life” include proper food, clothing, shelter, warmth, medical or surgical treatment and any other matters which are reasonably necessary for the preservation of the health and life of a person.

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