PART 6Miscellaneous and general
Miscellaneous
I179Throwing articles into prisons
After section 40CA of the Prison Act 1952 (inserted by section 78 above) insert—
40CBThrowing articles into prison
1
A person who, without authorisation, throws any article or substance into a prison is guilty of an offence.
2
For the purposes of subsection (1)—
a
the reference to an article or substance does not include a reference to a List A article, a List B article or a List C article (as defined by section 40A);
b
the reference to “throwing” an article or substance into a prison includes a reference to doing anything from outside the prison that results in the article or substance being projected or conveyed over or through a boundary of the prison so as to land inside the prison.
3
In proceedings for an offence under this section it is a defence for the accused to show that—
a
he reasonably believed that he had authorisation to do the act in respect of which the proceedings are brought, or
b
in all the circumstances there was an overriding public interest which justified the doing of that act.
4
A person guilty of an offence under subsection (1) is liable—
a
on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to a fine (or both);
b
on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to a fine (or both).
5
In this section “authorisation” means authorisation given for the purposes of this section; and subsections (1) to (3) of section 40E apply in relation to authorisations so given as they apply to authorisations given for the purposes of section 40D.