Chapter 21

OFFENCES ENDANGERING LIFE OR HEALTH.

214. Disabling in order to commit felony or misdemeanour.

Any person who, by any means calculated to choke, suffocate or strangle, and with intent to commit or to facilitate the commission of a felony or misdemeanour, or to facilitate the flight of an offender after the commission or attempted commission of a felony or misdemeanour, renders or attempts to render any person incapable of resistance commits a felony and is liable to imprisonment for life.

215. Stupefying in order to commit felony or misdemeanour.

Any person who, with intent to commit or to facilitate the commission of a felony or misdemeanour, or to facilitate the flight of an offender after the commission or attempted commission of a felony or misdemeanour, administers or attempts to administer any stupefying or overpowering drug or thing to any person commits a felony and is liable to imprisonment for life.

216. Acts intended to cause grievous harm or prevent arrest.

Any person who, with intent to maim, disfigure or disable any person, or to do some grievous harm to any person or to resist or prevent the lawful arrest or detention of any person— (a) unlawfully wounds or does any grievous harm to any person by any means; (b) unlawfully attempts in any manner to strike any person with any kind of projectile or with a spear, sword, knife or other dangerous or offensive weapon; (c) unlawfully causes any explosive substance to explode; (d) sends or delivers any explosive substance or other dangerous or noxious thing to any person; (e) causes any such substance or thing to be taken or received by any person; (f) puts any corrosive fluid or any destructive or explosive substance in any place; or (g) unlawfully casts or throws any such fluid or substance at or upon any person, or otherwise applies any such fluid or substance to the person of any person, commits a felony and is liable to imprisonment for life.

217. Preventing escape from wreck.

Any person who unlawfully— (a) prevents or obstructs any person who is on board of or is escaping from a vessel which is in distress or wrecked, in his or her endeavours to save his or her life; or

(b) obstructs any person in his or her endeavours to save the life of any person so situated, commits a felony and is liable to imprisonment for life.

218. Intentionally endangering safety of persons travelling by railway.

Any person who, with intent to injure or to endanger the safety of any person, whether a particular person or not, travelling by any railway— (a) places anything on the railway;

(b) deals with the railway or with anything upon or near the railway in such a manner as to affect or endanger the free and safe use of the railway or the safety of any such person;

(c) shoots or throws anything at, into or upon or causes anything to come into contact with any person or thing on the railway;

(d) shows any light or signal, or in any way deals with any existing light or signal, upon or near the railway; or

(e) by any omission to do any act which it is his or her duty to do causes the safety of any such person to be endangered, commits a felony and is liable to imprisonment for life.

219. Doing grievous harm.

Any person who unlawfully does grievous harm to another commits a felony and is liable to imprisonment for seven years.

220. Attempting to injure by explosive substances.

Any person who, unlawfully and with intent to do any harm to another, puts any explosive substance in any place commits a felony and is liable to imprisonment for fourteen years.

221. Maliciously administering poison with intent to harm.

Any person who, unlawfully and with intent to injure or annoy another, causes any poison or noxious thing to be administered to or taken by any person and thereby endangers his or her life or does him or her some grievous harm commits a felony and is liable to imprisonment for fourteen years.

222. Wounding and similar acts.

Any person who— (a) unlawfully wounds another; or (b) unlawfully, and with intent to injure or annoy any person, causes any poison or other noxious thing to be administered to or taken by any person, commits a misdemeanour and is liable to imprisonment for three years.

223. Failure to supply necessaries.

Any person who, being charged with the duty of providing for another the necessaries of life, without lawful excuse fails to do so, whereby the life of that other person is or is likely to be endangered, or his or her health is or is likely to be permanently injured, commits a misdemeanour and is liable to imprisonment for three years.

224. Surgical operation.

A person is not criminally responsible for performing in good faith and with reasonable care and skill a surgical operation upon any person for his or her benefit, or upon an unborn child for the preservation of the mother’s life, if the performance of the operation is reasonable, having regard to the patient’s state at the time, and to all the circumstances of the case.

225. Excess of force.

Any person authorised by law or by the consent of the person injured by him or her to use force is criminally responsible for any excess, according to the nature and quality of the act which constitutes the excess.

226. Consent.

Notwithstanding section 225, consent by a person to the causing of his or her own death or his or her own maim does not affect the criminal responsibility of any person by whom such death or maim is caused