Infant Life (Preservation) (CAP. 216 1

CHAPTER 216

T H E INFANT LIFE (PRESERVATION) ACT

Arrangement of Sections
Section

1. Short title.
2. Punishment for child destruction.
3. Conviction for child destruction on trial for murder

of child, etc.
3.(2) Conviction for offence under S.56 of Cap. 300 on

trial for child destruction.
3.(3) S.58 of Cap. 300 to apply in case of acquittal on trial

of child destruction.

INFANT LIFE (PRESERVATION)

(8th December, 1937 .)

1. This Act may be cited as the Infant Life short title-
(Preservation) Act.

2. (1) Subject as hereinafter in this subsection Punishment for
child destruction.

provided, any person who, with intent to destroy the life
of a child capable of being born alive, by any wilful act causes
a child to die before it has an existence independent of its
mother, shall be guilty of felony, to wit, of child destruction,
and shall be liable on conviction thereof on indictment to
imprisonment for life with or without hard labour:

Provided that no person shall be found guilty of an
offence under this section unless it is proved that the act which

LAWS OF ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA

2 CAP. 216) Infant Life (Preservation)

caused the death of the child was not done in good faith for
the purpose only of preserving the life of the mother.

(2) For the purposes of this Act, evidence that a woman
had at any material time been pregnant for a period of
twenty-eight weeks or more shall be prim4 facie proof that
she was at that time pregnant of a child capable of being
born alive.

Conviction for
child destruction

3. (1) Where upon the trial of any person for the
on trial for murder or manslaughter of any child or for infanticide, or

for an offence under section 56 of the Offences against the
etc.
Cap. 300. Person Act (which relates to administering drugs or using

instruments to procure abortion), the jury are of opinion
that the person charged is not guilty of murder, manslaughter
or infanticide, or an offence under the said section 56 as
the case may be, but that he is shown by the evidence to
be guilty of the felony of child destruction, the jury may
find him guilty of that felony, and thereupon the person
convicted shall be liable to be punished as if he had been
convicted upon an indictment for child destruction.

Conviction for (2) Where upon the trial of any person for the felony
offence under
s.56 of cap. 300 of child destruction the jury are of opinion that the person

trial for child charged is not guilty of that felony, but that he is shown
destruction.

by the evidence to be guilty of an offence under the said
section 56 of the Offences against the Person Act, the jury
may find him guilty of that offence and thereupon the person
convicted shall be liable to be punished as if he had been
convicted upon an indictment under that section.

S.58 of Cap. 300 (3) Section 58 of the Offences against the Person Act
to apply in case
of on (which provides that a person acquitted of the murder of
trial of child any child, or of infanticide, may, if shown by the evidence
destruction. to be guilty of concealing the birth, be convicted and punished

accordingly), shall apply in the case of the acquittal of a
person on an indictment for child destruction as it applies
to the acquittal of a person on an indictment for murder
or infanticide.