MENTAL HEALTH ACT 2016 - SECT 110 When reference may be made

MENTAL HEALTH ACT 2016 - SECT 110

110 When reference may be made

(1) This section applies if—

(a) a person is charged with a serious offence, other than an offence against a law of the Commonwealth; and

(b) a relevant person has reasonable cause to believe the person mentioned in paragraph (a) —

(i) was of unsound mind when the offence was allegedly committed; or

(ii) is unfit for trial.

(2) This section also applies if—

(a) a person is charged with the offence of murder; and

(b) a relevant person has reasonable cause to believe the person mentioned in paragraph (a) was of diminished responsibility when the offence was allegedly committed.

(3) The relevant person may, in the way set out in section 111 , refer the matter of the person’s mental state in relation to the serious offence to the Mental Health Court.

(4) A reference of a person’s mental state in relation to a serious offence may include a reference of the person’s mental state in relation to an associated offence.

(5) In this section—


"relevant person" , in relation to a person alleged to have committed an offence, means any of the following—

(a) the person;

(b) the person’s lawyer;

(c) the director of public prosecutions.

Note—

A reference in relation to a person may also be made by the following—

• the chief psychiatrist or director of forensic disability under section 101

• a Magistrates Court under section 175

• the Supreme Court or District Court under section 183 .