Lawmakers yesterday amended the Criminal Code to include a provision stipulating a prison term of at least 10 years — and a maximum of life imprisonment — for child abuse that results in death.
People who cause grievous bodily harm to minors face a prison term of five to 12 years, the amendment says.
Those who abuse minors to make a profit and cause their death face a prison term of 12 years to life, while those who inflict grievous bodily harm to minors in the pursuit of profit would receive a prison term of at least 10 years, it says.
Photo: CNA
The amended Criminal Code now also includes a definition of abuse: acts of violence, coercion or other inhumane treatment.
Another amendment canceled the statute of limitations for cases involving death.
The Criminal Code previously stipulated a 30-year statute of limitations for prosecuting people charged with crimes that are punishable by the death penalty, life imprisonment or a prison term of at least 10 years.
While it retains the 30-year time frame, the Criminal Code now stipulates that “crimes that result in deaths are exempted” from the statute of limitations.
The Judicial Yuan, which sponsored the amendment, said that it made the proposal after referring to rules in the German Criminal Code and Japan’s Code of Criminal Procedure, both of which allow the plaintiff in a murder case to indefinitely request legal remedy.
The amendments also significantly increased penalties for people who harm others’ health or bodies.
The Criminal Code previously stipulated that those who harm the health or bodies of others would face a fine of NT$1,000 or a maximum prison term of three years. The penalties have been raised to a fine of NT$500,000 or a maximum prison term of five years.
The penalties for manslaughter were also raised to up to five years in prison or a maximum fine of NT$500,000, while the penalty for inadvertently harming others is now a maximum prison term of one year or a maximum fine of NT$100,000.
People who inadvertently cause grievous bodily harm to others face a prison term of three years or a maximum fine of NT$300,000, the amendments stipulate.
The punishment for people involved in a melee that results in death was also increased from three years to five.
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