Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-02-24.

To ask the Attorney General, what account the CPS takes of mental health conditions when deciding whether to prosecute people under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997.

Robert Buckland

The Crown Prosecution Service is committed to taking into account the mental health condition of an offender when considering bringing a prosecution. Each case is considered on its merits, taking into account all available information about any mental health issues, and their relevance to the offence, in accordance with the principles set out in the Code for Crown Prosecutors (the Code).

The Code explains that there is a balance to be struck between the public interest in diverting a defendant with significant mental illness from the criminal justice system and other public interest factors in favour of prosecution, including the need to safeguard the public.