Mental Capacity Act (Northern Ireland) 2016

Retaking of persons escaping from legal custody

295.—(1) Where a person (“P”) who is in legal custody by virtue of section 294 escapes, P may be retaken into legal custody by any person mentioned in subsection (2).

(2) The persons are—

(a) the person who had custody of P immediately before the escape;

(b) any constable or approved social worker;

(c) if P was liable to be detained in an appropriate establishment by virtue of Part 9 or 10 at the time of the escape (or was, under Part 9 or 10, being taken to or from an appropriate establishment)—

(i) any person on the staff of the appropriate establishment;

(ii) any person authorised in writing by the managing authority of the appropriate establishment.

(3) But P may not be retaken under this section after P has ceased to be liable to be detained by virtue of Part 9 or 10.

(4) Nothing in subsection (3) prevents section 139 (power to remove person from public place to place of safety) from applying in relation to P at any time after the escape.

(5) In this section “appropriate establishment” has the meaning given by section 167.

(6) Nothing in subsection (1) affects any other power, or authority to do an act, that a person mentioned in subsection (2) (or any other person) may have.