Los Angeles Criminal Lawyers Blog
The legislature found that it was especially important that the elderly are given special consideration and protection. This is due to the fact that many elderly persons are dependent, often confused, on medication and otherwise mentally or physically impaired. This makes it easier for a person to take advantage of them in their conditions, and therefore under California Penal Code §368, the legislature has dedicated a specific section for those who are charged with abuse of an elderly person.
The statute describes several different forms of abuse that will be chargeable under the statute. The following people may be grounds for a person to be charged under California Penal Code §368
- Any person who knows or reasonably should have known that a person is an elder or dependent and who under circumstances or conditions likely to produce great bodily harm or death, willfully causes or permits any elder or dependent adult to suffer, or inflicts thereon unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering