Bill Text: IL HB2103 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Criminal Code of 2012 concerning the offense of criminal abuse or neglect of an elderly person or person with a disability. Changes the definition of "caregiver" to include: (i) a parent, spouse, adult child, or other relative by blood or marriage who would have reason to believe, as a result of the actions, statements, or behavior of the elderly person or person with a disability, that he or she is being relied upon for providing primary and substantial assistance for physical care; and (ii) a person who has voluntarily assumed the responsibility for the care of an elderly person or person with a disability under specified circumstances. Provides that "voluntarily assumed the responsibility for the care of an elderly person or person with a disability" means a person has voluntarily assumed responsibility for providing primary and substantial assistance for the care of an elderly person or person with a disability if the person's conduct would lead a reasonable person to believe that failure to provide such care would adversely affect the physical health of the elderly person or person with a disability.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2023-03-10 - Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee [HB2103 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-HB2103-Introduced.html

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103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 HB2103 Introduced , by Rep. Terra Costa Howard SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
720 ILCS 5/12-4.4a
Amends the Criminal Code of 2012 concerning the offense of criminal abuse or neglect of an elderly person or person with a disability. Changes the definition of "caregiver" to include: (i) a parent, spouse, adult child, or other relative by blood or marriage who would have reason to believe, as a result of the actions, statements, or behavior of the elderly person or person with a disability, that he or she is being relied upon for providing primary and substantial assistance for physical care; and (ii) a person who has voluntarily assumed the responsibility for the care of an elderly person or person with a disability under specified circumstances. Provides that "voluntarily assumed the responsibility for the care of an elderly person or person with a disability" means a person has voluntarily assumed responsibility for providing primary and substantial assistance for the care of an elderly person or person with a disability if the person's conduct would lead a reasonable person to believe that failure to provide such care would adversely affect the physical health of the elderly person or person with a disability.
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A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning criminal law.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Criminal Code of 2012 is amended by
changing Section 12-4.4a as follows:
(720 ILCS 5/12-4.4a)
Sec. 12-4.4a. Abuse or criminal neglect of a long term
care facility resident; criminal abuse or neglect of an
elderly person or person with a disability.
(a) Abuse or criminal neglect of a long term care facility
resident.
(1) A person or an owner or licensee commits abuse of a
long term care facility resident when he or she knowingly
causes any physical or mental injury to, or commits any
sexual offense in this Code against, a resident.
(2) A person or an owner or licensee commits criminal
neglect of a long term care facility resident when he or
she recklessly:
(A) performs acts that cause a resident's life to
be endangered, health to be injured, or pre-existing
physical or mental condition to deteriorate, or that
create the substantial likelihood that an elderly
person's or person with a disability's life will be

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endangered, health will be injured, or pre-existing
physical or mental condition will deteriorate;
(B) fails to perform acts that he or she knows or
reasonably should know are necessary to maintain or
preserve the life or health of a resident, and that
failure causes the resident's life to be endangered,
health to be injured, or pre-existing physical or
mental condition to deteriorate, or that create the
substantial likelihood that an elderly person's or
person with a disability's life will be endangered,
health will be injured, or pre-existing physical or
mental condition will deteriorate; or
(C) abandons a resident.
(3) A person or an owner or licensee commits neglect
of a long term care facility resident when he or she
negligently fails to provide adequate medical care,
personal care, or maintenance to the resident which
results in physical or mental injury or deterioration of
the resident's physical or mental condition. An owner or
licensee is guilty under this subdivision (a)(3), however,
only if the owner or licensee failed to exercise
reasonable care in the hiring, training, supervising, or
providing of staff or other related routine administrative
responsibilities.
(b) Criminal abuse or neglect of an elderly person or
person with a disability.

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(1) A caregiver commits criminal abuse or neglect of
an elderly person or person with a disability when he or
she knowingly does any of the following:
(A) performs acts that cause the person's life to
be endangered, health to be injured, or pre-existing
physical or mental condition to deteriorate;
(B) fails to perform acts that he or she knows or
reasonably should know are necessary to maintain or
preserve the life or health of the person, and that
failure causes the person's life to be endangered,
health to be injured, or pre-existing physical or
mental condition to deteriorate;
(C) abandons the person;
(D) physically abuses, harasses, intimidates, or
interferes with the personal liberty of the person; or
(E) exposes the person to willful deprivation.
(2) It is not a defense to criminal abuse or neglect of
an elderly person or person with a disability that the
caregiver reasonably believed that the victim was not an
elderly person or person with a disability.
(c) Offense not applicable.
(1) Nothing in this Section applies to a physician
licensed to practice medicine in all its branches or a
duly licensed nurse providing care within the scope of his
or her professional judgment and within the accepted
standards of care within the community.

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(2) Nothing in this Section imposes criminal liability
on a caregiver who made a good faith effort to provide for
the health and personal care of an elderly person or
person with a disability, but through no fault of his or
her own was unable to provide such care.
(3) Nothing in this Section applies to the medical
supervision, regulation, or control of the remedial care
or treatment of residents in a long term care facility
conducted for those who rely upon treatment by prayer or
spiritual means in accordance with the creed or tenets of
any well-recognized church or religious denomination as
described in Section 3-803 of the Nursing Home Care Act,
Section 1-102 of the Specialized Mental Health
Rehabilitation Act of 2013, Section 3-803 of the ID/DD
Community Care Act, or Section 3-803 of the MC/DD Act.
(4) Nothing in this Section prohibits a caregiver from
providing treatment to an elderly person or person with a
disability by spiritual means through prayer alone and
care consistent therewith in lieu of medical care and
treatment in accordance with the tenets and practices of
any church or religious denomination of which the elderly
person or person with a disability is a member.
(5) Nothing in this Section limits the remedies
available to the victim under the Illinois Domestic
Violence Act of 1986.
(d) Sentence.

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(1) Long term care facility. Abuse of a long term care
facility resident is a Class 3 felony. Criminal neglect of
a long term care facility resident is a Class 4 felony,
unless it results in the resident's death in which case it
is a Class 3 felony. Neglect of a long term care facility
resident is a petty offense.
(2) Caregiver. Criminal abuse or neglect of an elderly
person or person with a disability is a Class 3 felony,
unless it results in the person's death in which case it is
a Class 2 felony, and if imprisonment is imposed it shall
be for a minimum term of 3 years and a maximum term of 14
years.
(e) Definitions. For the purposes of this Section:
"Abandon" means to desert or knowingly forsake a resident
or an elderly person or person with a disability under
circumstances in which a reasonable person would continue to
provide care and custody.
"Caregiver" means a person who has a duty to provide for an
elderly person or person with a disability's health and
personal care, at the elderly person or person with a
disability's place of residence, including, but not limited
to, food and nutrition, shelter, hygiene, prescribed
medication, and medical care and treatment, and includes any
of the following:
(1) A parent, spouse, adult child, or other relative
by blood or marriage who:

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(A) resides with or resides in the same building
with or regularly visits the elderly person or person
with a disability; or ,
(B) would have reason to believe, as a result of
the actions, statements, or behavior of the elderly
person or person with a disability, that he or she is
being relied upon for providing primary and
substantial assistance for physical care; and knows or
reasonably should know of such person's physical or
mental impairment, and knows or reasonably should know
that such person is unable to adequately provide for
his or her own health and personal care.
(2) A person who is employed by the elderly person or
person with a disability or by another to reside with or
regularly visit the elderly person or person with a
disability and provide for such person's health and
personal care.
(3) A person who has agreed for consideration to
reside with or regularly visit the elderly person or
person with a disability and provide for such person's
health and personal care.
(4) A person who has been appointed by a private or
public agency or by a court of competent jurisdiction to
provide for the elderly person or person with a
disability's health and personal care.
(5) A person who has voluntarily assumed the

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responsibility for the care of an elderly person or person
with a disability if:
(A) the person is living in the household of the
elderly person or person with a disability, or present
in the household on a regular basis; or
(B) the person would have reason to believe, as a
result of the actions, statements or behavior of the
elderly person or person with a disability, that he or
she is being relied upon for providing primary and
substantial assistance for physical care.
"Caregiver" does not include a long-term care facility
licensed or certified under the Nursing Home Care Act or a
facility licensed or certified under the ID/DD Community Care
Act, the MC/DD Act, or the Specialized Mental Health
Rehabilitation Act of 2013, or any administrative, medical, or
other personnel of such a facility, or a health care provider
who is licensed under the Medical Practice Act of 1987 and
renders care in the ordinary course of his or her profession.
"Elderly person" means a person 60 years of age or older
who is incapable of adequately providing for his or her own
health and personal care.
"Licensee" means the individual or entity licensed to
operate a facility under the Nursing Home Care Act, the
Specialized Mental Health Rehabilitation Act of 2013, the
ID/DD Community Care Act, the MC/DD Act, or the Assisted
Living and Shared Housing Act.

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"Long term care facility" means a private home,
institution, building, residence, or other place, whether
operated for profit or not, or a county home for the infirm and
chronically ill operated pursuant to Division 5-21 or 5-22 of
the Counties Code, or any similar institution operated by the
State of Illinois or a political subdivision thereof, which
provides, through its ownership or management, personal care,
sheltered care, or nursing for 3 or more persons not related to
the owner by blood or marriage. The term also includes skilled
nursing facilities and intermediate care facilities as defined
in Titles XVIII and XIX of the federal Social Security Act and
assisted living establishments and shared housing
establishments licensed under the Assisted Living and Shared
Housing Act.
"Owner" means the owner of a long term care facility as
provided in the Nursing Home Care Act, the owner of a facility
as provided under the Specialized Mental Health Rehabilitation
Act of 2013, the owner of a facility as provided in the ID/DD
Community Care Act, the owner of a facility as provided in the
MC/DD Act, or the owner of an assisted living or shared housing
establishment as provided in the Assisted Living and Shared
Housing Act.
"Person with a disability" means a person who suffers from
a permanent physical or mental impairment, resulting from
disease, injury, functional disorder, or congenital condition,
which renders the person incapable of adequately providing for

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his or her own health and personal care.
"Resident" means a person residing in a long term care
facility.
"Voluntarily assumed the responsibility for the care of an
elderly person or person with a disability" means a person has
voluntarily assumed responsibility for providing primary and
substantial assistance for the care of an elderly person or
person with a disability if the person's conduct would lead a
reasonable person to believe that failure to provide such care
would adversely affect the physical health of the elderly
person or person with a disability.
"Willful deprivation" has the meaning ascribed to it in
paragraph (15) of Section 103 of the Illinois Domestic
Violence Act of 1986.
(Source: P.A. 98-104, eff. 7-22-13; 99-180, eff. 7-29-15;
99-642, eff. 7-28-16.)