Children and Young Persons (Harmful Publications)
CHILDREN AND YOUNG PERSONS
(HARMFUL PUBLICATIONS) ACT

CHAPTER 11:18

LAWS OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Act
44 of 1955

Amended by
136/1976

L.R.O.

Current Authorised Pages
Pages Authorised

(inclusive) by L.R.O.
1–6 ..

UNOFFICIAL VERSION


UPDATED TO DECEMBER 31ST 2014

MINISTRY OF LEGAL AFFAIRS www.legalaffairs.gov.tt

LAWS OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Children and Young Persons
2 Chap. 11:18 (Harmful Publications)

Note on Subsidiary Legislation
This Chapter contains no subsidiary legislation.

UNOFFICIAL VERSION


UPDATED TO DECEMBER 31ST 2014

MINISTRY OF LEGAL AFFAIRS www.legalaffairs.gov.tt

L.R.O.

LAWS OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Children and Young Persons
(Harmful Publications) Chap. 11:18 3

CHAPTER 11:18

CHILDREN AND YOUNG PERSONS
(HARMFUL PUBLICATIONS) ACT

ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
SECTION

1. Short title.
2. Interpretation.
3. Works to which this Act applies.
4. Penalty for printing, publishing, selling, etc., works to which this Act

applies.
5. Power to search for, and dispose of works to which this Act applies

and articles for printing them.
6. Prohibition of importation of works to which this Act applies and

articles for printing them.

UNOFFICIAL VERSION


UPDATED TO DECEMBER 31ST 2014

MINISTRY OF LEGAL AFFAIRS www.legalaffairs.gov.tt

LAWS OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Children and Young Persons
4 Chap. 11:18 (Harmful Publications)

CHAPTER 11:18

CHILDREN AND YOUNG PERSONS
(HARMFUL PUBLICATIONS) ACT

An Act to prevent the dissemination of certain pictorial
publications harmful to children and young persons.

[15TH DECEMBER 1955]

1. This Act may be cited as the Children and Young Persons
(Harmful Publications) Act.

2. In this Act—
“child” and “young person” have the meanings assigned to them

by section 2 of the Children Act;
“photographic film” includes photographic plate;
“plate” (except where it occurs in the expression “photographic

plate”) includes block, mould, matrix and stencil.

3. This Act applies to any book, magazine or other like work
which is of a kind likely to fall into the hands of children or young
persons and consists wholly or mainly of stories told in pictures
(with or without the addition of written matter), being stories
portraying—

(a) the commission of crimes; or
(b) acts of violence or cruelty; or
(c) incidents of a repulsive or horrible nature,

in such a way that the work as a whole would tend to corrupt a
child or young person into whose hands it might fall.

4. (1) A person who prints, publishes, sells or lets on hire a
work to which this Act applies, or has any such work in his
possession for the purpose of selling it or letting it on hire, is liable
on summary conviction to a fine of two thousand dollars and to
imprisonment for four months.

44 of 1955.

Commencement.

Short title.

Interpretation.

Ch. 46:01.

Works to which
this Act aplies.

Penalty for
printing,
publishing,
selling, etc.,
works to which
this Act applies.
[136/1976].

UNOFFICIAL VERSION


UPDATED TO DECEMBER 31ST 2014

MINISTRY OF LEGAL AFFAIRS www.legalaffairs.gov.tt

L.R.O.

LAWS OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Children and Young Persons
(Harmful Publications) Chap. 11:18 5

(2) In any proceedings taken under subsection (1) against
a person in respect of selling or letting on hire a work or of having
it in his possession for the purpose of selling it or letting it on hire,
it is a defence for him to prove that he did not examine the contents
of the work and had no reasonable cause to suspect that it was one
to which this Act applies.

(3) A prosecution for an offence under this section shall
not be instituted except by, or with the consent of, the Director of
Public Prosecutions.

5. (1) Where, upon a complaint being made before a
Magistrate or Justice that a person has, or is suspected of having,
committed an offence under section 4 with respect to a work
(hereinafter in this subsection referred to as “the relevant work”),
the Magistrate or Justice may issue a summons directed to that
person requiring him to answer to the complaint or may issue a
warrant to arrest that person.

(2) That Magistrate or any other Magistrate or Justice, if
satisfied by proof on oath that there is reasonable ground for
suspecting that the person has in his possession or under his control—

(a) any copies of the relevant work or any other work
to which this Act applies; or

(b) any plate prepared for the purpose of printing
copies of the relevant work or any other work to
which this Act applies or any photographic film
prepared for that purpose,

may grant a search warrant authorising any constable named in
the warrant to enter (if necessary by force) any premises specified
in the warrant and any vehicle or stall used by the person for the
purposes of trade or business and to search the premises, vehicle
or stall and seize any of the following things which the constable
finds therein or thereon, that is to say—

(i) any copies of the relevant work and any
copies of any other work which the
constable has reasonable cause to believe
to be one to which this Act applies; and

Power to search
for, and dispose
of works to
which this Act
applies and
articles for
printing them.

UNOFFICIAL VERSION


UPDATED TO DECEMBER 31ST 2014

MINISTRY OF LEGAL AFFAIRS www.legalaffairs.gov.tt

LAWS OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Children and Young Persons
6 Chap. 11:18 (Harmful Publications)

(ii) any plate which the constable has
reasonable cause to believe to have been
prepared for the purpose of printing copies
of any such work as is mentioned in
paragraph (1) of this subsection and any
photographic film which he has reasonable
cause to believe to have been prepared for
that purpose.

(2) The Court by or before which a person is convicted
of an offence under section 4 with respect to a work may order any
copies of that work and any plate prepared for the purpose of
printing copies of that work or photographic film prepared for that
purpose, being copies which have, or a plate or film which has,
been found in his possession or under his control, to be forfeited.

(3) An order made under subsection (2) shall not take
effect until the expiration of the time within which an appeal in the
matter of the proceedings in which the order was made may be
commenced or, where an appeal is duly lodged, until the appeal is
finally decided or abandoned.

6. The importation into Trinidad and Tobago of—
(a) any work to which this Act applies; and
(b) any plate prepared for the purpose of printing

copies of any such work and any photographic
film prepared for that purpose,

is hereby prohibited.

Prohibition of
importation of
works to which
this Act applies
and articles for
printing them.

UNOFFICIAL VERSION


UPDATED TO DECEMBER 31ST 2014

MINISTRY OF LEGAL AFFAIRS www.legalaffairs.gov.tt