68                               LAWS OF MARYLAND                        [CH. 44

inal Cases," to provide for confinement for a period of time in
one of the mental institutions of the State of persons found to be
not guilty of crime by reason of insanity, with the right to apply
for release as provided by law.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Maryland,
That Section 8 of Article 59 of the Annotated Code of Maryland
(1957 Edition), title "Lunatics and Insane," subtitle "Insanity As
A Defense in Criminal Cases," be and it is hereby repealed and re-
enacted, with amendments, to read as follows:

8.

(a)  If the jury find by their verdict that such person was at the
time of committing the offense and then is insane or lunatic, the court
before which trial was had shall cause such person to be sent to the
almshouse of the county or city in which such person resided at the
time of the commission of such act, or to a hospital, or some other
place better suited in the judgment of the court to the condition of
such prisoner, there to be confined until he shall have recovered his
reason and be discharged by due course of law. And any judge of
the circuit court for any county where such person is detained or
of the Supreme Bench of Baltimore City, as the case may be, may
upon habeas corpus proceedings, make any order, absolute or condi-
tional, for the permanent or temporary discharge of the person upon
satisfactory proof of permanent or temporary recovery.

(b)  A person who has been found not guilty of any crime or of-
fense by reason of insanity, in the discretion of the Court, may be
committed to one of the appropriate mental hospitals of the State
for examination and evaluation to determine whether or not, by rea-
son of mental disease or defect, the person is a danger to himself or
to his own safety, or will be a menace to the safety of the person or
property of others. At the expiration of a period of six months con-
finement in the mental institution, the person shall have the right to
apply for release from, the institution in the manner provided by law.
HE SHALL BE RELEASED FORTHWITH UPON A NEGATIVE
FINDING BY SUCH HOSPITAL, AND IN ANY EVENT SHALL,
AT ANY TIME AFTER THREE MONTHS FROM THE DATE
OF SUCH CONFINEMENT, HAVE THE RIGHT TO APPLY FOR
HIS RELEASE PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION
21.

Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That this Act shall take effect
June 1, 1963.

Approved February 26, 1963.

CHAPTER 44
(House Bill 15)

AN ACT to repeal and re-enact, with amendments, Section 30 of
Article 9 of the Annotated Code of Maryland (1957 Edition), title
"Attachments," subtitle "Attachments by Justices," and to repeal
and re-enact, with amendments, Section 6 (a) of Article 52 of the