generally to the constable of the parish or other district within which the same is to be executed, without naming him, or to such constable and all other constables or peace officers in the county or other district within which the justice or justices issuing such warrant has or have jurisdiction, or generally to all the constables or peace officers within such last-mentioned county or district, and it shall state shortly the offence on which it is founded, and shall name or otherwise describe the offender, and it shall order the person or persons to whom it is directed to apprehend the offender, and bring him before the justice or justices issuing the said warrant, or before some other justice or justices of the peace for the same county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough, or place, to answer to the charge contained in the said information, and to be further dealt with according to law; and it shall not be necessary to make such warrant returnable at any particular time, but the same may remain in force until it shall be executed; and such warrant may be executed by apprehending the offender at any place within the county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough, or place within which the justice or justices issuing the same shall have jurisdiction, or in case of fresh pursuit at any place in the next adjoining county or place, and within seven miles of the border of such first-mentioned county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough, or place, without having such warrant backed as hereinafter mentioned; and in all cases where such warrant shall be directed to all constables or other peace officers within the county or other district within which the justice or justices issuing the same shall have jurisdiction it shall be lawful for any constable, headborough, tithingman, borsholder, or other peace officer for any parish, township, hamlet, or place within such county or district to execute the said warrant within any parish, township, hamlet, or place situate within the jurisdiction for which such justice or justices shall have acted when he or they granted such warrant, in like manner as if such warrant were directed specially to such constable by name, and notwithstanding the place in which such warrant shall be executed shall not be within the parish, township, hamlet, or place for which he shall be such constable, headborough, tithingman, borsholder, or other peace officer: Provided always, that no objection shall be taken or allowed to any such warrant for any defect therein in substance or in form or for any variance between it and the evidence adduced on the part of the prosecution before the justice or justices who shall take the examinations of the witnesses in that behalf, as hereinafter mentioned; but if any such variance shall appear to such justice or justices to be such that the party charged has been thereby deceived or misled, it shall be lawful for such justice or justices, at the request of the party so charged, to adjourn the hearing of the case to some future 11 & 12 Vict. c. 42. How warrant to be directed, and to whom. How and where warrant may be executed. No objection allowed for alleged defect in form, &c. 11 & 12 Vict. c. 42. Power to justices to summon witnesses to attend and give evidence. If summons not obeyed, warrant may be issued to compel attendance. In certain cases warrant may be issued in the first instance. Persons appearing on summons, &c., refusing to be examined may be committed. day, and in the meantime to remand the party so charged, or to admit him to bail, in manner hereinafter mentioned. 16 That if it shall be made to appear to any justice of the peace, by the oath or affirmation of any credible person, that any person within the jurisdiction of such justice is likely to give material evidence for the prosecution, and will not voluntarily appear for the purpose of being examined as a witness at the time and place appointed for the examination of the witnesses against the accused, such justice may and is hereby required to issue his summons (L. 1) to such person, under his hand and seal, requiring him to be and appear at a time and place mentioned in such summons before the said justice, or before such other justice or justices of the peace for the same county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough, or place as shall then be there, to testify what he shall know concerning the charge made against such accused party; and if any person so summoned shall neglect or refuse to appear at the time and place appointed by the said summons, and no just excuse shall be offered for such neglect or refusal, then (after proof upon oath or affirmation of such summons having been served upon such person, either personally or by leaving the same for him with some person at his last or most usual place of abode), it shall be lawful for the justice or justices before whom such person should have appeared to issue a warrant (L. 2) under his or their hands and seals to bring and have such person at a time and place to be therein mentioned before the justice who issued the said summons, or before such other justice or justices of the peace for the same county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough, or place as shall then be there, to testify, as aforesaid, and which said warrant may, if necessary, be backed as herein before is mentioned, in order to its being executed out of the jurisdiction of the justice who shall have issued the same; or if such justice shall be satisfied by evidence upon oath or affirmation that it is probable that such person will not attend to give evidence without being compelled so to do, then, instead of issuing such summons, it shall be lawful for him to issue his warrant (L. 3) in the first instance, and which, if necessary, may be backed as aforesaid; and if on the appearance of such person so summoned before the said last-mentioned justice or justices, either in obedience to the said summons or upon being brought before him or them by virtue of the said warrant, such person shall refuse to be examined upon oath or affirmation concerning the premises, or shall refuse to take such oath or affirmation, or having taken such oath or affirmation, shall refuse to answer such questions concerning the premises as shall then be put to him, without offering any just excuse for such refusal, any justice of the peace then present, and having there jurisdiction, may by warrant (L. 4) under his hand and seal commit the person so refusing to the 11 & 12 Vict. common gaol or house of correction for the county, riding, division, c. 42. liberty, city, borough, or place where such person so refusing shall then be, there to remain and be imprisoned for any time not exceeding seven days, unless he shall in the meantime consent to be examined and to answer concerning the premises. of witnesses. 17 That in all cases where any person shall appear or be brought As to the before any justice or justices of the peace charged with any indictable examination offence, whether committed in England or Wales, or upon the high seas, or on land beyond the sea, or whether such person appear voluntarily upon summons or have been apprehended, with or without warrant, or be in custody for the same or any other offence, such justice or justices, before he or they shall commit such accused person to prison for trial, or before he or they shall admit him to bail, shall, in the presence of such accused person, who shall be at liberty to put questions to any witness produced against him, take the statement (M.) on oath or affirmation of those who shall know the facts and circumstances of the case, and shall put the same into writing, and such depositions shall be read over to and signed respectively by the witnesses who shall have been so examined, and shall be signed also by the justice or justices taking the same; and the justice or justices before whom any such witness shall appear to be examined as aforesaid shall, before such witness is examined, administer to such witness the usual oath or affirmation, which Justice such justice or justices shall have full power and authority to do; administer and if upon the trial of the person so accused as first aforesaid it shall be proved, by the oath or affirmation of any credible witness, that any person (f) whose deposition shall have been taken as aforesaid is dead, or so ill as not be able to travel, (g) and if also it be proved that such deposition was taken in the presence of the person so accused, and that he or his counsel or attorney had a full opportunity of cross-examining the witness, then, if such deposition purport to be signed by the justice by or before whom the same purports to have been taken, it shall be lawful to read such deposition as evidence in such prosecution, without further proof thereof, unless it shall be proved that such deposition was not in fact signed by the justice purporting to sign the same. (f) See sec. 14 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Children Act for special provisions as to reading the depositions of a child in respect of whom an offence of cruelty is alleged to have been committed, ante, p. 83. (g) It is for the Judge at the trial to decide in his discretion whether the evidence that the wit ness is too ill to travel is sufficient oath or affirmation. Depositions of persons who have died or who are absent, may, in certain cases, be read in evidence. 11 & 12 Vict. c. 42. After examination of and inform him that he has nothing to hope or fear from either promise or threat. Place where examination taken not to be deemed an open Court, and no person to remain without consent. 18 That after the examinations of all the witnesses on the part of the prosecution as aforesaid shall have been completed, the justice of the peace or one of the justices by or before whom such examination shall have been so completed as aforesaid shall, without requiring the attendance of the witnesses, read or cause to be read to the accused the deposition taken against him, and shall say to him these words, or words to the like effect: " Having heard the evidence, do you wish to say anything in answer to the charge? you are not obliged to say anything unless you desire to do so, but whatever you say will be taken down in writing, and may be given in evidence against you upon your trial"; and whatever the prisoner shall then say () in answer thereto shall be taken down in writing (N.), and read over to him, and shall be signed by the said justice or justices, and kept with the deposition of the witnesses. and shall be transmitted with them as hereinafter mentioned; and afterwards upon the trial of the said accused person the same may, if necessary, be given in evidence against him, without further proof thereof, unless it shall be proved that the justice or justices purporting to sign the same did not in fact sign the same: Provided always, that the said justice or justices before such accused person shall make any statement shall state to him, and give him clearly to understand, that he has nothing to hope from any promise or favour, and nothing to fear from any threat which may have been holden out to him to induce him to make any admission or confession of his guilt, but that whatever he shall then say may be given in evidence against him upon his trial, notwithstanding such promise or threat: Provided nevertheless, that nothing herein enacted or contained shall prevent the prosecutor in any case from giving in evidence any admission or confession or other statement of the person accused or charged, made at any time, which by law would be admissible as evidence against such person. 19 That the room or building in which such justice or justices shall take such examinations and statement as aforesaid shall not be deemed an open Court for that purpose; and it shall be lawful for such justice or justices in his or their discretion, to order that no person shall have access to or be or remain in such room or building without the consent or permission of such justice or justices, if it appear to him or them that the ends of justice will be best answered by so doing. (h) Sub-sec. (h) of sec. 1 of the Criminal Evidence Act, 1898, (post, p. 241), provides that nothing ia that Act shall affect the provisions of this section, so the accused may now either give evidence on oath or make an unsworn statement or do both; and his statement, however made, may be used against him at his trial (R. v. Bird 79 L. T. 359). evidence 25 That when all the evidence offered upon the part of the 11 & 12 Vict. prosecution against the accused party shall have been heard, if the c. 42. justice or justices of the peace then present shall be of opinion If, after that it is not sufficient to put such accused party upon his trial for bearing any indictable offence, such justice or justices shall forthwith order against such accused party, if in custody, to be discharged as to the the accused, information then under inquiry; but if, in the opinion of such it is not thought justice or justices, such evidence is sufficient to put the accused sufficient to party upon his trial for an indictable offence, or if the evidence warrant comgiven raise a strong or probable presumption of the guilt of such accused party, then such justice or justices shall, by his or their warrant (T. 1), commit him to the common gaol or house of correction for the county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough, or place to which by law he may now be committed, or the case of an indictable offence committed on the high seas, or on land beyond the sea, to the common gaol of the county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough, or place within which such justice or justices shall have jurisdiction, to be there safely kept until he shall be thence delivered by due course of law, or admit him to bail as herein before mentioned. 27 That at any time after all the examinations aforesaid shall have been completed, and before the first day of the assizes of sessions or other first sitting of the Court at which any person so committed to prison or admitted to bail as aforesaid is to be tried, such person may require and shall be entitled to have, of and from the officer or person having the custody of the same, copies of the depositions on which he shall have been committed or bailed, on payment of a reasonable sum for the same, not exceeding at the rate of three halfpence for each folio of ninety words. (i) mitment he After examinations are completed, defendant entitled to copies of the depositions. SUMMARY JURISDICTION ACT, 1848. Be it therefore declared and enacted, &c. : In all cases where information shall be laid or complaint That in all cases where an information shall be laid before one or more of Her Majesty's justices of the peace for any county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough, or place within England or Wales, that any person has committed or is suspected to have committed any offence or act within the jurisdiction of such justice or justices committed, (i) This section gives no right to copies of the depositions to a person committed to prison on remand Er parte Fletcher, 13 L. J. 67), nor to a person who, having been committed to prison for default of made of offences justices may issue summons to persons to answer the same. |