in the said Colony, the following articles, to wit, (describe all the articles seized,) Months) from the date of these presents. Whereas, A.B., up to this date, holder of the Retail Spirit Shop Licence, No authorizing him to keep a Retail Spirit Shop in (describe premises as in Licence) has this day been convicted before and by me, of an offence under Ordinance No. 25 of the year 1868; and whereas it has been shown to me that the said A.B. has been heretofore twice convicted of offences under the said Ordinance; now, by virtue of the provisions of the said Ordinance, I do hereby adjudge and declare the said Licence to be forfeited. Given under my hand this day of (Signature of Stipendiary Justice.) No. XLIV. XLIV. [Ord. 26 anno 1868.] Preamble. he desires to call any wit nesses. AN ORDINANCE TO MAKE CERTAIN AMENDMENTS IN THE Enacted 30th October, 1868, published the 4th November following, came into operation on publication. [FRANCIS HINCKS, Governor.] WHEREAS it is desirable to make certain alterations and amendments in the Criminal Law of this Colony, and as regards the swearing of Jurors both in Civil and Criminal cases: Be it therefore enacted by His Excellency the Governor of the Colony of British Guiana, with the advice and consent of the Court of Policy thereof, as follows: I. In all cases where any person shall appear or be brought Accused perbefore any Justice or Justices of the Peace, charged with any son charged indictable offence, whether committed within this Colony, or upon before Justice, with indictable the High Seas, or upon Land beyond the Sea, and whether such offence, to be asked whether persons appears voluntarily upon Summons, or has been apprehended with or without warrant, or is in Custody for the same cr any other offence, such Justice or Justices before he or they shall commit such accused person for trial, or admit him to Bail, shall, immediately after obeying the directions of the eleventh Section of Ordinance No. 29 of the year 1850, inquire of the accused person whether he desires to call any witness; and if the accused person How deposi- shall in answer to such inquiry, call any witness or witnesses, such Justice or Justices shall, in the presence of such accused person, take the deposition on Oath or Affirmation, of every such witness, and shall put the same into writing; and every such witness may be examined, cross-examined, and re-examined; and every such Deposition of a witness shall be read over to and signed by him, and shall be signed also by the Justice or Justic s taking the same, and shall be transmitted in due course of law, with the rest of the depositions in the case. tions of wit nesses to be taken for accused and dealt with. No. XLIV. [Ord. 26 anno 1868.1 Justices not to nesses. 2. It shall not henceforth be necessary for the Justice or Justices Henceforth taking depositions in cases of indictable offences, to bind by recog- take recognis nizance any witnesses, whether for the prosecution or the defence ances of wit. to appear at the Court at which the accused person is to be tried; but every witness whose deposition is taken at the examination All witnesses before the Justice or Justices, shall be summoned to appear at such examined beCourt, and in cases of indictable offences, no fee shall henceforth to be Sum be payable for the summoning of any witnesses, either for the pro- Trial. secution or the defence, whether on the preliminary examination, or the trial of any such offence. fore Justices moned for witnesses for 3. All provisions whatever of the law of this Colony, relating Provisions for to witnesses for the prosecution on Criminal trials, and to their prosecution depositions, shall apply to witnesses for the defence, and their applicable to depositions; except as regards remuneration, which is specially defence. provided for in the fourth section of this Ordinance. witnesses for of witnesses 4. The remuneration to be paid to every witness for the defence, Remuneration for attending on any trial for which he shall have been summoned, for defence. or at which he shall attend, shall be taxed by the Clerk of the Court according to the rates of remuneration of witnesses, fixed and allowed in and by Ordinance No. 14 of the year 1849, and No. 17 of the year 1852, and shall be allowed and paid as part of the expenses of the prosecution; unless the judge presiding at the trial shall prohibit such allowance, in which case the Clerk shall note such prohibition on the taxation, and the witness shall have recourse for payment only against the party or parties on whose behalf he has attended. 5. Whenever it shall be made to appear to the satisfaction of How evidence any Justice of the Peace, that any person dangerously ill, and, in of person dan the opinion of any duly licensed Medical Practitioner, not likely to be taken. recover from such illness, is able and willing to give material information relating to any indictable offence, or relating to any person accused of such offence, and it shall not be practicable for any Justice or Justices of the Peace to take an examination or deposition, in accordance with the provisions of Ordinance No. 29 of the year 1850, of the person so ill, it shall be lawful for the said Jus * Partly repealed by Ordinance 14 of 1869, Section 6. + Partly repealed by Ordinance 14 of 1859, Section 7. tice dence to be dealt with. For certain tice to take in writing the statement on oath or affirmation of such person being so ill, and such Justice shall thereupon subscribe the same, and shall add thereto by way of caption a statement of his reason for taking the same, and of the day and place when and where the same was taken, and of the names of the persons (if any) How such evi- present at the taking thereof; and if the same shall relate to any indictable offence for which any accused person is already committed or bailed to appear for trial, shall transmit the same with the said addition to the Sheriff of the County in which the trial is to be heard, if such trial is to be heard before an Inferior Court of Criminal Justice, or to the Attorney General of the Colony, if the trial is to be heard before a Supreme Court of Criminal Justice; and in all other cases the statement shall be filed of record, and preserved by the Stipendiary Justice of the District within which the same shall have been taken, and whether the same shall have been taken by such Stipendiary Justice, or any other Justice; and for the purpose of so filing and preserving such statement, the lice Magistrate Police Magistrate of Georgetown, and every Superintendent of and Superin. Rivers and Creeks shall be deemed to be a Stipendiary Justice ; and if afterwards, on the trial of any offender or offence to which any such statement may relate, the person who made the same shall be proved to be dead, or absent from the Colony, or if it shall be proved that there is no reasonable probability that such person will If on trial par ever be able to travel or to give evidence, it shall be lawful to read ty is absent or dead evidence such statement in evidence, either for or against the accused, without may be read. further proof thereof, if the same purports to be signed by the Justice by or before whom it purports to be taken, and provided it be proved, to the satisfaction of the Court, that reasonable notice of the intention to take such statement has been served upon the party (whether prosecutor or accused) against whom it is proposed to be read in evidence, and that such party, or his Counsel or Attorney, had or might have had, if he had chosen to be present, full opportunity of cross examining the person who made the same. purposes, Po tendent of Rivers and Creeks to be deemed Sti. pendiary Ma. gistrates. Provis>. Prisoner against whom evidence may 6. Whenever a prisoner in actual custody shall have given or shall have received notice of an intention to take such statement as herein before mentioned, the Judge or Justice of the Peace by be given to be whom the prisoner was committed, or if in custody in Georgetown Jail, then the Sheriff of the County of Demerary, or if in custody in New Amsterdam Jail, then the Sheriff of the County present. of [Ord. 26 anno 1868.1 No. XLIV. of Berbice, or if in custody elsewhere than in Georgetown or New Amsterdam, then the Stipendiary Justice of the district within which the prisoner is in custody, or if he shall not be in custody within any Judicial District, then any Justice of the Peace near the place where he shall be in custody, may, by an order in writing, direct the Jailer or other person having the custody of the prisoner to convey him to the place mentioned in the same said notice, for the purpose of his being pres nt at the taking of the statement; and such Jailer or other person shall convey the prisoner accordingly, and the expenses of such conveyance shall be paid out of the funds applicable to the miscellaneous expenses of Justice. 7. If any person, summoned or required to serve as a Juror in Jurors may any Civil or Criminal proceeding, shall refuse or be unwilling, from make affirma alleged conscientious motives, to be sworn, it shall be lawful for the oath. Court or Judge, or other presiding officer or person qualified to administer an oath to a Juror, upon being satisfied of the sincerity of such objection, to permit such person, instead of being sworn, to make his or her solemn affirmation or declaration in the following words: I, A.B., do solemnly, sincerely, and truly affirm and declare, that the taking of any oath is, according to my religious belief, unlawful, and I do also solemnly, sincerely, and truly affirm, and declare, &c.; which solemn affirmation and declaration shall be of the same force Such affirma. and effect, and if untrue shall entail all the same consequences, as valent to an tion to be equi. if such person had taken an oath in the usual form; and whenever Oath. in any legal proceeding it is necessary or usual to state or allege hat Jurors have been sworn, it shall not be necessary to specify that any particular Juror has made affirmation or declaration instead of oath, but it shall be sufficient to state or allege that the Jurors have been "sworn or affirmed." stolen pro re imbursed from moneys 8. Where any prisoner shall be convic ed, either summarily or Purchaser of otherwise, of Larceny or other offence, which includes the stealing perty may be of any property, and it shall appear to the Court, by the evidence that the prisoner has sold the stolen property to any person, and found on con. that such person has had no knowledge that the same was stolen, and viot |