[Ord. 1 anno 1872.]

No. XC.-XCI.

136. Where any person is liable under any other Ordinance for Person may be an offence made punishable by this Qrdinance, such person may be proceeded against under proceeded against either under such other Ordinance or under this Ordinance, provided that he be not punished twice for the same offence.

any other

Ordinance.

Proviso.

No. XCI.

Lord. 4 anno 1872]

Preamble.

land as to

what consti.

AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND THE CRIMINAL LAW.

Enacted 11th April, 1872, published the 13th following, came into operation on publication.

[JOHN SCOTT, Governor.]

WHEREAS it is expedient to amend the Criminal Law: Be it

therefore enacted by His Excellency the Governor of British Guiana, with the advice and consent of the Court of Policy thereof, as follows:

1. The Law of England relating to acts or attempts which by Law of Eng. that Law constitute felonies or misdemeanors, and which by the Law at present in force in this Colony are not yet declared to be felonies or misdemeanors, shall henceforth, in so far as the same can be made to apply to the circumstances of this Colony, be the Law of this Colony.

or Misdemeanor to extend to this Colony.

mon Law re

2. The Common Law of England now in force relating to crimiEnglish Com. nal matters, shall henceforth be the Law of this Colony, in so far lating to crimes the same can be made to apply to the circumstances of the to be in force Colony, but this provision shall not extend to cause any attainder, in this Colony. Proviso. forfeiture, or escheat.

Puuishinent

as

3. When any person shall be convicted of any felony, not punishable with death, committed, after a previous conviction for conviction for felony, such person shall on such subsequent conviction, be liable, Felony.

for second

at

at the discretion of the Court, to be sentenced to penal servitude for life, or for not less than seven years, or to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding four years; and in any indictment for any such felony committed after a previous conviction for felony, it Previous felo. ny how to be shall be sufficient to state that the offender was at a certain time stated and and place convicted of felony, without otherwise describing the pre- proved. vious felony; and such proceedings, proof, and evidence shall be taken, had, and followed as prescribed by section 104 of Ordinance No. 22 of the year 1862, in the case of a similar indictment under that Ordinance: Provided that nothing herein contained shall in Proviso. any way affect the provisions of Ordinance No. 22 of the year 1862, or of Ordinance No. 24 of the same year.

cial Sessions of

minal Court,

4. The Governor may by Proclamation, at any time, appoint a Governor may Special Session of the Supreme Court of Criminal Justice to be appoint Spe held in such place within the Colony, and at such time, as shall Supreme Cri seem to him fit, and for the trial of offences wherever committed within the Colony; and such Session may be in addition to, or in lieu of, any ordinary or customary Session, and whenever the Governor shall appoint a Special Session, he may also by the same Proclamation direct, that, if the Chief Justice or Senior Judge in Ordinance No. the Colony shall think fit, the provisions of Ordinance No. 12 of apply to such the Year 1870, may be applied to such Special Session, and may also direct that any additional panel or panels of Jurors, if sum. How additional panels may be moned, may be summoned from the County in which the Session summoned. is to be held, or from either or both of the other Counties of the Colony.

12 of 1870, to

Sessions.

two or more

moned.

5. When two or more panels of Jurors shall be summoned under Number of the provisions of Ordinance No. 12 of the Year 1870, or under the Jurors, when provisions of this Ordinance taken therewith, the number of each panels sum. panel shall be thirty, but whenever at any Session of the Supreme Court of Criminal Justice in any part of the Colony, only one panel Number when of Jurors shall be summoned, the number of such panel shall hence- one panel sumforth consist of thirty-six, instead of thirty, Jurors.

moned.

moned on one

6. When two, or more panels are returned, the Provost Marshal, Juror sumon a tales being prayed, may return a Juror summoned on any one panel may panel as a talesman to serve with the Jurors returned on any other serve as tales.

panel.

man on ano" ther.

7. When two or more persons in or belonging to a Mercantile Only one per Establishment, Store, Shop, Counting House, Bank, or Sugar Planson from same store, &c., to tation are liable to be summoned as Jurors at the same session of be summoned as juror at any any Court, the Provost Marshal shall summon one of such persons Session. only at the same session, and the other or others of them successively shall be summoned as Jurors at the next or a subsequent session of such Court, so that not more than one shall be summoned at any one session.

Any person whosoever may

8. It shall be lawful for any person whomsoever to apprehend any person who shall be found committing any indictable offence in apprehend any the night, and to convey him to some constable or other peace ting indictable officer, in order to his being conveyed as soon as conveniently may offence at be before a Justice of the Peace to be dealt with according to law, night.

one commit

dc., not to be set aside if offender convicted of any one of them.

and the time at which the night shall commence and conclude shall, for the purpose of this Ordinance, be deemed the same as in cases of burglary.

9. Whereas offenders may escape punishment by reason of the Conviction for subtle distinctions between the offences known as larceny, embezlarceny, em. bezzlement, zlement, fraudulent application or disposition of property, or obtain ing property by false pretences, for remedy thereof: Be it enacted, that no verdict of any jury against any person, and no sentence by any Court or Judge on any person who shall be found guilty of larceny, embezzlement, fraudulent application or disposition of any chattel, money or valuable security, or obtaining by false pretences any chattel, money or valuable security shall be set aside or reversed, if on the trial there was evidence to prove that such person committed any one of such offences, and the punishment awarded against such person shall not exceed the punishment which could have been awarded for the offence actually committed, according to the proper legal designation thereof, and no person so convicted shall be liable to be afterwards prosecuted for any such offence upon the same facts.

Liability of member of

10. If any person being a member of any copartnership, or co-partnership being one of two or more beneficial owners of any money, goods, embezzling or effects, bills, notes, valuable securities or other property, shall

stealing or

property

thereof.

steal

steal or embezzle any such money, goods or effects, bills, notes, valuable securities or other property of or belonging to any such copartnership, or to such joint beneficial owners, every such person shall be liable to be dealt with, tried, convicted, and punished for the same as if such person had not been or was not a member of such copartnership or one of such beneficial owners.

II. The term "valuable security" in this Ordinance shall have Definition of a valuable the same meaning as in Ordinance No. 22 of the year 1862. security.

12. Whosoever shall wilfully swear, affirm, or declare, falsely, in False Oaths, &c., in any any case in which an oath, affirmation, or declaration is required legal proceedto be taken by law, shall be held guilty of perjury and shall be ing to be held to be perjury. punished accordingly.

of children

oath may

13. Children ignorant of the nature and obligation of an oath, How evidence may be allowed to give evidence in the Supreme and Inferior Cri- ignorant of minal Courts, as to matters of fact within their direct personal nature of an knowledge; Provided that their testimony shall be subject to such be taken. deduction from its weight, as the Court or any Jury may deem proper by reason of its being unsworn, and that the Judge, or Judges of the Court where there shall be more than one professional Judge, shall determine whether any child is of competent understanding to give testimony.

defendant

may open

14. Upon every trial in any Criminal Court, whether the pri- Prisoner or soners, or defendants, or any of them shall be defended by counsel may open or not, each such prisoner or defendant, or his counsel should be case, examine witnesses, and allowed, if he shall think fit, to open his case, and after the con- sum up. clusion of such opening, each prisoner or defendant, or his counsel shall be entitled to examine all the witnesses, and to give all the evidence that he may think fit, and thereafter to sum up the evidence; and the practice and course of procedings, except as hereby altered, shall remain as at present.

15. Ordinance No. 4 of the year 1869, and all Laws, Ordinances, parts of Ordinance, rules, customs, usages, and practice, whatsoever in any way repugnant to, or inconsistent with, this Ordinance, shall be, and the same are hereby, repealed and annulled, save in so far as they are kept in force by the operation of the next section hereof. 16. Sections

Repeal section.

[Ord. 4 anno 1872.]

and when to take effect.

No. XCI.-XCII.

16. Sections 1, 2, 9, 12 and 13 of this Ordinance shall apply to Ordinance how and affect only acts done, and matters and things occurring, after the publication of this Ordinance; all acts done and matters and things occurring previously to such publication and which might otherwise have been governed by these Sections shall be governed by the law existing previously thereto; as regards Section 3, the conviction of felony committed after a previous conviction of felony, must be of a felony committed after the publication of this Ordinance, but the previous conviction may be of a felony committed before such publication; all other Sections of this Ordinance shall come into operation immediately on such publication.

XCII.

[Ord. 5 anne AN ORDINANCE TO PROVIDE FOR THE DISTRIBUTION OF 1872.] THE PROCEEDS OF ALL FINES, PENALTIES, AND FORFEITURES IN THIS COLONY.

Preamble

Amount of

be paid into

Chest, and

Enacted 11th April, 1872, published the 13th following, came into operation on 1st July, 1872.

[JOHN SCOTT, Governor.]

WHEREAS it is desirable to make provision for the distribu

tion of the proceeds of all fines, penalties and forfeitures whatever : Be it therefore enacted by His Excellency the Governor of British Guiana, with the advice and consent of the Honorable the Court of Policy thereof, as follows:

1. On and after the First day of July next, the officer into Fines, &c., to whose hands the gross amount of any fine, penalty, or forfeiture, recovered and realized under any law now or hereafter to be in after deduction force in this Colony, may come, shall pay the same to the Colonial to be credit to Receiver General, or Assistant Receiver General, who shall deduct Revenue Defence Fund. a sum equal to ten per centum thereof, and shall enter the same to the credit of the fund established by Ordinance No. 15 of the year 1868, and called "The Revenue Defence Fund."

of ten per cent.

2. After