Record to be as after amendment made. Objections cured by verdict. Filing information its effect. Form of notice of trial. Copy infor mation and notice of trial to be delivered to sheriff. the omission or insertion of which, as the case may be, has not in the opinion of the Court prejudiced, or is not calculated to prejudice, the prisoner in his defence. All such amendments shall be made upon such terms as to the Court shall seem just. (5 of 1876, s. 96.) 106. If it shall become necessary at any time, for any purpose whatsoever, to draw up a formal Record in any case where any amendment shall have been made, such Record shall be drawn up in the form in which the Information was after such amendment, without taking any notice of the fact of such amendment having been made. (5 of 1876, s. 97.) 107. No judgment shall be staid or reversed on the ground of any objection, which if stated before the Jury were empanelled, or during the progress of the trial might have been amended by the Court, nor because of any error committed in summoning or swearing the Jury or any of them; nor because any person who has served upon the Jury was not qualified to sit as a Juror, nor because of any objection which might have been stated as a ground of challenge of any of the Jurors, nor for any informality in swearing the witnesses or any of them. (5 of 1876, s. 98.) 108. Every Information, when signed, shall be filed in the prescribed Court. The fact that the Information has been so signed and filed shall be equivalent to a statement that all conditions required by Law to constitute the offence charged, and to give such Court jurisdiction, have been fulfilled in the particular case. (5 of 1876, s. 99.) NOTICE OF TRIAL. 109. The Registrar or his Deputy shall endorse on or annex to every Information and every copy delivered to the Sheriff or proper Officer for service thereof, a Notice of Trial, which notice shall specify the particular Assizes at which the party is to be tried on the said Information, and shall be in the following form, or as near thereto as may be : A.B. Take notice that you will be tried on the Information, (5 of 1876, s. 100.) day of 110. The Registrar shall deliver, or cause to be delivered, to the Sheriff or proper Officer serving the Information, a copy thereof, with the Notice of Trial endorsed on the same or annexed thereto, and if there are more parties charged than one, then as many copies as there are parties. (5 of 1876, s. 101.) parties on 111. The Sheriff or other proper Officer aforesaid shall, as soon Time and as may be after having received a copy or copies of the Informa- mode of tion and Notice or Notices of Trial, and three days at least before summoning the day specified therein for trial, by himself or his Deputy or information. other Officer, deliver to the party or parties charged the said copy or copies and notice or notices, and explain to him or them the nature and exigency thereof; and when the said parties or any of them shall have been admitted to bail and cannot readily be found, he shall leave a copy or copies of the said Information and Notice or Notices of Trial with some one of his or their household for him or them at his or their dwelling-house or dwelling-houses, or with some one of his or their bail, for him or them, and if none such can be found, shall affix the said copy or copies, and Notice or Notices to the outer or principal door of the dwelling-house or dwelling-houses of the party or parties charged or of any of his or their bail. (5 of 1876, s. 102.) be tried at once. 112. Provided always that nothing herein contained shall pre- Prisoner may vent any person in custody, at the opening of or during any Assizes, from being tried thereat, if he shall express his assent to be so tried and no special objection be made thereto on the part of the Crown. (5 of 1876, s. 103.) 113. The Officer serving the copy or copies of the said Informa- Return of tion and Notice or Notices shall forthwith make to the Registrar service. a Return of the mode of service thereof. (5 of 1876, s. 104.) 114. It shall be lawful for the Court, upon the application of Postponement the prosecutor or defendant, if the Court considers that there is of trial: respiting sufficient cause for the delay, to postpone the trial of any accused recogperson to the next Assizes of the Court held in the Province, or nizances. subsequent Assizes, and to respite the recognizances of the prosecutor and witnesses, in which case the respited recognizances shall have the same force and effect as fresh recognizances to prosecute and give evidence at such subsequent Assizes would have had. (5 of 1876, s. 105.) PART IV. TRIAL UPON INFORMATION. ARRAIGNMENT. 115. The prisoner to be tried upon any Information shall be Pleading to placed at the bar unfettered, unless the Court shall see cause other- information. wise to order; and the Information shall be read over to him by the Registrar or other Officer of the Court, and explained if need be by that officer, or the Interpreter of the Court, and such prisoner shall be required to plead instantly thereto, unless where the prisoner is entitled to service of a copy of the Information, he shall object to the want of such service, and the Court shall find that he has not been duly served therewith. (5 of 1876, s. 106.) Effect of plea 116. Every prisoner, upon being arraigned upon or charged with of not guilty. any Information, by pleading generally thereto the plea of "Not Guilty" shall, without further form, be deemed to have put himself upon the Country for trial, and in any plea of Autrefois Convict or Autrefois Acquit it shall be sufficient for any prisoner to state that he has been lawfully convicted or acquitted (as the case may be) of the said offence charged in the Information. (5 of 1876, s. 107.) If prisoner refuses to plead, how dealt with. 117. If any prisoner being arraigned upon, or charged with, any Information, stand mute of malice, or neither will, nor by reason of infirmity can answer directly to the Information, the Court shall, if it think fit, order the Registrar to enter a plea of "Not Guilty" on behalf of such prisoner, and the plea so entered shall have the same force and effect as if such prisoner had actually pleaded the same; or else the Court shall inquire whether the prisoner be of sound or unsound mind, and if he shall be of sound mind the Court shall proceed with the trial, and if he shall be of unsound mind the Court shall postpone the trial and make such Order touching the safe custody of the prisoner as to the Court shall seem just and proper; and shall report the case for the Order of the Governor. The Governor may order such person to be confined in a lunatic asylum, prison, or other suitable place for safe custody. (5 of 1876, s. 108; and 20 of 1900, s. 2 (h), amended.) Trial on in colony, composition MODE OF TRIAL. 118. (1) Whenever the charge is of a crime punishable by capital charge death and committed within the Colony the trial shall be had with a Jury of twelve men, of whom not less than seven shall be Special Jurors, unless that number of Special Jurors are not comprised in the Jurors' List for the place where the trial is had, or are not obtained when summoned, when the trial may be had with any less number of Special Jurors, the remainder of the Jury being made up of Common Jurors. (5 of 1876, s. 109, amended.) of jury. In Protectorate. (2) Whenever the charge is of a crime punishable by death and committed within the Protectorate the trial shall be had with Assessors except where a Special Court has been constituted under section 76 hereof. Trial by jury 119. (1) The Governor in Council may, from time to time, where charge provide by Order for appropriating any offence or class of offences is not capital. not punishable by death to be tried with a Jury, and may alter, revoke, or amend any such Order. Such Orders may apply to trials taking place in particular Districts or places, or generally throughout the jurisdiction of the Court, and any person charged with an offence directed by any such Order to be tried with a Jury shall be so tried accordingly: provided that if any person so charged shall, at the time of being committed for trial, elect to be tried by the Court with Assessors, he shall, unless the Judge of the Court for which the trial is appointed (for reasons stated in the Minutes) directs otherwise, be tried by the Court with Assessors. (5 of 1876, s. 110.) (2) Until further or other provision be made as aforesaid the provisions contained in the First Schedule hereto relating to offences to be tried with a Jury shall be and remain in force. assessors. 120. Any person charged with an offence not capital, and not Trial by the directed to be tried with a Jury under the provisions of the last Court with preceding Section, shall be tried by the Court with Assessors; provided that the Judge of the Court for which the trial is appointed may (for reasons to be stated on the Minutes) direct that the accused shall be tried with a Jury. (5 of 1876, s. 111.) 121. In all cases tried with a Jury, where the charge is not of a Composition. capital crime, the trial shall be with a Jury of twelve men, who of jury where may be Common or Special Jurors; provided that if so many Jurors charge not cannot conveniently be obtained, the trial may be had with any number not being less than seven Jurors. (5 of 1876, s. 112.) TRIAL WITH A JURY. capital. 122. No person shall be entitled to be tried by a Jury de Jury de medimedietate linguæ, but if the accused person is not a Native of the etate lingua. Colony or Countries subject to the jurisdiction of the Court, it shall be lawful for the Court, if it thinks fit, to direct that a number, not exceeding one half of the Jury, shall be Jurors who are not Natives of the Colony or the said Countries, if so many can be obtained. (5 of 1876, s. 113.) drawn from 123. At the sitting of the Court the names of all the Jurors Names of summoned, Special or Common, shall be written on separate pieces jurors to be of card or paper of equal size and put into boxes; and whenever a ballot boxes. Jury is required the Registrar shall, in open Court, draw from the proper box by lot until the required number of Jurors appear, who, after all just causes of challenge allowed, shall remain as fair and indifferent; and the same shall be done whenever it shall be necessary to form a new Jury. Provided that if a case be brought on for trial during the time When jury that a Jury in any other case may be deliberating, a new Jury deliberating may be drawn from the residue of the cards in the box. (5 of may be drawn 1876, s. 114.) from residue. 124. Whenever there shall be a deficiency of Jurors, or when Deficiency of the number of trials before the Court render the attendance of one jurors. set of Jurors for the whole of any Assizes oppressive, it shall be lawful for the Court to issue fresh precepts, if necessary, and S.N.-VOL. I. Y Tales de circumstantibus. Warning accused to challenge. No challenge to array: peremptory challenges. Challenges for cause. Trial of challenges for cause. When jury to be kept together. subject to all rights of challenge, to put upon the Jury, as Common or Special Jurors, so many men of the bystanders as shall be sufficient to make up the full number thereof, and it shall not be an objection to any such Talesman that his name is not upon any Jurors' List. (5 of 1876, s. 115.) 125. When the Jurors are ready to be sworn, the Registrar or other Officer of Court shall address the accused person as follows:"The Jurors who are to try you are now about to be sworn; if you object to any of them you must do so as they come to the book to be sworn, and before they are sworn, and you shall be heard." (5 of 1876, s. 116.) 126. There shall be no challenge to the Array, and no accused person shall be admitted to any peremptory challenge above the number of three. (5 of 1876, s. 117.) 127. Challenges for cause shall be allowed on any of the following grounds : 1st. Presumed or actual partiality or prejudice in the Juror, as standing in the relation of husband, master or servant, landlord or tenant, to the person accused, or to the person supposed to have been injured or affected by the acts complained of, or to the person on whose complaint the prosecution was instituted; being in the employment of either of such persons, being plaintiff or defendant against either of such persons in any civil suit, or having complained against or having been accused by either of such persons in any criminal prosecution, or entertaining prejudiced views on the case to he tried. 2nd. Some personal cause, as infancy, old age, deafness, blind- 3rd. That the Juror has been convicted of perjury or other 128. Every challenge for cause, if objected to by the opposite party, shall be tried and determined by the Court without a Jury, and the person challenged shall be examined on oath, and shall be required to answer on oath all lawful questions relating to the trial of the challenge. (5 of 1876, s. 119.) 129. It shall not be necessary in any case to keep the Jury together during any adjournment previous to the close of the |