6 G. 4, c. 51. such offence, in such next adjoining county; provided the court before whom the trial shall be had, shall be of opinion that such person ought to pay the same. The act 6 G. 4, c. 51, 8. 2, extended to indictments found by term grand juries. Offences committed on the boun. daries of counties may be tried in either. Offences committed during a journey or be tried in any county through which the vehicle has passed 3 & 4 Will. 4, c. 91(a), s. 31. [Recites 6 Geo. 4, c. 51, s. 2.] And whereas it is expedient that the said provisions of the said last-mentioned act should be applied to indictments found by term grand juries of the county or county of the city of Dublin, in his majesty's court of King's Bench in Ireland; be it therefore enacted, that so much of the said act of the sixth year of the reign of king George the Fourth, as is herein before specified, shall apply and extend to, and include any indictment found by any term grand jury of the county of Dublin, or of the county of the city of Dublin, in his majesty's court of King's Bench in Ireland, in like manner, to all intents and purposes, as in the case of an indictment removed into the said court by writ of certiorari. 9 Geo. 4, c. 54, s. 26. And for the more effectual prosecution of offences committed near the boundaries of counties, or partly in one county and partly in another, be it enacted, that where any felony or misdemeanor shall be committed on the boundary or boundaries of two or more counties, or within the distance of five hundred yards of any such boundary or boundaries, or shall be begun in one county, and completed in another; every such felony or misdemeanor may be dealt with, inquired of, tried, determined, and punished in any of the said counties, in the same manner as if it had been actually and wholly committed therein. 27. And for the more effectual prosecution of offences committed during journies from place to place; be it enacted, that where any felony or misdemeanor shall be committed on any person, or on or in respect of any property in or upon any voyage, may coach, waggon, cart, or other carriage whatever, employed in any journey, or shall be committed on any person, or on or in respect of any property on board any vessel whatever, employed in any voyage or journey upon any navigable river, canal, or inland navigation; such felony or misdemeanor may be dealt with, inquired of, tried, determined, and punished in any county through any part whereof such coach, waggon, cart, carriage, or vessel shall have passed in the course of the journey or voyage during which such felony or misdemeanor shall have been committed, in the same manner as if it had been actually committed in such county; and in all cases where the side, centre, or other part of any highway, or the side, bank, centre, or other part of any such river, canal, or navigation shall constitute the boundary of any two counties, Where the highway divides two counties, the offender may be tried in either. (a) Entitled "An Act for consolidating and amending the laws relative to jurors and juries in Ireland." such felony or misdemeanor may be dealt with, inquired of, 9 G. 4, c. 54. tried, determined, and punished in either of such counties, through, or adjoining to, or by the boundary of any part whereof, such coach, cart, waggon, carriage, or vessel shall have passed in the course of the journey or voyage, during which such felony or misdemeanor shall have been committed, in the same manner as if it had been actually committed in such county(a). (a) For the law on the subject of the venue of criminal prosecutions, see Archb. Pl. & Ev. 19 (5th Ed.), et seq. CHAPTER VI. OF THE GRAND JURY. None shall be condemned without lawful present ment. 25 Edw. 3, St. 5, c. 4, Eng. [Recites Magna Charta, c. 29, s.1.] (2) It is accorded, assented, and stablished, that from henceforth none shall be taken, by petition or suggestion made to our lord the king, or to his council, unless it be by indictment or presentment of good and lawful people of the same neighbourhood where such deeds be done, in due manner, or by process made by writ original at the common law; (3) nor that none be out of his franchises, nor of his freeholds, unless he be duly brought into answer, and forejudged of the same by the course of the law; (4) and if any thing be done against the same, it shall be redressed, and holden for none. 56 Geo. 3, c. 87 (a), s. 1.—Whereas a practice hath prevailed in many of the grand juries in Ireland, to find bills of indictment without examining witnesses for the crown; and it is expedient that this practice should for the future be disconGrand jurors tinued; be it therefore &c., that from and after the passing shall receive of this act, no bill of indictment shall be returned a true bill, of crown wit. by any grand jury in Ireland, unless the same hath been found nesses before by the jurors, upon the evidence of one or more witnesses for they find bills. the crown, sworn in court (b) and produced before them, with such other lawful evidence as the nature of the case may require or admit of. the evidence Depositions 2. Provided always, and be it enacted, that nothing in the before ma- present act contained shall be construed to prevent such court, gistrates, may be laid before at its discretion, from directing the informations or deposithe grand tions which such witness or witnesses for the crown may have jury, and if there be false previously sworn before a magistrate, to be laid before the swearing, it grand jury; and if, upon the examination of such witness or witnesses before the grand jury, it shall appear to the said grand jury that any of the said witnesses shall have sworn falsely and corruptly, it shall and may be lawful for the said shall be reported to the court, (a) Entitled, "An act to regulate proceedings of grand juries in Ireland upon bills of indictment." (b) A party cannot be legally convicted upon an indictment found by the grand jury, upon the testimony of witnesses who were sworn by an officer of the court of quarter sessions, after the sessions had lapsed for want of proper adjournment, 6 C. & P. 90. who may grand jury, and they are hereby required to report the same to 56 G. 3, c. 87. the court; and in case the court shall thereupon think fit to order a bill of indictment for wilful and corrupt perjury to be preferred against such person, it shall be competent for any of the said grand jurors to give evidence upon the finding and trial of such indictment, notwithstanding the oath which he order a prose. shall have previously taken as a grand juror, anything in this cution for or in any other law or statute to the contrary notwithstand- perjury, upon ing; it being hereby expressly declared and enacted, that grand juror nothing herein contained shall be construed to have the effect may give of rendering such informations or depositions evidence in support of a bill before the grand jury, except as hereinafter provided. which any evidence. secreted or 3. [Recites the 50 Geo. 3, c. 102, s. 5, post c. XI. p. ] Be it further enacted, that so long as the said recited enact- Informations ment shall be in force, the informations or examinations of persons therein mentioned shall be evidence to the grand jury upon murdered, the bill preferred against the person or persons against whom shall be such information or examination was given: provided always, evidence to grand juries. that the information or examination of a witness secreted shall not be evidence to the grand jury, unless it shall first be proved to the grand jury by witnesses sworn, or other lawful evidence, that the person so secreted has been secreted by the person or persons against whom the bill is preferred, or by some person or persons acting for him or her, or in his or her favour. 6 & 7 Will. 4, c. 116(a), s. 29. [The sheriff of each county shall, for the transaction of fiscal business, cause the grand jury to be impannelled, not more than five, and not less than one clear day previous to the opening of the commission for holding the assizes.] 30. [The oath of grand jurors in Ireland shall not extend to bind them to secrecy in any other than matters of a criminal nature.] 31. [The sheriff shall place first on the grand jury panel, for each barony or half barony in the county (if there be ten or more such baronies or half baronies therein), the name of one £50 freeholder or £100 leaseholder, having lands to that amount therein, if such can be found, and may afterwards complete the panel as now by law authorized and directed.] Provided always however, that any presentment or indictment formed Indictment or made by any grand jury in Ireland, shall not be liable to be traversed, quashed, or in any manner impeached, by reason of the grand jury not being selected as aforesaid; but any sheriff who shall wilfully omit or neglect to follow the rules but sheriff to hereby made for the selection of the grand jury, shall be liable, be fined. not to be quashed, if grand jury not selected as herein (a) Entitled, "An act to consolidate and amend the laws relating to the presentment of public money by grand juries in Ireland.” 6 & 7 W. 4, c. on a complaint made to the judge of assize, to be fined for breach of the provisions of this act, such sum as such judge shall think proper, in addition to any other penalty or punishment to which he may by law be liable. 116. Grand jury so to be the 32. [Stipendiary magistrates, treasurer of the county, secretary of the grand jury, surveyor, high constable or collector of any barony, clerk of the crown or peace, and coroners are disqualified to sit on grand juries of their counties.] 33. That the said grand jury so impannelled as aforesaid impannelled, shall be and be deemed to all intents and purposes to be, and grand inquest shall constitute the grand inquest of the same county at and of the county. for the assizes then to be holden, and shall, save as hereinafter Presentment of witnesses in cases of felony. otherwise provided, perform and discharge, and be bound to perform and discharge all the duties, offices, and functions which any such grand jury might have performed and discharged, or would have been hound to perform and discharge, if the same were impannelled before the judge of assize in manner heretofore practised according to law, and subject to the like forfeitures, penalties, and liabilities; and shall possess and exercise all and every the powers, privileges, and authorities which grand juries impannelled before the judge of assize in manner hitherto accustomed, have possessed and exercised, or ought to possess or exercise, under and by virtue of the laws in force in Ireland, save as may be by this act otherwise provided. And such grand jury shall not depart, save in case of adjournment as hereinafter mentioned, until discharged by the judge of assize; and the assizes of each county shall, for the purposes of this act, but only as respects matters connected with presentments for raising or accounting for or paying money or relating to public works, be deemed to commence from the impannelling of such grand jury as aforesaid. 34. [The grand jury, when so impannelled by the sheriff, shall do no other than fiscal business, until after the opening of the commission, and such fiscal business shall be then fully completed.] 35. [Provided that, upon a special application to the judge, he may authorize the subsequent transaction of it. The grand jury may also, at any time before they are discharged, present such sum as the court shall order for witnesses' expenses.] 105. That where any person shall have been tried for any for expenses felony whatsoever, it shall be lawful for the court before whom such person shall have been tried, in case it shall appear that there was a reasonable ground of prosecution, to order the treasurer of the county in which the offence shall have been, or shall have been alleged to have been committed, to pay to the prosecutor (a), upon his application, such sum of money as to (a) To entitle a party to his costs as prosecutor, and not merely as witness, it does not seem to be necessary that he should have been actually bound over by a magistrate, R. v. Sheering, 7 C. & P. 440. |