The jury, in case of

any person charged with treason, &c.

proving to be insane, shall de

count of in

the court

go at large: be it therefore enacted, &c., that in all cases where it shall be given in evidence, upon the trial of any person charged with treason, murder, or felony, that such person was insane at the time of the commission of such offence, and such person shall be acquitted, the jury shall be required to find specially whether such person was insane at the time of the commission of such offence, and to clare whe- declare whether such person was acquitted by them on acther he was count of such insanity; and, if they shall find that such acquitted by person was insane at the time of the committing such of them, on ac- fence, the court before whom such trial shall be had, shall sanity, and order such person to be kept in strict custody, in such place and in such manner as to the court shall seem fit, until his majesty's pleasure shall be known; and it shall thereupon be lawful for his majesty to give such order for the safe custody of such person during his pleasure, in such place and in such manner as to his majesty shall seem fit; and in all cases where any person, before the passing of his majesty this act, has been acquitted of any such offences on the may give ground of insanity at the time of the commission thereof, an order for and has been detained in custody as a dangerous person, by order of the court before whom such person has been tried, and still remains in custody, it shall be lawful for his majesty to give the like order for the safe custody of such person during his pleasure, as his majesty is hereby enabled to give, in the cases of persons who shall hereafter be acquitted on the ground of insanity.

shall order

him to be kept in custody till his majesty's pleasure be known, and

the safe

custody of such insane person, &c.

Insane per

sons indict

insane by a

II. And be it further enacted, that if any person indicted ed for any for any offence shall be insane, and shall upon arraignment offence, and be found so to be by a jury lawfully impanelled for that purfound to be pose, so that such person cannot be tried upon such indictjury, to be ment, or if, upon the trial of any person so indicted, such impanelled person shall appear to the jury charged with such indicton their ar- ment to be insane, it shall be lawful for the court before raignment, &c., shall be whom any such person shall be brought to be arraigned or ordered by tried as aforesaid, to direct such finding to be recorded, the court to and thereupon to order such person to be kept in strict be kept in custody until his majesty's pleasure shall be known; and custody till his majesif any person charged with any offence shall be brought ty's plea. before any court to be discharged for want of prosecution, sure be and such person shall appear to be insane, it shall be lawknown, &c. ful for such court to order a jury to be impanelled to try the sanity of such person; and if the jury so impanelled shall find such person to be insane, it shall be lawful for such court to order such person to be kept in strict custody, in such place and in such manner as to such court shall seem fit, until his majesty's pleasure shall be known; and in all cases of insanity so found, it shall be lawful for his majesty to give such order for the safe custody of such person so found to be insane, during his pleasure, in such place and in such manner as to his majesty shall seem fit.

60 Geo. 3 c. 4.

of King's

I. Whereas great delays have occurred in the administration of justice, in cases of persons prosecuted for misdemeanors by indictment or information, in his majesty's Courts of King's Bench at Westminster and Dublin, and by indictment at the sessions of the peace, sessions of oyer and terminer, great sessions, and sessions of gaol delivery, in that part of Great Britain called England, and in Ireland, respectively, by reason that the defendants in some of the said cases have, according to the present practice of such respective courts, an opportunity of postponing their trials to a distant period, by means of imparlances in the said several Courts of King's Bench, and by time being given to try in such respective courts of session; for remedy thereof, be it enacted, &c., that from and after the Persons passing of this act, where any person shall be prosecuted prosecuted in his majesty's Court of King's Bench at Westminster, or in the court in his majesty's Court of King's Bench in Dublin, respec- Bench for tively, for any misdemeanor, either by information or by misdemea indictment, there found or removed into the same respec- nors, aptive courts, and shall appear in term time in either of the pearing in said courts respectively, in person, to answer to such indict- permitted ment or information, such defendant, upon being charged to imparte. therewith, shall not be permitted to imparle to a following term, but shall be required to plead or demur thereto Judgment within four days from the time of his or her appearance; may be enand in default of his or her pleading or demurring, within tered for four days, as aforesaid, judgment may be entered against plea. the defendant for want of a plea; and, in case such defendant shall appear to such indictment or information by his or her clerk or attorney in court, it shall not be lawful for such defendant to imparle to a following term, but a rule requiring such defendant to plead may forthwith be given, and a plea or demurrer to such indictment or information enforced, or judgment by default entered thereupon, in the same manner as might have been done before the passing of this act, in cases where the defendant had appeared to such indictment or information by his or her clerk in court, or attorney, in a previous term.

court, not

want of

allow fur

II. Provided always, and be it further enacted, that it Court may shall be lawful for the said respective courts, or for any ther time to judge of the same respectively, upon sufficient cause shown plead, for that purpose, to allow further time for such defendant to plead or demur to such indictment or information.

misde

III. And be it further enacted, that from and after the Persons in passing of this act, where any person shall be prosecuted custody for for any misdemeanor, by indictment at any session of the meanors, peace, session of oyer and terminer, great session, or ses- or held to sion of gaol delivery, within that part of Great Britain bail, within called England, or in Ireland, having been committed to twenty days'

before the

sessions,

shall plead ment, unless

to indict

a writ of certiorari

be delivered.

Certiorari may be

or after in

custody or held to bail to appear to answer for such offence twenty days at the least before the session at which such indictment shall be found, he or she shall plead to such indictment, and trial shall proceed thereupon at such same session of the peace, session of oyer and terminer, great session, or session of gaol delivery, respectively, unless a writ of certiorari for removing such indictment into his majesty's Courts of King's Bench at Westminster or in Dublin, respectively, shall be delivered at such session before the jury shall be sworn for such trial.

IV. And it is hereby declared and enacted, that such writ of certiorari may be applied for and issued before issued before such indictment has been found, in the like cases, in the same manner, and upon the same terms and conditions, as if such writ of certiorari had been applied for after such indictment had been found.

dictment is found.

In what cases such indictments may be tried at subsequent sessions.

Not to ex

tend to quo warranto

V. And be it further enacted, that from and after the passing of this act, where any person shall be prosecuted for any misdemeanor, by indictment at any session of the peace, session of oyer and terminer, great session, or session of gaol delivery, within that part of Great Britain called England, or in Ireland, not having been committed to custody or held to bail to appear to answer for such offence twenty days before the session at which such indictment shall be found, but who shall have been committed to custody or held to bail to appear to answer for such offence at some subsequent session, or shall have received notice of such indictment having been found twenty days before such subsequent session, he or she shall plead to such indictment at such subsequent session, and trial shall proceed thereupon at such same session of the peace, session of oyer and terminer, great session, or session of gaol delivery, respectively, unless a writ of certiorari for removing such indictment into his majesty's Courts of King's Bench at Westminster or in Dublin, respectively, shall be delivered at such last-mentioned session before the jury shall be sworn for such trial, any law or usage to the contrary notwithstanding.

VI. [Not to prevent indictments found by a grand jury of any city or town from being removed to an adjoining county to be tried.]

VIII. [In prosecutions by the attorney or solicitor general, copy of the information or indictment to be delivered to the party.]

IX. [In case such prosecution is not brought to trial within twelve calendar months, court may make an order thereon.]

X. And be it further enacted, that nothing in this act contained shall extend, or be construed to extend, to any actions, &c. prosecution by information in nature of a quo warranto, or for the non-repair of any bridge or highway.

7 & 8 Geo. 4, c. 28.

I. Whereas, trials for criminal offences, in that part of the united kingdom called England, are attended with some forms which frequently impede the due administration of justice; and it is therefore expedient to abolish such forms, and also to abolish the benefit of clergy, (see ante, title "Clergy,") and to make better provision for the punishment of offenders in certain cases: be it therefore enacted by the king's most excellent majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the lords spiritual and temporal, and commons, in this present parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, that if any person, not having privilege of A plea of peerage, being arraigned upon any indictment for treason, "Not felony, or piracy, shall plead thereto a plea of "not guilty," guilty," he shall, by such plea, without any further form, be deemed to have put himself upon the country for trial, and the put the court shall, in the usual manner, order a jury for the trial prisoner on his trial by of such person accordingly.

without

more, shall

jury.

court may

II. And be it enacted, that if any person, being arraigned If he refuses upon, or charged with, any indictment or information for to plead, treason, felony, piracy, or misdemeanor, shall stand mute order a plea of malice, or will not answer directly to the indictment or of "Not information, in every such case it shall be lawful for the guilty" court, if it shall so think fit, to order the proper officer to entered. enter a plea of "not guilty" on behalf of such person; and the plea so entered shall have the same force and effect as if such person had actually pleaded the same.

to be

III. And be it enacted, that if any person, indicted for Every chalany treason, felony, or piracy, shall challenge peremptorily lenge beyond the a greater number of the men returned to be of the jury than legal number such person is entitled by law so to challenge in any of the shall bevoid. said cases, every peremptory challenge, beyond the number allowed by law in any of the said cases, shall be entirely void, and the trial of such person shall proceed as if no such challenge had been made.

IV. And be it enacted, that no plea, setting forth any Attainder of attainder, shall be pleaded in bar of any indictment, unless the attainder be for the same offence as that charged in the indictment.

another crime not pleadable.

of

V. And be it enacted, that where any person shall be Jury shall indicted for treason or felony, the jury impanelled to try not inquire such person shall not be charged to inquire concerning his prisoner's lands, tenements, or goods, nor whether he fled for such treason or felony.

lands, &c.

586

UNNATURAL CRIMES.

9 Geo. 4, c. 31.

XV. Be it enacted, that every person convicted of the abominable crime of buggery, committed either with mankind or with any animal, shall suffer death as a felon. Note. For an important alteration in the law of evidence in these crimes, see ante, tit. " Rape."

Persons

tice on account of

being dangerons and

not be

bailed, ex

(one being

sions, or one of the judges.

WARRANT.

39 & 40 Geo. 3, c. 94.

III. For the better prevention of crimes being committed committed by persons insane, be it enacted, that if any person shall by any jus- be discovered and apprehended under circumstances that denote a derangement of mind, and a purpose of committing some crime, for which, if committed, such person would be liable to be indicted, and any of his majesty's justices of insane, shall the peace, before whom such person may be brought, shall think fit to issue a warrant for committing him or her as a cept by two dangerous person suspected to be insane, such cause of justices, commitment being plainly expressed in the warrant, the the justice person so committed shall not be bailed, except by two committing) justices of the peace, one whereof shall be the justice who or by the has issued such warrant, or by the court of general quarter quarter ses sessions, or by one of the judges of his majesty's courts in Westminster Hall, or by the lord chancellor, lord keeper, or commissioners of the great seal. Note.-A rule having been obtained on behalf of the prisoner, Robert Gourlay (who had been committed under the 39 & 40 Geo. 3, c. 90, s. 3), calling upon the committing magistrate to shew cause why a writ of habeas corpus should not issue to bring up the body of the prisoner, in order that he might be discharged, and the case coming on at a subsequent day to be argued, the following points were urged for the prisoner, by his counsel. The commitment in this case is illegal on two grounds: first, the warrant does not sufficiently express the cause of the commitment; secondly, it does not state that evidence of the facts alleged against the party have been gone into. With regard to

the first point, it may be premised that it is a settled rule, in cases of felony, that the warrant ought to state, with certainty, the cause of the commitment: 2 H. P. C. 122. The reason is, that if the party obtained a habeas corpus, it may appear to the judges before whom he is brought, whether the act with which he is charged amounted to felony or not: Grenville's case, ib. 213; see also, R. v. Cooper, 6 T. R. 509; R. v. Rhodes, 4 T. R., which was a case under the vagrant act; R. v. Brown, 8 T. R. 23. The rule is applicable, also, to commitments under the Bankrupt Act, and will, doubtless, extend to cases upon this act. The third section of this act expressly requires that the cause of commitment should be "plainly"