300. In cases tried by jury, after the Judge has finished Retirehis charge, the jury may retire to consider their verdict. Except with the leave of the Court, no person other than a juror shall speak to, or hold any communication with, any member of such jury. ment to 301. When the jury have considered their verdict, the Delivery of foreman shall inform the Judge what is their verdict, or what is the verdict of a majority. verdict. 302. If the jury are not unanimous, the Judge may require Procedure where jury them to retire for further consideration. After such a period differ. as the Judge considers reasonable, the jury may deliver their verdict, although they are not unanimous. 303. Unless otherwise ordered by the Court, the jury shall Verdict return a verdict1 on all the charges on which the accused is on each charge. tried, and the Judge may ask them such questions as are Questionnecessary to ascertain what their verdict is2. Such questions and the answers to them shall be recorded. ing jury. Questions & answers verdict. 304. When by accident or mistake a wrong verdict is recorded. delivered, the jury may, before or immediately after it is re- Amending corded, amend the verdict, and it shall stand as ultimately amended. 305. When in a case tried before a High Court the jury Verdict in High are unanimous in their opinion, or when as many as six are of Court one opinion and the Judge agrees with them, the Judge shall when to prevail. give judgment in accordance with such opinion. When in any such case the jury are satisfied that they will not be unanimous, but six of them are of one opinion, the foreman shall so inform the Judge. If the Judge disagrees with the majority, he shall at once Discharge discharge the jury. of jury If there are not so many as six who agree in opinion, the cases. Judge shall, after the lapse of such time as he thinks reasonable, discharge the jury. I in any form they think fit, 8 Ben. 557, 563. 221 Suth. Cr. 1, and see 9 Cal. 53. But he should not make minute inquiries to learn the nature of the majority and its opinion, so that he Verdict in Court of Session when to prevail. Procedure where Sessions Judge dis agrees with ver dict. Re-trial of accused after dis 306. When in a case tried before the Court of Session the Judge does not think it necessary to express disagreement with the verdict of the jurors or with a majority of the jurors, he shall give judgment accordingly. If the accused is acquitted, the Judge shall record judgment of acquittal. If the accused is convicted, the Judge shall pass sentence on him according to law. 307. If in any such case the Sessions Judge disagrees with the verdict of the jurors, or of a majority of the jurors, on all or any of the charges on which the accused has been tried, so completely that he considers it necessary for the ends of justice to submit the case to the High Court1, he shall submit the case accordingly, recording the grounds of his opinion, and, when the verdict is one of acquittal, stating the offence which he considers to have been committed. Whenever the Judge submits a case under this section, he shall not record judgment of acquittal or of conviction on any of the charges on which the accused has been tried, but he may either remand the accused to custody or admit him to bail. In dealing with the case so submitted the High Court may exercise any of the powers which it may exercise on an appeal2; but it may acquit or convict the accused of any offence of which the jury could have convicted him upon the charge framed and placed before it; and, if it convicts him, may pass such sentence as might have been passed by the Court of Session 3. G.-Re-trial of Accused after Discharge of Jury. 308. Whenever the jury is discharged, the accused shall be detained in custody or on bail (as the case may be), and shall charge of be tried by another jury, unless the Judge considers that he jury. 1 2 Bom. 526, 527. 2 11 Ben. 19. It may, for example, send for additional evidence and deal with the case generally; see chap. xxxi. 3 This casts the functions both of the Judge and the jury on the High Court, and thus differentiates its position very widely from that of the superior Courts in England, 1 Bom. 12, 13, per West J., on the corre sponding clause of Act X of 1872. Nevertheless, the High Court should not set aside the verdict of a jury unless it be perverse and patently wrong, or may have been induced by an error of the Judge, ibid. See 9 Cal. 53 11 Cal. 85: 10 Bom. 497. That a trial is not 'concluded' until judgment and sentence are passed, see 9 All. 424, and L. R., 9 Q. B. 350. should not be re-tried, in which case the Judge shall make an entry to that effect on the charge, and such entry shall operate as an acquittal. H.-Conclusion of Trial in Cases tried with Assessors. 309. When, in a case tried with the aid of assessors, Delivery the case for the defence and the prosecutor's reply (if any) ions of of opinare concluded, the Court may sum up the evidence for the assessors. prosecution and defence1, and shall then require each of the assessors to state his opinion orally, and shall record such opinion 3. The Judge shall then give judgment; but in doing so shall Judgment. not be bound to conform to the opinions of the assessors. If the accused is convicted, the Judge shall pass sentence on him according to law. I.-Procedure in Case of previous Conviction. in case of 310. In the case of a trial by jury or with the aid of asses- Procedure sors, where the accused is charged with an offence committed after a previous conviction for any offence, the procedure laid convic 17 Ben. 63. The object of this provision is to enable the Sessions Judge in long or intricate cases to place the evidence in an intelligible form so as to assist the assessors in arriving at a reasonable conclusion, 9 Cal. 876. Although there was and is no provision requiring the Judge to charge the assessors or lay down the law, the High Court of Madras (4 Mad. H. C., Rulings, vii) thought that, in cases turning on the evidence of an accomplice, the Judge should inform the assessors, first, that there is no rule of law prohibiting the conviction of an offender upon the uncorroborated evidence of an accomplice; secondly, that, as a general rule, it is considered unsafe to convict upon such evidence; and, thirdly, to point at any circumstances in the particular case which, in the opinion of the Judge, afford a sufficient reason for relying upon the evidence in that case. So in capital cases, the Judge should explain the difference between culpable homicide 2 The Court should not receive the 3 He must record the grounds of each assessor's opinions, 3 Suth. Cr. 6, whether the prisoner is acquitted or convicted. Secus 7 Bom. H. C., Cr. Ca. 82 (1870). Not necessarily at once; see sec. 366, infra. previous tion. Jurors' book. Exemption of special jurors. Number of special jurors. Lists of common down in sections 271, 286, 305, 306 and 309 shall be modified (a) The part of the charge stating the previous conviction (b) If he pleads guilty to, or is convicted of, the subsequent offence, he shall then be asked whether he has been previously convicted as alleged in the charge. (c) If he answers that he has been so previously convicted the Judge may proceed to pass sentence on him accordingly; but, if he denies that he has been so previously convicted, or refuses to, or does not, answer such question, the jury or the Court and the assessors (as the case may be) shall then inquire concerning such previous conviction, and in such case (where the trial is by jury) it shall not be necessary to swear the jurors again1. J.-List of Jurors for High Court, and summoning Jurors 311. In each Presidency-town, the jurors' book for the Those persons whose names are entered in the jurors' book as being liable to serve on special juries only shall be deemed to be persons privileged and liable to serve only as special jurors under this chapter during the year for which the said list has been prepared. 312. The names of not more than four2 hundred persons shall at any one time be entered in the special jurors' list. 313. The Clerk of the Crown shall, before the first day of April in each year, and subject to such rules as the High cial jurors. Court from time to time prescribes 3, prepare— and spe 1 Cf. 6 & 7 Will. IV, c. 111 (Archbold, p. 1030), by which this section was suggested. 2 Act V of 1887, sec. 2. 3 See Fort St. George Gazette, Supplement, 25th April, 1876. (a) a list of all persons liable to serve as common jurors; and (6) a list of persons liable to serve as special jurors only. Regard shall be had, in the preparation of the latter list, to the property, character and education of the persons whose names are entered therein. No person shall be entitled to have his name entered in the special jurors' list merely because he may have been entered in the special jurors' list for a previous year. The Governor General in Council in the case of the High Court at Calcutta, and, in the case of other High Courts, the Local Government, may exempt any salaried officer of Government from serving as a juror. of officer The Clerk of the Crown shall, subject to such rules as Discretion aforesaid, have full discretion to prepare the said lists as seems preparing to him to be proper, and there shall be no appeal from, or lists. review of, his decision. tion of lists, pre and re 314. Preliminary lists of persons liable to serve as common Publicajurors and as special jurors, respectively, signed by the Clerk of the Crown, shall be published once in the local official Gazette liminary before the fifteenth day of April next after their preparation. vised. Revised lists of persons liable to serve as common jurors and special jurors, respectively, signed as aforesaid, shall be published once in the local official Gazette before the first day of May next after their preparation. Copies of the said lists shall be affixed to some conspicuous part of the Court-house. 315. Out of the persons named in the revised lists aforesaid, Number there shall be summoned for each sessions in each Presidency- be sumof jurors to town at least twenty-seven of those who are liable to serve moned in on special juries, and fifty-four of those who are liable to serve dencyon common juries. Presi town. No person shall be so summoned more than once in six months unless the number cannot be made up without him. If, during the continuance of any sessions, it appears that Supplethe number of persons so summoned is not sufficient, such summons. number as may be necessary of other persons liable to serve as aforesaid shall be summoned for such sessions. mentary |