Jury to be sworn and informed of charge. Discharge of juror by Court. Defence by counsel. Presence of accused. Evidence in defence. Speeches by counsel. Criminal Code. discharged, or may order him to be kept in custody in such place and in such manner as the Court thinks fit, until he can be dealt with according to law. A person so found to be incapable of understanding the proceedings at the trial may be again indicted and tried for the offence. 611. THE jury are to be sworn to give a true verdict according to the evidence upon the issues to be tried by them. When the jury have been sworn, the proper officer of the Court is to inform them of the charge set forth in the indictment, and of their duty as jurors upon the trial. 612. IF, after a juror has been sworn, it appears to the Court from his own statement that he is not indifferent as between the Crown and the accused person, or that for any other reason he ought not to be allowed or required to act as a juror on the trial, the Court may, without discharging the whole of the jury, discharge that particular juror, and direct another juror to be sworn in his place. 613. EVERY person charged with an offence is entitled to make his defence at his trial and to have the witnesses examined and cross-examined by his counsel. The term "counsel " includes any person entitled to audience as an advocate. 614. THE trial must take place in the presence of the accused person, unless he so conducts himself as to render the continuance of the proceedings in his presence impracticable, in which case the Court may order him to be removed, and may direct the trial to proceed in his absence. Provided that the Court may, in any case, if it thinks fit, permit a person charged with a misdemeanour to be absent during the whole or any part of the trial on such conditions as it thinks fit. If the accused person absents himself during the trial without leave, the Court may direct a warrant to be issued to arrest him and bring him before the Court forthwith. 615. AT the close of the evidence for the prosecution the proper officer of the Court is required to ask the accused person whether he intends to adduce evidence in his defence. 616. BEFORE any evidence is given at the trial of an accused person the counsel for the Crown is entitled to address the jury for the Criminal Code. the purpose of opening the evidence intended to be adduced for the prosecution. If the accused person or any of the accused persons, if more than one, is defended by counsel, and if such counsel or any of such counsel says that he does not intend to adduce evidence, the counsel for the Crown is entitled to address the jury a second time for the purpose of summing up the evidence already given against such accused person or persons for whom evidence is not intended to be adduced. At the close of the evidence for the prosecution the accused person, and each of the accused persons, if more than one, may by himself or his counsel address the jury for the purpose of opening the evidence, if any, intended to be adduced for the defence, and after the whole of the evidence is given may again address the jury upon the whole case. If evidence is adduced for an accused person, the counsel for the Crown is entitled to reply. If evidence is adduced for one or more of several accused persons, but not for all of them, the counsel for the Crown is entitled to reply with respect to the person or persons by whom evidence is so adduced, but not with respect to the other or others of them. Provided that the Attorney General is entitled to reply in all cases, whether evidence is adduced by any accused person or not. 617. AFTER the evidence is concluded and the counsel or the accused person or persons, as the case may be, have addressed summing up. the jury, it is the duty of the Court to instruct the jury as to the law applicable to the case, with such observations upon the evidence as the Court thinks fit to make. After the Court has instructed the jury they are to consider their verdict. Jury not to 618. EXCEPT as hereinafter stated, after the jury have been sworn and the charge has been stated to them by the proper officer, separate. they must not separate until they have given their verdict or are discharged by the Court. And no person except the officer of the Court who has charge of them is to be allowed to speak to or communicate with any of them without the leave of the Court until they are discharged. Provided that on the trial of a person charged with any indictable offence other than a crime punishable with death, the Court may, in its discretion, permit the jury to separate before considering their verdict for such period during any adjournment of the trial as the Court may think fit. If Confinement of jury. View. Special verdict. General verdict on tion. Criminal Code. If any person disobeys the directions of this section he may be punished summarily as for contempt of Court. The validity of the proceedings is not affected by any such disobedience, but, if the fact is discovered before the verdict is given, the Court, if it is of opinion that such disobedience is likely to prejudice the fair trial of the charge, may discharge the jury, and may direct that a fresh jury be sworn during the same sittings of the Court, or may adjourn the trial. 619. WHILE the jury are kept together, and until they have given their verdict, they are to be kept, during any adjournment of the Court, and while they are considering their verdict, in some private place under the charge of an officer of the Court, and are to be provided with necessary fire and lights and with such reasonable refreshment, if any, as the Court may allow. 620. THE Court may in any case, if it thinks fit, direct that the jury shall view any place or thing which the Court thinks it desirable that they should see, and may give any necessary directions for that purpose. The validity of the proceedings is not affected by disobedience to any such directions, but, if the fact is discovered before the verdict is given, the Court, if it is of opinion that such disobedience is likely to prejudice the fair trial of the charge, may discharge the jury, and may direct that a fresh jury be sworn during the same sittings of the Court, or may adjourn the trial. 621. IN any case in which it appears to the Court that the question whether an accused person ought or ought not to be convicted of an offence may depend upon some specific fact, or that the proper punishment to be awarded upon conviction may depend upon some specific fact, the Court may require the jury to find that fact specially. 622. NOTWITHSTANDING the provisions of the last precharge of defama- ceding section, the jury, on the trial of a person charged with the unlawful publication of defamatory matter, may give a general verdict of guilty or not guilty upon the whole matter in issue in like manner as in other cases. Discharge of jury. 623. WHEN the trial of an accused person is adjourned after the jury have been sworn, the Court may discharge the jury. If the jury cannot agree as to the verdict to be given, or if any emergency arises of such a nature as to render it, in the opinion of the Court, necessary or highly expedient for the ends of justice to do so, the Court may, in its discretion, discharge the jury without giving Criminal Code. giving a verdict, and may direct that a fresh jury be sworn during the same sittings of the Court, or may adjourn the trial. Such an exercise of discretion is not subject to review by any Court. 624. IF the presiding Judge becomes incapable of proceeding with the trial or directing the discharge of the jury, it is the duty of some officer of the Court to discharge the jury. In any such case the accused person must remain in custody, and may be again put on his trial. But he has the same rights with respect to admission to bail as upon an original committal for trial for the offence with which he is charged, and any justice may, in a proper case, admit him to bail accordingly. 625. IF at any time during the trial a juror dies, or becomes, Incapacity of Judge. in the opinion of the Court, incapable of continuing to act as a juror, Incapacity of juror. the Court may, in its discretion, discharge the jury under the provisions herein before contained, or may, if it thinks fit, at the request of the accused person, and with the consent of the Crown, discharge the juror, if any, so becoming incapable, and direct that the trial shall proceed with the remaining jurors. In any such case the verdict of the remaining jurors, not being less than ten, shall have the same effect as if all the jurors had continued present. 626. THE taking of a verdict or any other proceeding of the Court is not invalid by reason of its happening on a Sunday. 627. THE proceedings upon an indictment for committing an offence after a previous conviction or convictions are required to be as follows, that is to say : (1.) The accused person is in the first instance, to be called (2.) If he pleads any plea which raises an issue to be tried by (4.) If he answers that he had been so previously convicted, (5.) If he denies that he had been so previously convicted, then Verdict on Sunday. Procedure on charge of an offence com mitted after previous conviction. Further pleas. Competency of accused persons and their husbands and wives to give evidence. Criminal Code. then to be charged to inquire concerning the previous conviction or convictions; and in that case it is not necessary that the jury should be sworn afresh, but the oath already taken by them is deemed to extend to such last-mentioned inquiry. Provided that, if on the trial of a person charged with a subsequent offence, he offers evidence of his good character, the Crown may, in answer thereto, and before any verdict is given, offer evidence of his conviction of the previous offence or offences, and in that case the jury are required to inquire concerning the previous conviction or convictions at the same time that they inquire concerning the subsequent offence. 628. WHEN the issues raised by any plea or pleas, except the plea of not guilty, have been found against an accused person who has not pleaded the plea of not guilty, he is to be called upon to plead afresh, and if those issues have been tried by a jury, the Court may direct the issues raised by any fresh plea to be tried by the same jury or by another jury. If the Court directs them to be tried by the same jury, it is not necessary that the jury should be sworn afresh; but the oath already taken by them is to be deemed to extend to the trial of such fresh issues. CHAPTER LXIV. EVIDENCE: PRESUMPTIONS OF FACT. 629. (1.) EXCEPT when in this Code it is otherwise provided every accused person, and the husband or wife of such person, is a competent but not compellable witness at every stage of the proceedings. But no accused person charged with an indictable offence(a.) May be called on behalf of the prosecution; or (b.) May be questioned on cross-examination as to his previous character or antecedents, without the leave of the Judge, unless (i.) The proof that he has committed, or been con- (ii.) He has personally, or by his advocate, asked (2.) |