398
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.
No. S. 226. The following Bills were read a first time at a meeting of the Council held on the 28th August, 1919:-
Short title.
Rules as to
A BILL
INTITULED
An Ordinance to amend the Law relating to Indictments in Criminal Cases, and matters incidental or similar thereto.
BE it enacted by the Governor of Hongkong, with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council thereof, as follows:-
1. This Ordinauce may be cited as the Indictments Ordinance, 1919.
2. The rules contained in the First Schedule to this indictments. Ordinance with respect to indictments shall have effect as (5 & 6 Geo. 5, if enacted in this Ordinance, but those rules may be added c. 90 s. 1.) to, varied, or annulled by further rules made by the Rule
Committee under this Ordinance.
Powers of Rule Com- mittee.
(Ibid s. 2.)
3.-(1.) There shall be established for the purposes. of this Ordinance a Rule Committee consisting of the Chief Justice, the Attorney General, the Registrar of the Supreme Court, the Senior Police Magistrate for the time being, and the President of the Law Society, three of whom shall form a quorum.
(2.) The Rule Committee shall have power from time to time to make rules varying or annulling the rules con- tained in the First Schedule to this Ordinance and to make further rules with respect to the matters dealt with in those rules, and those rules shall have effect subject to any modifications or additions so made.
(3.) Any rules made by the Rule Committee shall be laid, as soon as may be, before the Legislative Council, and if that Council disapproves of such rules or any of them the rules so disapproved of shall thenceforth be void, but with- out prejudice to the validity of anything done thereunder.
General pro
4.-(1) Every indictment shall contain, and shall be visions as sufficient if it contains, a statement of the specific offence indictments. or offences with which the accused person is charged, (Ibid s. 3.) together with such particulars as may be necessary for giving reasonable information as to the nature of the charge.
Joinder of charges in the same indictment.
(Ibid s. 4.)
(9 of 1899 s. 19 (4).)
Orders for
of indict-
ment, sepa- rate trial.
(2.) Notwithstanding any rule of law or practice, an indictment shall, subject to the provisions of this Ordinance, not be open to objection in respect of its form or contents if it is framed in accordance with the rules under this Ordinance.
5.-(1.) Subject to the provisions of the rules under this Ordinance, charges for more than one felony or for more than one misdemeanour, and charges for both felonies and mis- demeanours, may be joined in the same indictment, but where a felony is tried together with any misdemeanour, the jury shall be sworn and the person accused shall have the same right of challenging jurors as if all the offences charged in the indictment were felonies.
(2.) If one sentence is passed upon any verdict of guilty on an indictment containing more counts than one, the sentence shall be good if any of the counts upon which such verdict has been returned would have justified such
sentence.
6.-(1.) Where, before trial, or at any stage of a trial, amendment it appears to the Court that the indictment is defective, the Court shall make such order for the amendment of the indictment as the Court thinks necessary to meet the cir- cumstances of the casc, unless, having regard to the merits ponement of of the case, the required amendments cannot be made without injustice, and may make such order as to the payment of any costs incurred owing to the necessity for amendment as the Court thinks fit.
and post-
trial.
(5 & 6 Geo. 5,
c. 90 s. 5.)