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31. The application should be made by the Chief Constable, and should be in the following form:—
SIR,
PRISON ACT, 1898, S. 11.
APPLICATION FOR PRODUCTION OF A PRISONER.
I hereby make application for the production of a prisoner, as follows:--
Name of prisoner
(ie., name under which he is now in prison).
Prison in which confined..
Particulars of the commitment to
prison, showing Court, date, offence; sentence or order of Court. If the committal is for trial, state also Court of trial and probable date. Place, Court, date and time at which production is desired .. Name under which prisoner will be
charged, etc.
Particulars of case in connection"
with which production is de- sired.
Reasons for asking that prisoner
may be produced specially during present imprisonment instead of being dealt with later.
Witnesses for the Defence.
32. Prison Governors are instructed to ask all undefended prisoners awaiting trial, at a reasonable interval beforehand, whether they wish to obtain any witnesses for their defence, and are also instructed to forward at once any letters which prisoners wish to send with this object in view. The Governors are prepared to inform the Court that this information has been given and to name any witnesses the accused has desired to be present at his trial.
33. The Police should assist in obtaining the attendance of a witness whose presence may be desired by a prisoner, by informing him of the prisoner's request, and of the time and place of trial, and by giving such further assistance as may be possible in order to meet the prisoner's wishes.
34. Should it be found impossible in any case to communicate with a person named as a witness, the Prison Governor should be informed as soon as possible.
35. Care should be taken to avoid giving prisoners the impression that the Police are in any way responsible for the attendance of wit- nesses who have not been summoned to attend and give evidence.
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The Police have no power to enforce the attendance of such witnesses or to pay the expenses that may be incurred, and they should not be taken from their ordinary duties for the purpose of tracing and attempt- ing to bring into Court witnesses who have disappeared or who may be reluctant or unwilling to appear.
36. It is, however, the duty of a police officer entrusted with the inquiries in any criminal case to bring before the Court, so far as he is able, the whole facts of the case, and not merely those points which make for a conviction. It is, therefore, right that, within the limits above indicated, the police officer should assist in procuring the attend- ance of witnesses for the defence if their evidence is likely to be of any value in the case.
Interference with Jurors.
37. If the Police have reason to suspect that an attempt will be or has been made to influence a jury, they should communicate with the Judge, Chairman or Recorder. In a case of felony the Court has a discretion, under the Jurors Detention Act, 1897, not to allow the jurors to separate during the trial.
Antecedents of Convicted Prisoners.
38. After a prisoner's conviction, it is usual for the Police to inform the Court of his general character and antecedents, and it is of the utmost importance that the information so given should be full and trustworthy. Nothing should be omitted that is in favour of the prisoner, and, in making inquiries for the purpose of informing the Court, the Police should bear in mind that it is their duty to obtain as reliable information as possible, and to direct their attention to obtain- ing information in the prisoner's favour as well as against him. Nothing should be said to a prisoner's prejudice which the officer is not able to substantiate.
39. At the hearing of an appeal by Douglas Campbell on the 13th February, 1911, the Lord Chief Justice in the Court of Criminal Appeal made the following observations on this matter :—
CC
We have been asked to say something about the practice of police officers giving the judge the result of their inquiries about prisoners. In ordinary circumstances we should not accede to such a request, but as the matter has recently been under the consideration of the Judges and the Home Office, we think it right to do so. For many years it has been known that after the conviction of a prisoner it is the duty of some responsible officer of police to tell the Court what he knows about the prisoner as the result of inquiry, where it would involve great difficulty and expense to prove the facts by legal evidence. . . . Some years ago I
gave instructions that
on all Circuits steps should be taken to place accurate informa- tion of this character before the Court. The practice has been recognised by statute in section 10 (5) of the Prevention of Crime Act, 1908: that section was inserted in order to adapt to the procedure under that Act for the conviction of
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