CO129-475 - Governor Sir Stubbs & Acting Governor Claud Severn - 1922 [5-7] — Page 109

CO129 Colonial Office Hong Kong Records 理藩院香港檔案 All

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The unus Tending of the trial came about in this wis. The Uniet Justice, in: his suraming-up, had told the Jury that, as between the stories of the prosecution and of the defence, there was complete conflict and they had to decide which they would accept. The Judge also said: "It you think Capt. Morgan's story, corro- borated as it now is by Mr. Larking as well as other witnesses, is a truthful story you will find the prisoner guilty.'

After they had been in consultation for half-an-hour, the Jury returned to the Court and the Judge said to the Foreman (Mr. H. W. Bird), "You wish to ask me something

The Foreman: Yes, my Lord. We understood you to say that if we have, no reasonable doubt that the man Captain Morgan saw leaving the rear of the rick lan i the prisoner in the dock we can find him guilty."

The Chief Justice: That is, exactly what I did say.

The Forenian: Irrespective of whether he saw him fire the shot, or not?

The Chief Justice: Taking the whole of Capt. Morgan's evidence, if you have no reason to doubt the truth of it, you should find him guilty.

Mr. Jeakin: Irrespective of whether he fired the shot or not?

After a brief consultation with the Jury, in the box, the Foreman indicated that they were ready to give their ver- diet.

The Clerk of the Court: Are you un- animous ?

The Foreman : Yes.

Do you find the prisoner guilty or not guilty?

“GUILTY,” replied the Foreman in firm and steady tones.

APPLICATION BY THE DEFENCE.

Mr. Jenkia was on his feet immediately. My Lord." he said, "I must ask you to entertain an application. I trust it will meet with greater favour than the one I made in the course of the trial. I move an arrest of judgment on three grounds and nak your Lordship to re- serve the point for legal argument. The first ground is misreception of the eri- dence of Mr. Larkins after the closing of the Crown case."

The Chief Justice: But you agreed to it!

Mr. Jenkin: I will explain the cireur stances under which I agroed. Your Lordship refused when I applied that the point should be argued under Section 68 of the Code of Procedure. Considerable! argument ensued and your Lordships; said you would consult your learned brother (the Puiste Judge) in Chambers. I then, as your Lordship refused to reserve it, considered that I was driven into with drawal of the objection because of the fact that the effect of this evidence had been, to some extent, stated in the hear- ing of the Jury,

The second point is that there was handed to the Bench by the Attorney- General a police report, or statement taken by the police, of one of the wit. nesses for the Crown whose evidence was favourable to the defence and which was consistent, here, with every word he said in the Police Court. That statement was read by the Bench

The Chief Justice: No, Mr. Jenkin, it was cot, I did not read it.

Mr. Jenkin: My Lord, I am sorry- The Chief Justice: I have not the faintest idea what it is. I did not read it and I rejected it.

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Mr. Jenkin: If your Lordship did not read it, I accept that fact without moment's beaitation, I was under the impression that your Lordship did.

The Chief Justice: With regard to the point as to Mr. Larkin's evidence, I offered, as I told you at the time, to con- sider the matter and to confer with my learned brother, but I quite understood the position which you took. It was that, having regard to the fact that the Attorney-General had mentioned the ad. ditional evidence, the Jury might infer the import of it and hence you thought it desirable it should go in; if you in- sistod on your objection I might have decided to exclude it. I understood you waived it.

Mr. Jenkin: I did not waive it. It was admittedly a novel and now point of law. I was driven, as a matter of strategy-I think you appreciated that- into the position I took up.

Thee is my third point (continued Mr. Jenkin) and that is this: A mis-direction by your Lordship to the Jury when they returned just now and asked whether they understood what a direction was. The misdirection is this: Your Lord- ship's direction to them was: If they had no reasonable doubt that the pris- oner was the man who left the rear of the ricksha they were to find him guilty, whether or not they could find that he fired the shot.

The Chief Justice: I said, "taking the circumstances as a whole; the evi- dence as a whole."

Mr. Jenkin: The question of the Fore man was "irrespective of whether or not he saw him fre?" and your Lordship lay back in your chair and said, "Yea tak- ing all the circumstances into effect." So that the Jury were thereby invited to find him guilty merely on the ground that he left the rear of the ricksha.

Th Chief Justice: I understood the question to be-(to the Foreman)--Kindly inform me of your question again.

The Foreman: What we were in doubt about was as to whether you said that if wo were satisfied, beyond reasonable doubt, that the man who left the rear of the ricksha and who was chased by Capt. Morgan-if he is the man in the dock-then we were to God him guilty irrespective of whether Capt. Morgan saw him fire the shot.

The Chief Justice: "Actually saw him fire" in other words, whether you are satisfied that Capt. Morgan's evidence iş correct that the prisoner is the man whom

chased, whom he followed up as being the man who fired.

The Attorney-General: May I say, Capt. Morgan did not say he saw the shot fired at all.

Mr. Jenkin: No; he merely surmised hat he had fired the shot.

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