201547-1933-Supplementary-Draft-Bill--Criminal-Procedure-Amendment — Page 6

227

as to

in capital cases, cases reserved and appeal cases. It has been the practice to so assign them in capital cases only. Provision is now made for some extension of the practice so correspond with the provision made in England by section 10 of the Criminal Appeal Act, 1907, and in the Straits Settle- ments by section 12 of Ordinance No. 5 of 1931.

5. Section 3 of the amending Ordinance introduces new headings and sections 78A, 78B and 78C into the principal Ordinance. Section 78, which provided for reservation of questions of law, is retained as it enables the judge to reserve a question either on his own motion or at the request of either party. The new sections 78A and 78C enact, generally, the provisions of sections 3, 4, 5, 6 (2), 7, 9, 11 and 14 of the Criminal Appeal Act, 1907, except that the Full Court is given, as under section 78, power to direct a new trial and that the provision against separate judgments is derived from section 3 (6) of the Straits Settlements Ordinance, No. 5 of 1931. Another material variation from the model appears in the new section 78A (1) (c) where the words "or upon the certi- ficate of the judge who tried him" have been inserted at the suggestion of the judges who consider that the trial judge should have the power to issue such a certificate.

6. The Court which will hear the criminal appeal will be the Full Court as defined and constituted by the Full Court Ordinances No. 27 of 1912 and No. 35 of 1931 which are being consolidated and amended, under another bill which has been approved by the Secretary of State in his despatch of the 24th August, 1932.

7. Section 4 of the amendment Ordinance repeals sections 68 and 109 of the principal Ordinance the effect of which has been preserved in the new sections 10 and 78B.

November, 1932.

C. G. ALABASTER,

Attorney General.