The Sun.
London, England, 1848-04-22 00:00:00

RIOTS, UNLAWFUL ASSEMBLIES.
We give the following excellent charee to the grand
inquest, delivered some days since at the Oswestry
Quarter Sessions, by the Recorder, John Robert
Kenyon, Esq., ).C.L, and Vinerian Professor of
Common Law in the University of Oxford. It is
admirably adapted to the times, and :contains some
useful legal information on the duties and privileges
of special constables in cases of riot and disorder :
Gentlemen of the Grand Inquest,—l am truly
glad to see so many of you present here to-day ;at
the same time I am happy to congratulate you that
your labours will probably be very light. lam not
aware that there will be more than one case brought
before you, and that one—judging from the deposi-
tions before me—is of so simple a nature that
I did not think it requisite to make any ob-
servation to you respecting it. But still lam
rejoiced to see so good an assemblage of grand
jurymen; for, since this court last sat events
have happened which make it most important that
every good man should be forward to bear his part
in the administration of justice. You will, no doubt,
perceive that I allude to the disturbances which have
taken place on the continent of Europe, and which
have destroyed the peace, the trade, the commerce,
and wealth of the countries where they have occurred,
and the ultimate results of which no man can fore-
see. It is, however, only so far as the principles or
examples of the persons who are active in those dis•
turbances may affect us that I wish to allude to them
now. Already idle and dissolute persons, in some
parts of our country, have tried to excite in
it disturbances of a like kind, the effects of
which, if they succeed, would probably be the
ruin, misery, and wretchedness, of our land. It
is our duty to guard against this evil, and
to this point I wish to direct your attention.
Gentlemen, it is one especial part of the duty of all
Governments to protect the personal safety of
the individuals committed to their charge, and to
guard their property. Mindful of this duty, Eng-
land has from the earliest times to which we can trace
the history of its law, prohibited riots and unlawful
assemblies, provided means for their suppression and
prevention, and punished persons who have caused or
countenanced them. lam thankful to know that in
this borough and neighbourhood there has not only
been no disturbance, but that there is no probability
of one, and that, on the contrary, we have every hope
that, by God's mercy, we may retain the blessings of
peace and quiet which we have so long enjoyed.
Still, it may be that wicked and designing men may
come among us, and try, for their own selfish pur-
poses, to plant and encourage the growth of evil
principles, to cause discontent, and to excite the dis-
contented to disorder and riot. It may, therefore,
not be a misapplication of our time if I try to point
out to you, shortly and clearly, the nature of the
punishment and danger which persons incur by
joining themselves to a riotous assembly, and the
means which the law provides to prevent or suppress
riots, and to protect persons and property against
them. And first, as to rioters themselves, and those
who join them; it should be well understood that
every person who takes part with the rioters is
punishable as a principal rioter, and is answerable for
all the crimes to which the riot leads. For the riot
itself, even if no injury is done to persons or property,
he is subject to fine and imprisonment; but he may
become liable to more severe punishment. When a
riot begins no one one knows to what extent of crime
it may proceed. The burning and destruction of
property, murder, and high treason itself have been,
and may be, the consequences of riots begun without
any idea of such crimes ; and the rioter, and the per-
son who has joined him, at first perhaps from idle cu-
riosity, may both become liable to the punishment due
for crimes, from the very thought of which they might
have shrunk before, and may accordingly forfeit their
lives, or their liberty so long as their lives continue.
For the suppression of riots, the common law of
England, from the earliest times, provided conser-
vators, or keepers of the peace, and assigned to
them the duties which are now exercised by our
justices of the peace and peace officers ; and the Legis-
lature has from time to time made further provisions
for the like purpose ; and according to the law as it
now stands it is the especial duty of every justice
of the peace, of every sheriff and under-sheriff; of
every constable and other peace officer, to use all his
efforts to prevent or suppress a riot, and to arrest the
offenders. To enable them the better to do this
they are authorised to call upon and command all
other persons to help them in it ; and if any person
when so called upon refuses or neglects to obey, that
person will be subject to be fined and imprisoned.
Dut the officers and ministers of justice are not the
'only persons whose duty it is to interfere to suppress
riots ; every private person is authorised and is
bound- to do so to the utmost of his power. He may
do this by stopping those whom he may see engaged
in a riot from continuing their unlawful acts, or if he
sees any ene coming to join the rioters he may
turn them back and prevent them doing so. For the
purpose of thus suppressing a riot the law permits
persons, private persons as well as others, to arm
themselves and to use their arms if necessary; and
if in the honest and due exercise of their duty
they wound or kill any person, they are pro-
tected by the law and are blameless. This duty
of private persons to suppress riots is a duty
also incumbent upon soldiers. Soldiers are not
exempt from this duty or deprived of the protec-
tion I have mentioned in executing it, because they
have taken upon themselves the characters and duties
of soldiers ; their training and discipline will enable
them the better to perform it. I mention this par-
ticularly, because it has sometimes been supposed
that soldiers cannot act without the presence and
direction of a magistrate—a supposition which
is wholly wrong. Soldiers and private per-
sons may legally act, and ought to act,
to stop any riot which they may witness, though
there may be no magistrate to direct them.
At the same time, if any magistrate be present,
soldiers and private persons should act under his
directions ; and I advise them always to get, if possi-
ble, the presence and direction of a magistrate on such
occasions; hut, it they cannot get them, they are not
the less bound to prevent illegal acts being done.
I have now mentioned to you how the law punishes,
and the means it uses to suppress riots; but it also
tries to prevent their occurrence by forbidding and
punishing unlawful assemblies which may lead
to riot. These are forbidden and made punishable by
the common law, and also be the Act 1 George 1.,
st. 2, cap. 5, " For preventing tumults and riotous
assemblies" (commonly called the Riot Act), which
enacts that if any persons to the number of 12 or more,
being
unlawfully, riotously, and tumultuously assem-
bled together, to the disturbance of the public peace,
and being required by any justice of the peace
assembly for the place where the is, by proclama-
tion in the form prescrib-dby the Act, to dis-
perse, shall, notwithstanding the proclamation, con-
tinue together to the number of 12 or more for one
th
hour after such proclamation, then
of
felony,persons so
continuing together shall be guilty
which offence they are punishable (by 7w for
for life, or
1 Vict., c. 91) by transportation and
imprisonment for three years with hard' labour
and solitary confinement. But the law not only
r
Punishes persons who are parties to riots and
unlawful assemblies, when they occur, but it fur-
ther tries to prevent the occurrence of either. The
common law provides means for the purpose, and the
statute law has affirmed and strengthened the provi-
sions of the common law. It will be enough for our
present purpose to mention that, by the Act Ist and
2d William IV., c. 41, it has been enacted that in
cases where it shall be made to appear to any two
justices of the peace, on the oath of a credible wit-
ness, that any tumult, riot, or felony has taken pllace,
or may be reasonably apprehended at ny_ p ace
within the jurisdiction of those justices, and if those
justices shall be of opinion that the
ordinary
officers appointed for keeping the peace are not suffi-
cient for the protection of persons and property, then
those justices, or any other two justices for the same
jurisdiction, may appoint as many householders, or
other persons (not legally exempt) residing in the
place where the disturbance is apprehended, or its
neighbourhood or (by the Act 5 and 6 William
INT., C.
43) any other persons willing to
serve, to act as special constables for the
preservation of
the inhabitants, the peace, the protection of
Full powers re and the safety of property.
for the performance
to such special consta-
blesee of their duty, and full pro-
tection for what they do in the discharge of it ; and
any one who assaults or
it is subjected to very seriau resists them in discharging
that I should add that it is not
It is right
persons whom the justices are left
to the option of
upon, to act as special constables,
so to call
lnp
when required ; but any one who, when to
refuse to act
refuses to take the oath of a special c stabl so called on,
23 one, is subjected to penalties mentionedonei or to act
sta-
tutes. It is obvious that persons calledso in the
in some cases lose much time, and incur trouble,uPon may
perhaps expenses which they can ill inaff,,rd and
ing the call, and therefore the Act very obey-
ing
provides that reasonable allowances may beproperly
l msde for
such loss of time, trouble, and expense ; and th
special constables so appointed are to be provided
with everything necessary to enable them to die_
charge their duty. Thus you see that riots and
unlawful assemblies are forbidden and punished by
our laws; that persons who join them even from
motives of curiosity or idle fancy, without any
worse motive, subject themselves to punishment for
the crimes perpetrated in the riot which they
countenanced ; and you also see that it is the
bounden duty of every person to be earnest and active
in suppressing or preventing such riots and assemblies,
and that they have full authority and means for the
purpose, and full protection for doing so. If, then,
unhappily, ill-disposed persons come among us, or if,
still more unhappily, any among ourselves should be
led astray, and riots or unlawful assemblies occur,