The Sun.
London, England, 1835-02-03 00:00:00

LAW NOTICES.

NORTHERN CIRCUIT.
Before Mr. Baron PA RK E and Mr. Baron AT.nitRS 0 N.
Du aHA it—Saturday, Feb. 23, at Durham.
No RT um BE RLA ND—Wednesday, March 4, at Newcastle-on-
Tyne.

'TOWN OF NEWCASTLE—Wednesday, March 4.
CUMBEILLA ND—Monday, March 9, at Carlisle.
WESTMORELAND—Thursday, March 12, at Appleby.
LA NcAsniaz—Saturday, March 14, at Lancaster.
YORKSHIRE—Saturday, March 28, at York.

DEFECTS IN THE CENTRAL

CRIMINAL COURT.

It has excited a good deal of sgrprise that so few pri-
soners are committed for trial in ilhd • above Court by the
Magistrates of Essex, Kent, and Surrey, part of which
counties it has jurisdiction over, as well as the whole of the
county of Middlesex.

Three sessions have been held since the Act came into
operation, yet there have not been more than 50'from the
three counties, and one of the calendars was blank as to the
county of Essex, so that at present the benefits anticipated
to result from this alteration of the metropolitan criminal.
jurisprudence remain to be realized.
Upon investigation it has heen discovered that some
parts of the statute upon which the Court is established are
defective, and particularly so in two instances which are
here noted. When the second or amended Bill was taken
into the House of Commons it contained the following (the
9th) clause :—" And be it further enacted that the justices.
of the peace acting in and for the City of London and the
counties of Middlesex, Surrey, Kent, and Essex, shall not
at their general quarter session of the peace, or at any
adjournment thereof, inquire of, hear, determine, or try any
offence committed or alleged to have been committed within.
the limits of this Act, for which the offender may, if con-
victed, be liable to a greater punishment than transportation
beyond the seas for the term of seven years."
This clause was eventually struck out ul7on the motion of
the Marquis of Chandos, and the Legislature were pleased to
substitute another in its stead (wb-2:eil forms the 19th section
of the act), in which the raimus offences are enumerated
which the magistrates
that the 'are incompetent to try, and which re-
cites;,:istices shall not try the following offences if
or alleged to be committed, within the limits
this act :—" That is to say, housebreaking, stealing
above the value of .5/. in dwelling-houses, horse-steal-
ing, sheep-stealing, cattle-stealing, maliciously woi:aiding
cattle, bigamy, forgery, perjury, conspiracy, as Ault with
intent to commit a felony, administering poison with
intent to do bodily harm, administering drugs with in-
tent to cause or procure abortion, manslaughter, destroying
or damaging ships, the breaking of shops, warehouses, &c.,
killing sheep with intent to steal the carcases, the uttering of
all kinds of forged instruments," &c. There are also several
other offences named, but it is singular enough that that which
is the most prevalent in the metropolis is entirely omitted,
although it subjects the party convicted to be transported for
life—viz., " stealing from the person," or what is generally
termed " street robberies." Under these circumstances, an
application will be made to Parliament to add a rider to the
Act, and introduce the words " stealing from the person,"
and expunge from the 17th section the words " within the
limits of this Act," whereby it is said the existing defect
will be cured. There is also another circumstance connected
with the statute which has already been the cause of consi-
derable embarrassment to the Magistrates. It is a matter
of frequent occurrence that persons who have been con-
victed of felony commit a second offence after the expira-
tion of their term of imprisonment, and are thereupon
brought to justice, and should they be convicted, the law
awards transportation for 14 years, the certificate of the
former conviction being placed upon the record—hence this
becomes an offence which the justices of the peace are in-
competent to try. It follows, therefore, that magistrates
ought not to send any case of larceny, however trifling, to
the quarter session, because in most cases it is impossible
for them to know whether the prisoner has or has tot been
previously convicted. This is another defect wbicli must
be speedily remedied, otherwsie the purposes of the act be-
come inoperative.