Part 16 Miscellaneous enactments
564 No Court fees to be taken in criminal cases
It shall not be lawful to receive any Court fees, for the issuing of process on behalf of a person charged with felony, or misdemeanour, in any Court, or before any Justice, nor to receive a fee from any such person, for taking a recognizance, or issuing any writ, or recording any appearance, or plea to an indictment, or discharging any recognizance.Editorial note. So much of section as relates to proceedings before any Justice repealed: Act No 14, 1904, Sch.
565 Power of Courts to bring prisoners before them
Every Court or Judge, for the purposes of any trial or prosecution, shall have power, by order in writing directed to any gaoler, to cause any prisoner to be brought before such Court or Judge, under secure conduct, in order to be tried, or examined, or to give evidence, before such Court or Judge, or before any other court, or any Justice, and immediately after such prisoner’s trial, or examination, or his having so given evidence, to be returned to his former custody:Provided that nothing in this section shall affect the power of a Court of Gaol Delivery, sitting for the delivery of a gaol, to cause any prisoner therein to be brought before it for any purpose without order in writing.
565A Bail Act 1978 to prevail
The Bail Act 1978 shall prevail to the extent of any inconsistency between that Act and this Act.
566 Witnesses neglecting to attend trial captured under warrant may be admitted to bail
Where a person bound by recognizance, or served with a subpoena, to attend as a witness in any Court at a trial, who has failed to appear when called in open Court, either at such trial, or on the day appointed for such trial, has been captured under a warrant issued by such Court, bail may be taken before any Justice for his appearance at the trial.
567 Supreme Court rules may prescribe forms of indictments etc
Without limiting the rule-making powers conferred by the Supreme Court Act 1970 rules may from time to time be made under that Act framing and prescribing forms of indictments, records, informations, depositions, convictions, warrants, recognizances, and proceedings, in all Courts, and before all Justices, in respect of any of the offences and matters mentioned in this Act, and every such form, so prescribed, shall thereafter be sufficient for the purpose, and be deemed sufficiently to state the offence, or matter, for, or in respect of which, it is framed.
567A Counts for felonies and misdemeanours in one indictment
An indictment may contain counts for felonies or misdemeanours or both.
573 Provision for wife where husband convicted of aggravated assault
In every case of aggravated assault by a husband on his wife, where a declaration is made under section 60, to the effect therein mentioned, any Judge may at any time make an order or orders, which may be varied by any Judge from time to time, as to the legal custody of the children of the marriage, and also as to the payment by the husband to the wife, or some person for her use, after the expiration of his sentence, of a weekly or monthly sum for her support.Every such last-mentioned order may be enforced in the same manner as any order under the Maintenance Act 1964.
574 Prosecutions for blasphemy
No person shall be liable to prosecution in respect of any publication by him orally, or otherwise, of words or matter charged as blasphemous, where the same is by way of argument, or statement, and not for the purpose of scoffing or reviling, nor of violating public decency, nor in any manner tending to a breach of the peace.
574A Information etc for obscene or blasphemous libel
(1) It shall not be necessary to set out in an information, indictment or criminal proceeding instituted against the publisher of an obscene or blasphemous libel the obscene or blasphemous passages.(2) It shall be sufficient to deposit the book, newspaper or other document containing the alleged libel with the information, indictment or criminal proceedings, together with particulars showing precisely, by reference to pages, columns and lines, in what part of the book, newspaper or other document the alleged libel is to be found.(3) The particulars under subsection (2) shall be deemed to form part of the record.(4) All proceedings may be taken thereon as though the passages complained of had been set out in the information, indictment or proceeding.
It shall be lawful for a person to use such force as may reasonably be necessary to prevent the suicide of another person or any act which the person believes on reasonable grounds would, if committed, result in that suicide.
575 Misappropriation of corn etc by servants
No servant who, contrary to the orders of his master, takes any food being his master’s property for the purpose of its being given to any animal in the possession of his master, shall by reason thereof be guilty of an indictable offence, but shall be liable to be dealt with under any Act for the time being in force, regulating the duties and liabilities of masters and servants.
576 Indecent exposure of the person
Every indecent exposure of the person which is punishable at Common Law or by Statute if seen by two or more persons, shall be equally an offence and punishable if such exposure was, or could have been, seen by one person.
In any criminal proceeding, if it is made to appear to the Court:(a) that a fair or unprejudiced trial cannot otherwise be had, or(b) that for any other reason it is expedient so to do,the Supreme Court may change the venue, and direct the trial to be had in such other district, or at such particular place, as the Court thinks fit, and may for that purpose make all such orders as justice appears to require.
578 Publication of evidence may be forbidden in certain cases
(1) Any Judge presiding at the trial of any person for an offence under section 61B, 61C, 61D, 61E, 63, 65, 65A, 66, 66A, 66B, 66C, 66D, 66F, 67, 68, 71, 72, 72A, 73, 74, 76, 76A, 78A, 78B, 78H, 78I, 78K, 78L, 78M, 78N, 78O, 78Q, 79, 80, 81, 81A, 81B, 86, 87, 89, 90, 91A, 91B, 91D, 91E, 91F or 91G or an offence of attempting, or of conspiracy or incitement, to commit an offence under any of those sections may at any stage of the trial and from time to time make an order forbidding publication of the evidence therein or any report or account of that evidence either as to the whole or portions thereof:Provided that if the accused or counsel for the Crown indicates to the Judge that it is desired that any particular matter given in evidence should be available for publication, no such order shall be made in respect of that matter.
(1A) (Repealed)(2) Any person who commits a breach of an order made under this section shall, on conviction before two Justices, be liable to a penalty of two thousand dollars.(3) The provisions of this section are subject to any Act or law under which evidence relating to a child under the age of 18 years, or a report or account of that evidence, may not be published.(4) A reference in this section to the Judge presiding at a trial includes a reference to a Justice presiding at committal proceedings.
578A Prohibition of publication identifying victims of certain sexual offences
(1) In this section:complainant, in relation to any proceedings, means the person, or any of the persons, upon whom a prescribed sexual offence with which the accused person stands charged in those proceedings is alleged to have been committed.
matter includes a picture.
publish includes broadcast by radio or television.
(2) A person shall not publish any matter which identifies the complainant in prescribed sexual offence proceedings or any matter which is likely to lead to the identification of the complainant.Penalty: In the case of an individual—50 penalty units or imprisonment for 6 months, or both; in the case of a corporation—500 penalty units.
(3) This section applies even though the prescribed sexual offence proceedings have been finally disposed of.(4) This section does not apply to:(a) a publication authorised by the Judge or Justice presiding in the proceedings concerned,(b) a publication made with the consent of the complainant (being a complainant who is of or over the age of 14 years at the time of publication),(c) a publication authorised by the Attorney General under section 11 of the Children (Criminal Proceedings) Act 1987 in respect of a complainant who is under the age of 14 years at the time of publication,(d) an official law report of the prescribed sexual offence proceedings or any official publication in the course of, and for the purposes of, those proceedings,(e) the supply of transcripts of the prescribed sexual offence proceedings to persons with a genuine interest in those proceedings or for genuine research purposes, or(f) a publication made after the complainant’s death.(5) A Judge or Justice shall not authorise a publication under subsection (4) (a) unless the Judge or Justice:(a) has sought and considered any views of the complainant, and(b) is satisfied that the publication is in the public interest.(6) The prohibition contained in this section applies in addition to any other prohibition or restriction imposed by law on the publication of any matter relating to prescribed sexual offence proceedings.(7) Proceedings for an offence against this section shall be dealt with summarily before:(a) a Local Court constituted by a Magistrate sitting alone, or(b) the Supreme Court in its summary jurisdiction.(8) If proceedings for an offence against this Act are brought before a Local Court, the maximum penalty that the Local Court may impose on a corporation is 50 penalty units.
579 Evidence of proceedings dealt with by way of recognizance after 15 years
(1) Where, following the conviction of any person for an offence or a finding that a charge of an offence has been proved against any person, whether the conviction or finding was before or after the commencement of the Crimes (Amendment) Act 1961:(a) sentence in respect of the conviction was suspended or deferred upon the person entering into a recognizance or, in substitution for sentence in respect of the conviction, the person was required to enter into a recognizance, or no conviction in respect of the finding was made and the person was discharged conditionally on his entering into a recognizance, and(b) a period of fifteen years has elapsed since the recognizance was entered into:the conviction or finding shall, where that period expired before the commencement of the Crimes (Amendment) Act 1961, as on and from that commencement, or, where that period expires or has expired after that commencement, as on and from the expiration of that period:(i) without the recognizance having been forfeited during that period or a court having found during that period that the person failed to observe any condition of the recognizance, and(ii) without the person having, during that period, been convicted of an indictable offence on indictment or otherwise or of any other offence punishable by imprisonment (otherwise than under section 82 of the Justices Act 1902 as amended by subsequent Acts) or without a finding during that period that a charge of such an indictable or other offence has been proved against the person,(c) be disregarded for all purposes whatsoever, and(d) without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (c), be inadmissible in any criminal, civil or other legal proceedings as being no longer of any legal force or effect.Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provisions of this section, any question asked of or concerning that person in or in relation to any criminal, civil or other legal proceedings otherwise than by his counsel, attorney or agent or other person acting on his behalf may be answered as if the conviction or finding had never taken place or the recognizance had never been entered into.
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (1), where in any criminal, civil or other legal proceedings the person first referred to in that subsection, by himself, his counsel, attorney or agent or other person acting on his behalf, otherwise than in answer to a question that can, in accordance with the last paragraph of that subsection, be answered in the negative, makes an assertion that denies the fact that the conviction or finding took place or that the recognizance was entered into, then the conviction, finding or recognizance is admissible:(a) in those proceedings, as to the character, credit or reputation of the person so referred to,(b) in any prosecution for perjury or false swearing founded on the assertion.The non-disclosure of the conviction, finding or recognizance in the making or giving of a statement or evidence as to the good character, credit or reputation of the person so referred to shall not of itself be taken, for the purposes of this subsection, to mean that the statement or evidence contains such an assertion.
(3) In this section legal proceedings includes any application for a licence, registration, authority, permit or the like under any statute.(4) This section does not affect the operation of section 55 of the Defamation Act 1974, or the operation of section 23 of the Evidence Act 1898, for the purposes of section 55 of the Defamation Act 1974.
580 Certain charges not to be brought at common law
A person may not be charged with any common law offence in respect of any act committed upon or in relation to another person, being an act which could, but for the amendment of sections 79 and 80 and the repeal of sections 81, 81A and 81B by the Crimes (Amendment) Act 1984, have been the subject of a charge for an offence under any of those sections.