Coroners' Act 1898 (NSW)
Act No. 8, 1898.
An Act to consolidate t he Enac tmen t s re la t ing to Coroners ' Inques t s , and to Magisterial Inqui r ies in to the cause of death. [27th July, 1898.]
BE it enacted by the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty, by and with
Assembly of New South Wales in Par l iament assembled and by the the advice and consent of the Legislative Council and Legislative au thor i ty of the same as follows :—
Preliminary.
1 . This Act may be cited as the " Coroners' Act 1 8 9 8 . "
2 . The Acts mentioned in the Firs t Schedule to this Act are to
the extent therein specified hereby repealed.
Bail of persons charged with manslaughter—Copies of depositions. 3 . ( 1 ) Where a coroner's inquisition charges a person with t h e
offence of manslaughter the coroner before whom the inquest was t aken may if he think fit accept bail by recognizance with good and sufficient sureties for the appearance of the person charged to t ake his tr ial for such offence a t such Court and on such day as the Attorney- General specifies under his hand by indorsement on the recognizance and thereupon the person charged if in the custody of any officer of t he Coroner's Court or in any gaol under any warrant of commitment for such offence shall be discharged therefrom.
The Attorney-General shall give to the person charged and his sureties notice of the Court a n d day so specified.
(2 ) The coroner shall cause the recognizance to be taken in
the form of the Second Schedule hereto and shall give notice of the
recognizance to every person bound thereby.
(3 ) The coroner shall re turn the recognizance to the proper
officer of the court before whom the person charged is to be tried.
(4 ) The coroner shall t ransmit a t rue copy of the depositions
of the witnesses certified under his hand to the Attorney-General .
4 . A person committed or held to bail by a coroner shall (in
every case where he would be entitled to copies of deposistions had he been commit ted or held to bail by a justice of the peace) be entit led to have from the person for the t ime being having custody of the deposi tions copies thereof upon payment of such sum not exceeding fourpence per folio of ninety words as the Judges of the Supreme Court from t ime
to t ime determine. The
The sum payable a t the t ime of this Act coming into force shall continue to be payable until the said Judges otherwise determine.
Verdict of felo-de-se abolished.
5 . The verdict of felo-de-se is hereby abolished : Provided t h a t
nothing in this section shall affect the law with respect to a t t empts to
commit sucide.
Inquests on persons executed.
6 . Whenever any person is executed the coroner for the district
in which the execution takes place shall as soon after as is practicable hold an inquest on the body and the jury on such inquest shall impure and find whether t he sentence was duly carried into execution.
Attendance of medical witnesses at inquests and inquiries into cause of
death.
7 . (1) Whenever, upon the summoning or holding of any coroner's
inquest or upon the holding of any inquiry by a justice or justices of the peace touching the death of any person it appears to the coroner justice or justices t h a t the deceased person was not a t or immediately before his death a t tended by any legally qualified medical practi t ioner such coroner justice or justices may issue a summons for the a t tendance as a witness a t such inquest or inquiry of some legally qualified medical practi t ioner in actual practice who resides near to the place where such inquest or inquiry is holden.
(2 ) Where the deceased person was a t tended by any such
practi t ioner the coroner justice or justices shall issue a summons for his a t tendance only or if the deceased was a t tended by more t h a n one such practit ioner the coroner justice or justices may cause all or any of them to be summoned a t his or their discretion.
| inquiry may direct any legally qualified medical practit ioner to perform | order in writing a t any t ime before the termination of the inquest or | 8 . The coroner justice or justices either in such summons or by an |
a post mortem examination of the body of the deceased either with or
without an analysis of the contents of the stomach or intestines :
Provided t h a t if in any case it appear to the coroner justice or justices t h a t the death of such deceased person was probably caused par t ly or entirely by the improper or negligent t rea tment of any medical practit ioner or other person then such practitioner or other person shall not be allowed to perform or assist a t any such examination or analysis although he shall in every such case be allowed to be present thereat .
9 . Whenever it appears to the coroner or to a majority of the
jury a t any such inquest or to the justice or justices or a majority of them at any such inquiry t h a t the cause of death has not been
satisfactorily
satisfactorily explained by the practi t ioner or practit ioners examined in the first instance at such inquest or inquiry the coroner justice or justices shall forthwith cause any other legally qualified practit ioner or practi tioners to be summoned as a witness or witnesses a t such inquest or inquiry and shall direct him or them to perform a post mortem examin ation with or without such analysis as aforesaid whether such an examination has been previously performed or not :
Provided t h a t where such additional evidence is a t the instance of the majority of the jury such majority may name to the coroner any particular practit ioner or practitioners whom they wish to a t tend and in t h a t case such practit ioner or practit ioners shall be summoned and no other.
1 0 . When any legally qualified medical practi t ioner a t tends a t
an inquest or inquiry in obedience to any such summons he shall for such at tendance and for giving evidence a t such inquest or inquiry be entitled to receive the remunerat ion of one guinea and (in addition thereto) for the making of any such post mor tem examination the remunerat ion of two guineas and if the place of such practi t ioner 's residence is more t han ten miles distant from the place where the inquest or inquiry is holden then he shall be entitled to a sum of one shilling for every mile of such extra distance in addition :
Provided t h a t where the death has happened in any public hospital gaol or other public building no medical officer appointed with salary to a t tend such hospital gaol or building shall be entitled to any such remuneration.
1 1 . Where any such summons or order of any coroner justice
or justices is served upon any medical practi t ioner to whom the same is directed or is left a t his usual residence in sufficient t ime for him to obey the same and he nevertheless does not obey such summons or order he unless a t the hearing of the case he shows a good and sufficient excuse for such neglect to the satisfaction of such justices shall for such neglec forfeit and pay a penal ty or sum of not less t han three nor more t han
twenty pounds to be recovered in a summary way before any two justices of the peace And every proceeding under this section shall be had before such justices and every such penal ty be awarded levied and distr ibuted and the pa r ty convicted be entitled to appeal in the manner respectively provided by the Acts in force for the t ime being regulating summary proceedings before justices of the pecae.
Power of coroners to hold inquests into the cause and origin of fires.
1 2 . (1 ) When any proper ty is destroyed or damaged by fire if—
(a)
the coroner having or exercising jurisdiction at the place where such fire happens or
(b) the fire brigade's board for the metropolitan district whenever
the fire happens within t h a t district or (c)
(c)
the fire brigade's board for any borough or municipal district to which the Fire Brigades Act 1884 has been extended whenever such fire happens within such borough or municipal district
consider it a fit case for inquiry such coroner shall hold an inquest into
the cause and origin of such fire.
(2) If upon any such inquest the coroner's jury find t h a t any person has wilfully set such property on fire and if an indictable offence has thereby been committed the coroner may exercise the like author i ty in respect to the apprehension examination bail commit ta l or otherwise of such person as in the case of persons charged with murder
| or | manslaughter . |
(3) The mode of procedure in the summoning of jurors and witnesses and otherwise shall be the same upon inquests into the cause and origin of fires as upon inquests in cases of death and all laws applicable to inquests in cases of death and to the quashing of inquisitions thereupon for sufficient cause by the proper officer or jurisdiction in this behalf shall extend and apply to inquests into the cause and origin of fires and inquisitions thereupon.
SCHEDULES.
F I R S T S C H E D U L E .
Regnal Year and
Number. Title or Short Title. Extent of Repeal.
| 1 Vic. No. 3 . . | An Act to provide for t he a t t endance of medical | The whole Act . |
witnesses a t coroners ' inquests and inquiries held
b y justices of the peace.
| 14 Vic. No. 4 3 . . | An Act to a d o p t and app ly certain Acts of | Par l i ament | So much of sec. |
passed for facili tating the performance of t he 3 as is appli
cable to pro
dut ies of justices of the peace and for protect ing t h e m from vexat ious actions and to p reven t per ceedings before sons convic ted of offences from tak ing undue ad coroners. v a n t a g e of mere defects or errors in form.
| 24 Vic. No. 1 0 . . | An Act to empower coroners to hold inquests con | The whole Act . |
cerning fires.
| 24 Vic. No. 1 8 . . | The " Coroners ' Bail for Manslaughter Act of 1861 " | The whole Act. |
| 25 Vic. No. 1 5 . . | The " Law of Felo-de-se A m e n d m e n t Act of 1862 | " . . | The whole Act . |
| 39 Vic. No. 2 2 . . | An Act to amend the law respecting verdicts of | The whole Act . |
Felo-de-se.
| 46 Vic. No. 1 7 . . | The " Criminal Law A m e n d m e n t Act of 1883 " | . . | Section 391. |
| 47 Vic. No. 3 | The " Fire Brigades Act, 1884 " | I n s. 6 (VII) all t he words fol lowing the word | |
|
S E C O N D
SECOND SCHEDULE.
B E it remembered that on the day of in the year of Our Lord
A.B. of [labourer] L.M. of [grocer] and N.O. of
[butcher] personally came before me one of Her Majesty's coroners for and severally acknowledged themselves to owe to Our Lady the Queen the several sums following that is to say the said A.B. the sum of and the said L.M. and N.O. the sum of each of good and lawful money of Great Britain to be made and levied of their goods and chattels lands and tenements respectively to the use of Our said Lady the Queen Her Heirs and Successors if he the said A.B. fail in the condition hereunder written.
Taken and acknowledged the day and year first above mentioned at
before me
: ; J.S.
Coroner.
'• CONDITION. The condition of the above-written recognizance is such that whereas a verdict of manslaughter has been found against the said A.B. by a jury empannelled to inquire how and by what means came by [Ms] death if therefore the said A.B. shall appear at the Court and at the time to be hereon indorsed by the Attorney-General for the Colony and of which the said A.B. L.N. and N.O. shall have notice there and then surrender himself into the custody of the keeper of the gaol there and plead to such inquisition or any information which may be duly filed against him for the said offence and take his trial upon the same and not depart the said Court without leave then the said recognizance shall be void or else the same shall stand in full force and virtue.
0
0
0