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Powers of justices as to bail.
No bail in cases of treason but by order of Secretary of State, &c.
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23. Where any person shall appear or be brought before a justice of the peace charged with any felony, or with any assault with intent to commit any felony, or with any attempt to commit any felony, or with obtaining or attempting to obtain property by false pretences, or with a misdemeanor in receiving-property stolen or obtained by false pretences, or with perjury or subornation of perjury, or with concealing the birth of a child by secret burying or otherwise, or with wilful or indecent exposure of the person, or with riot, or with assault in pursuance of a conspiracy to raise wages, or assault upon a peace officer in the execution of his duty, or upon any person acting in his aid, or with neglect or breach of duty as a peace officer, or with any misdemeanor for the prosecution of which the costs may be allowed out of the county rate, such justice of the peace may, in his discretion, admit such person to bail, upon his procuring and producing such surety or sureties as in the opinion of such justice will be sufficient to ensure the appearance of such accused person at the time and place when and where he is to be tried for such offence; and thereupon such justice shall take the recognizance (S. 1. 2.) of the said accused person and his surety or sureties, conditioned for the appearance of such accused person at the time and place of trial, and that he will then surrender and take his trial, and not depart the court without leave; and in all cases where a person charged with any indictable offence shall be committed to prison to take his trial for the same, it shall be lawful, at any time afterwards, and before the first day of the sitting or session at which he is to be tried, or before the day to which such sitting or session may be adjourned, for the justice or justices of the peace who shall have signed the warrant for his commitment, in his or their discretion, to admit such accused person to bail in manner aforesaid; or if such committing justice or justices shall be of opinion that for any of the offences herein-before mentioned the said accused person ought to be admitted to bail, he or they shall in such cases, and in all other cases of misdemeanors, certify (S. 3.) on the back of the warrant of commitment his or their consent to such accused party being bailed, stating also the amount of bail which ought to be required, it shall be lawful for any justice of the peace attending or being at the gaol or prison where such accused party shall be in custody, on production of such certificate, to admit such accused person to bail in manner aforesaid; or if it shall be inconvenient for the surety or sureties in such a case to attend at such gaol or prison to join with such accused person in the recognizance of bail, then such committing justice or justices may make a duplicate of such certificate (S. 4) as aforesaid, and upon the same being produced to any justice of the peace for the same county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough, or place, it shall be lawful for such last-mentioned justice to take the recognizance of the surety or sureties in conformity with such certificate, and upon such recognizance being transmitted to the keeper of such gaol or prison, and produced, together with the certificate on the warrant of commitment as aforesaid, to any justice of the peace attending or being at such gaol or prison, it shall be lawful for such last-mentioned justice thereupon to take the recognizance of such accused party, and to order him to be discharged out of custody as to that commitment, as herein-after mentioned; and where any person shall be charged before any justice of the peace with any indictable misdemeanor other than those hereinbefore mentioned, such justice, after taking the examinations in writing as aforesaid, instead of committing him to prison for such offence, shall admit him to bail in manner aforesaid, or if he have been committed to prison, and shall apply to any one of the visiting justices of such prison, or to any other justice of the peace for the same county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough, or place, before the first day of the sitting or session at which he is to be tried, or before the day to which such sitting or session may be adjourned, to be admitted to bail, such justice shall accordingly admit him to bail in manner aforesaid; and in all cases where such accused person in custody shall be admitted to bail by a justice of the peace other than the committing justice or justices as aforesaid, such justice of the peace so admitting him to bail shall forthwith transmit the recognizance or recognizances of bail to the committing justice or justices, or one of them, to be by him or them transmitted, with the examinations, to the proper officer: Provided nevertheless, that no justice or justices of the peace shall admit any person to bail for treason, nor shall such person be admitted to bail, except by order of one of her Majesty’s Secretaries of State, or by her Majesty’s Court of Queen’s Bench at Westminster, or a judge thereof in vacation: . . .
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