HABEAS CORPUS.

Taranaki Daily News, 11 July 1923, Page 5

HABEAS CORPUS.

THE OBRIEN CASE. HOUSE OF LORDS JUDGMENT. By Telegraph.—Press Assn—Copyright. Received July 10. 8.55 p.m. London, July 9. Lord Birkenhead delivered the reasons whv the House of Lords had no jurisdiction to hear the Home Secretary’s appeal in the Art O’Brien case. Lord Birkenhead «?aid their Lordships •were not authorised to examine the arguments in law whereby in the lower courts the Attorney-General attempts to justify those proceedings. The most important rule in connection with the Habeas Corpus writ was that which lays it down that if the writ is once directed to issue, and a discharge is ordered by a competent court, r.o appeal lies to any superior court. Correlative with this rule was that which permits unsuccessful applicants for a writ to apply from court to court to the highest tribunal in the land. The Home Secretary, by forcibly handing over applicant to the Free State Government, thereby disabled the Court of Appeal from effectively ordering a discharge, and deprived him of his ancient constitutional privilege. Lord Birkenhead added that t.ie argument Submitted on behalf of the Home Secretary was the most remarkable he had ever heard or read of from the lips of the executive in attempting to procounce upon the liberty of a subject.