Prisoners' Evidence on Oath.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 6788, 27 February 1890, Page 2

Prisoners' Evidence on Oath.

It is sometimes argued that the alteration ! in the law of evidence, which allows ; prisoners to testify on oath in their own cases, is not an improvement. The reason why the alteration is pronounced to be a failure, is that it allows the accused to what is vulgarly called " put his foot in it." If the object of the criminal law was to allow as many guilty people as possible to escape punishment, then the recent change in the practice of the Courts could be reasonably looked upon a3 a failure. That the allowing of criminals to give evidence has in no case as yet led to an acquittal, is no argument | ag-ainst the innovation; unless it can I be shown that any innocent person has been convicted. So far, the experience of the working of the new Act tends to prove that tho police authorities have taken into custody, and the lower Courts have committed for trial, the right men. It remains to be seen, as far a3 wo can learn, how the giving of sworn evidence in his own case can prejudice an innocent man. Until it can be shown that an innocent man has been convicted "out of his own mouth," it is premature, to say the least, to cry out against what theorists considered an improvement, and intended should facilitate an acquittal in cases where a verdict of " Nob Guilty " ought to be found. If, in the present state of the law, some criminals, who under the old practice would have got off, have been brought to book, then the innovation must be pronounced to be an improvement.