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Regulations & Instructions - 1808
Relating to His majesty's service at sea.
Section XII - Chapter II
Of Courts Martial.
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| Page 404 |
| Article I |
| COURTS Martial are to be assembled and held, offences tried, sentence pronounced, and execution of such sentence to be done, according to the Articles and Orders contained in an Act of Parliament made in the 22nd year of the reign of King George 2d, intituled, "an Act for amending, explaining, and reducing into one act of parliament, the Laws relating to the Government of His Majesty's Ships, Vessels, and Forces by sea ; " and also, an act made in the 19th year of the reign of His present Majesty, intituled, "an Act to explain and amend the foregoing act" In addition to the Articles and Rules contained in the said acts, the following Regulations are to be observed. |
Courts Martial to be held according to the act. |
| Page 405 |
| Article II |
| All representations, or complaints, intended as the foundation of a court martial, are to be made in writing, setting forth the particular facts, when and where, and in what manner the same were committed. |
Complaints to be made in writing. |
| Article III |
| When a court martial is appointed to be hold, the Officer, who is to preside thereat, is to take care that a copy of the charge or complaint be delivered to the person accused, as soon as may be, after he shall have received the order to hold such court martial, and not less than twenty-four hours before the trial. |
Copy of charge to be delivered to the accused. |
| Article IV |
| Courts martial are. to be assembled and held in the most convenient and public place of the Ship; and all persons, excepting such as are intended to give evidence, are to be admitted. |
Courts to be held at convenient time and place. |
| Article V |
| 1f any Officer, entitled by his rank to sit at a court martial, be personally concerned in the matter to be tried, he is not to be permitted to be of the number of members, by whom the court shall be composed. |
Officers personally concerned not to be members. |
| Page 406 |
| Article VI |
| A junior Officer commanding a post Ship, shall, in sitting at courts-martial, take precedence of his senior Officer commanding a Sloop.
Captains and Commanders appointed to the temporary command of His Majesty's Ships shall be considered as liable to sit on courts-martial, in the same manner as if they were actually the Captains or Commanders of such Ships. Lieutenants shall not be permitted to sit as members at a court martial, although they may be in the temporary command of Ships by order. |
Junior Officer commanding a post Ship takes precedence of a senior commanding a sloop.
Acting Captains liable to sit. |
| Article VII |
| When a court is assembled, the person to be tried, as also the accuser, if any, are to be brought before them ; the Judge Advocate is to read the warrant or power authorizing the court to assemble ; and immediately after to administer to the members, and to take himself, the oath prescribed by the act first mentioned; he is next to read the charge, or complaint against the person to be tried, and thereupon the court may proceed to call witnesses : but they are not to question the said witnesses until an oath hath been administered by the Judge Advocate in the words following, which the witness is to repeat
" I, A: B. do most solemnly swear, that in the evidence I shall give before. the court, respecting the present trial, I will, whether demanded of me by question or not, and whether favourable or unfavourable to the prisoner, declare the truth, the whole truth and nothing. but the truth ; So help me God." |
Forms of proceeding.
Form of the oath. |
| Page 407 |
| Article VIII |
| In the examination of witnesses the following method is to be observed : First, to call such as are in support of the charge, who are to be questioned by the accuser, if any, the court, or Judge Advocate, and afterwards by the party upon trial. Such as are produced to invalidate a, charge are next to be examined, and the party accused is to begin with his interrogatories, if he shall think fit. If a question proposed is objected to, the opinion of the court is to be admitted or dropt as the majority shall agree. |
Order to be observed in examination of witnesses. |
| Article IX |
| A witness may be called in, as often as the Court, or Judge Advocate, with the consent thereof, shall think proper ; and they may call for and examine any person as a witness, whom they think can give information, though not desired by the accuser, or accused ; it being the duty of the Court to attain the fullest insight they possibly can into. the matter before them. |
Witnesses may be called in at the discretion of the court. |
| Page 408 |
| Article X |
| The Judge Advocate is to take down in writing the evidence given by each witness, and read the same to the Court in his hearing, that, in case of a mistake, it may be corrected. |
Judge Advocate to read to each witness the substance of his evidence. |
| Article XI |
| When the evidence is closed, the accused, person is to be removed, and the accuser and slanders-by are to withdraw ; the court is then to consider the matter in evidence before it, and the. Judge Advocate, by the direction of the court, is to draw up such questions as shall be agreed upon, whereon to form a determination in regard to the innocence or guilt of the person upon trial. If the party be found guilty of a breach of any of the Articles of War established by law, the court is to consider and to determine on the punishment proper to be inflicted conformably thereto. The Judge Advocate is to draw up the sentence accordingly, being careful to specify therein the charge, or substance of it, and the same is to be signed by every Member of the court by way of attestation, notwithstanding any difference of opinion there may have been among them. |
When evidence is closed the court are to determine on the innocence or guilt of the accused, and the Judge Advocate to draw up the sentence to be signed by the members. |
| Article XII |
| In taking the opinion of the court upon all questions the youngest Officer shall vote first, proceeding in order up to the president, and should the members of the Court disagree upon any previous question, and upon a division the votes be equal, the point is to be re-considered ; but if an equality of votes still continues, the matter in debate must remain as it stood before the question was put. If there should be an equality upon the main question ; whether the charge or charges be proved, or not, and it continues so after re-consideration, the favourable construction is to take place. |
By a majority of voices. |
| Page 409 |
| Article XIII |
| The Judge Advocate is to take minutes of the proceedings of the Court ; he is to advise the Court of the proper forms, when there shall be occasion, and to deliver his opinion in any doubts or difficulties that may arise in the course of the trial. |
Judge Advocate to take minutes, and to advise in respect to forms of proceeding. |
| Article XIV |
| After the sentence is drawn up and signed, all persons are to be re-admitted; and, the party accused being also present, the Judge Advocate is, by direction of the Court, to pronounce the same. |
Sentence to be pronounced in the presence of the accused. |
| Article XV |
| The Judge Advocate is to send the original sentence, and an attested copy of the minutes of the evidence and Proceedings of the Court, to the Secretary of the Admiralty, by the first opportunity. |
Original sentence and copy of minutes to be sent to the Admiralty. |
| Page 410 |
| Article XVI |
| When sentence of death is to be executed, or other public punishment to be inflicted, upon any criminal, notice is to be first given from the Ship by a signal and firing a gun, upon which the Captains of all the Ships present are to summon their companies upon deck, to be spectators thereof, and to make known to them the crime for which the punishment is inflicted. |
Forms to be observed and exception of the sentence. |
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