Act of Adjournal (Consolidation) 1988

PART IIPROCEDURE AT TRIAL

Accused to plead personally and to receive intimation of diets

119.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), in any summary proceedings where a person accused in those proceedings is personally present in court, that person shall himself plead to the charge against him whether or not he is represented.

(2) If the judge is satisfied that the accused is not capable for any reason of pleading personally to the charge against him, it shall be sufficient if the plea is tendered by a solicitor or by counsel on his behalf.

(3) Where an accused is not represented or not personally present and a court continues a diet without taking a plea from the accused, the prosecutor shall intimate the continuation and the date of the adjourned diet to the accused.

(4) Subject to section 338(1)(a), where an accused is not represented or not personally present, on the fixing of—

(a)a diet of trial;

(b)a diet after conviction; or

(c)any diet after a plea from the accused has been recorded,

the sheriff clerk or clerk of the district court shall intimate the diet to the accused.

Restrictions on report of proceedings involving a person under 16

120.—(1) Any direction made by a court under sub-paragraph (i) of the proviso to section 374(1) shall specify the person in respect of whom the direction is made.

(2) Any direction made by a court under sub-paragraph (ii) of the proviso to that section shall specify the person in respect of whom the direction is made and the extent to which the provisions of that section are dispensed with in relation to that person.

(3) Any such direction shall be pronounced in open court and its terms shall be recorded in the minute of proceedings and the direction as so recorded shall be authenticated by the signature of the presiding judge.

Form of oaths to witnesses

121.—(1) Where the judge administers the oath to a witness, he shall do so in accordance with the form set out in Part 3 of Form 33 of Schedule 1.

(2) In the case of any witness who elects to affirm, the judge shall administer the affirmation in accordance with the form set out in Part 4 of that Form.

(3) The oath or the affirmation so administered shall be treated as having been administered in common form.

Notice of use of autopsy and forensic science reports in evidence

122.—(1) For the purposes of the application of section 26(6) of the 1980 Act to any summary proceedings, an autopsy report shall not be treated as having been lodged as a production by the prosecutor unless it has been lodged as a production not later than 14 days before the date of the trial diet.

(2) For the purpose of the application of section 26(7) of the Act to any summary proceedings, the prosecutor shall intimate his intention in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (7) by serving a copy of the autopsy or forensic science report lodged by him on the accused together with a notice of his said intention not later than 14 days before the date of the trial diet.

(3) Any notice given by an accused under section 26(6) shall be in writing and shall be given to the prosecutor.