The Globe. TUESDAY, APRIL 2, 1878.

Globe, Volume IX, Issue 1260, 2 April 1878, Page 2

The Globe. TUESDAY, APRIL 2, 1878.

It seems somewhat strange that with a legal functionary occupying the position of Crown Solicitor the discovery of an important flaw in the indictments preferred at the present session should have been made by a layman. At the sitting yesterday it was pointed out by the foreman of the Grand Jury that in all indictments in which Christchurch was mentioned it was described as being situate in the County of Solwyn. The Crown Solicitor, whose duty it is to draw these indictments, should have known that by the County Act municipalities are excluded from forming part of any county. Had an indictment with a wrong description passed, and the prisoner been convicted, the chances are that the ends of justice’ would have been defeated. It certainly seems matter for comment that a mistake such as the one pointed but should have passed without discovery. While on this subject we may again take the opportunity of referring to the present system of Crown prosecution. From what has occurred on previous occasions there can be no doubt that some alteration is necessary. Now the Crown Prosecutor occupies an anomalous position. He is supposed to act as public prosecutor, and to have the conduct of criminal cases from their first stage. But in reality this is not the case. The Crown Prosecutor does not come into the case until after committal, and the result is that the cases very often come before the Supreme Court in a manner which seriously imperils the ends of justice. The preliminary steps are conducted by persons not having had any legal training, and therefore, in many instances, the salient points of the case are not brought out, as links in the chain of evidence are wanting. This, as pointed out by his Honor Mr. Justice Johnston, acts very injuriously upon the free course of public justice, and his Honor very strongly expressed his opinion that the time had arrived when the appointment of a Public Prosecutor had become necessary. Such an official would be responsible for the conduct of cases from the the earliest stage, and the evidence would then be placed before the Supreme Court complete, so far as possible. Under a system such as this we should hear of no failures of justice. It must be understood that we are not referring to any individual in the remarks we have made. It is the system which is mainly to blame, because, as now administered, the gentlemen acting as Crown prosecutors have to do the best they can with the scanty materials placed before them by the police, who have charge of the earlier investigations of the various cases. If they fail to some extent to sheet home offences to criminals it is mainly the very defective system now obtaining that is to blame for it. We hope that the very strong opinion expressed upon the subject, not alone of his Honor Mr. Justice Johnston, but by the other Judges, will have due weight with the Minister of Justice, and that during the ensuing session he will be able to introduce such an amendment into the law as will enable Public Prosecutors to be appointed. The very heavy calendar of prisoners for trial at the April'session of the Supreme Court affords matter for grave consideration. No less than twenty-four cases appear for trial, and of these no less than eight, or one-third of the whole number, are for forgery. His Honor Mr Justice Williams, in his charge to the G.and Jury, expressed a hope that this large number of cases was an exceptional circumstance. In this hope we feel sure all will coincide. But those who have taken the trouble to watch the quarterly sessions will have noticed that every now and again there appears to be a kind of flood tide of offences —more particularly of forgery. The laxity on the part of tradesmen, to which, we have often referred, is now bearing fruit, because offenders, seeing the ease with which money has been raised in past times by means of forged cheques, commit this crime with the idea that they can now do the same. But the reiterated warnings of the Judges has had the effect of awakening tradesmen to a proper sense of their responsibilities in this matter. There is another item in the calendar, the increase in which we notice with regret. We refer to the cases of criminal assaults upon children, of which no less than four appear in the April calendar. This is a very marked increase in a species of crime which of all others requires to be stamped out by the greatest rigor of the law. This being so the sentence passed by his Honor to-day in a case of this kind in which the prisoner was found guilty will be read with satisfaction. Criminals of this class are generally arrant cowards, and if it becomes known that in addition to a lengthened term of penal servitude corporal punishment will be added, we trust to find that this crime will disappear from our calendar. The evident determination of bis Honor to put an end to the growth amongst its of such a species of crime will, we are sure, be hailed with satisfaction by alb Of the regaining cases in the calendar, we may say they are ,p£ the ordinary type. The great problem set .before m is bow it comes about, with all our efforts to extend education, and with .growing prosperity, that crime should so largely increase —an increase quite out of pro* port|o» to the of pophMQJb