XXI. HABEAS CORPUS. 16 CAR. I. c. 10.] For the regulating the Privy Council, and for 16 CAR. I. taking away the court commonly called the Star Chamber. ENGL. [1640.] c. 10. Engl. stat. 1640. son com shall habeas 16 Car. I. c. 10, sec. 8.] If any person shall be committed, restrained of his liberty, or suffer imprisonment, by the order or decree of any court of Star Chamber or other court, at any time having or pretending to have the same or like jurisdiction, power, or authority to commit or imprison by the command or warrant of the king's majesty, his heirs or successors in their own person, or by the command or warrant of the council board, or any of the lords or others of his majesty's privy council; in every such case every person so committed, Every perrestrained of his liberty, or suffering imprisonment, upon de- mitted conmand or motion made by his counsel, or other employed by him trary to this for that purpose, unto the judges of the court of king's bench or have an common pleas, in open court, shall, without delay, upon any corpus. pretence whatsoever, for the ordinary fees usually paid for the same, have forthwith granted unto him a writ of habeas corpus, to be directed generally unto all and every sheriffs, gaoler, minister, officer, or other persons in whose custody the party committed or restrained shall be, and the sheriffs, gaoler, minister, officer, or other person in whose custody the party so committed or restrained shall be, shall at the return of the said writ, and according to the command thereof upon due and convenient notice thereof given unto him at the charge of the party who requireth or procureth such writ, and upon security by his own bond given, to pay the charge of carrying back the prisoner, if he shall be remanded by the court to which he shall be brought, as in like cases hath been used, such charges of bringing up and carrying back the prisoner to be always ordered by the court, if any difference shall arise thereabout, bring or cause to be brought the body of the said party so committed or restrained unto or before the judges or justices of the said court from whence the said writ shall issue, in open court, and shall then likewise certify the true cause of such his detainer or imprisonment, and thereupon the court, within three court days after such return made and delivered in open court, shall proceed to examine and determine whether the cause of such commitment appearing upon the said return be just and legal or not, and shall thereupon do what to justice shall appertain, either by delivering, bailing, or remanding the prisoner; and if anything shall be otherwise wilfully done or omitted to be done by any judge, justice, officer, or other person aforementioned contrary to the direction and true meaning hereof; then such Treble person so offending shall forfeit to the party grieved his damages in default. c. 10. 16 CAR. I. treble damages, to be recovered by such means and in such Engl. stat. manner as is in this act limited and appointed for the like penalty to be sued for and recovered. 1640. Penalties upon great others for Second offence. If any lord-chancellor or keeper of the great seal of England, officers and lord-treasurer, keeper of the king's privy seal, president of the first offence. council, or other temporal lord, privy-counsellor, judge or justice whatever shall offend or do anything contrary to the purport, true intent, and meaning of this law, then he or they shall for such offence forfeit the sum of £500 of lawful money of England unto any party grieved, his executors or administrators, who shall really prosecute for the same, and first obtain judgment thereupon to be tried in any court of record at Westminster by action of debt, bill, plaint, or information, wherein no essoin, protection, wager of law, aid, prayer, privilege, injunction, or order of restraint shall be any wise prayed, granted, or allowed, nor any more than one imparlance; and if any person or persons against whom any such judgment or recovery shall be had as aforesaid shall after such judgment obtained offend again in the same, then he or they shall for such offence forfeit the sum of £1000 of lawful money of England unto any party grieved, his executors or administrators, who shall really prosecute for the same, and first obtain judgment thereupon, to be recorded in any court of record at Westminster by action of debt, bill, plaint, or information, in which no essoin, protection, wager of law, aid, prayer, privilege, injunction, or order of restraint, shall be in any wise prayed, granted, or allowed, nor any more than one imparlance; and if any person against whom any such second judgment or recovery shall be had as aforesaid, shall after such judgment or recovery offend again in the same kind and shall be thereof duly convicted by indictment, information, or any other lawful way or means, that such person so convicted shall be from thenceforth disabled, and become by virtue of this act incapable ipso facto to bear his and their said office and offices respectively; and shall be likewise disabled to take any gift, grant, conveyance, or other disposition of any of his lands, tenements, hereditaments, goods, or chattels, or to take any benefit of any gift, conveyance, or legacy to his own use. Third offence. 30 CAR. II. stat. 2, c. 2.] For the better securing the liberty of Engl. stat. the subject, and for prevention of imprisonments beyond the seas. 30 CAR. II. stat. 2, c. 2. 1677. ENGL. [1677.] 30 Car. II. stat. 2, c. 2, sec. 1.] Whereas great delays have been used by sheriffs, gaolers, and other officers, to whose custody any of the king's subjects, have been committed for criminal or supposed criminal matters, in making returns of writs of habeas corpus, to them directed, by standing out an alias and pluries habeas corpus, and sometimes more, and by other shifts to avoid their yielding obedience to such writs, contrary to their duty and the known laws of the land, whereby many of the king's subjects have been, and hereafter may be long detained in prison, in such cases where by law they are bailable, to their great charges and vexation: habeas cor three days turned, and brought, if miles, &c. 2. For the prevention whereof, and the more speedy relief of all persons imprisoned for any such criminal or supposed criminal matters, Be it enacted, That whensoever any person or writs of persons shall bring any habeas corpus directed unto any sheriff or pus within sheriffs, gaoler, minister, or other person whatsoever, for any after service person in his or their custody, and the said writ shall be served to be reupon the said officer, or left at the gaol or prison with any of the the body under officers, under keepers, or deputy of the said officers or within keepers, that the said officer or officers, his or their under twenty officers, under keepers, or deputies, shall, within three days after the service thereof as aforesaid (unless the commitment aforesaid were for treason or felony, plainly and specially expressed in the warrant of commitment), upon payment or tender of the charges of bringing the said prisoner, to be ascertained by the judge or court that awarded the same, and indorsed upon the said writ, not exceeding tweve pence per mile, and upon security given by his own bond to pay the charges of carrying back the prisoner, if he shall be remanded by the court or judge to which he shall be brought according to the true intent of this present act, and that he will not make any escape by the way, make return of such writ; and bring, or cause to be brought, the body of the party so committed or restrained, unto or before the lord chancellor, or lord keeper of the great seal of England for the time being, or the judges or barons of the said court from whence the said writ shall issue, or unto and before such other person or persons before whom the said writ is made returnable, according to the command thereof; and shall then likewise certify the true causes of his detainer or imprisonment, unless the commitment of the said party be in any place beyond the distance of twenty miles from the place or places where the court or person is or shall be residing; and if beyond the distance of twenty miles, and not above one hundred miles, then within the space of ten days, and if beyond the distance of one hundred miles, then within the space of twenty days, after such delivery aforesaid, and not longer. how to be 3. And to the intent that no sheriff, gaoler, or other officer, Such writs may pretend ignorance of the import of any such writ, Be it marked. enacted, That all such writs shall be marked in this manner per statutum tricesimo primo Caroli Secundi Regis, and shall be signed by the person that awards the same; and if any person or persons shall be or stand committed or detained as aforesaid, stat. 2, c. 2. 1677. Writs of habeas corpus, and the in vacation time. 30 CAR. II. for any crime, unless for felony or treason plainly expressed in Engl. stat. the warrant of commitment, in the vacation time, and out of term, it shall and may be lawful to and for the person or persons so committed or detained (other than persons convict or in execution by legal process) or any one on his or their behalf, proceedings to appeal or complain to the lord chancellor or lord keeper, or any one of his majesty's justices, either of the one bench or of the other, or the barons of the Exchequer of the degree of the coif; and the said lord chancellor, lord keeper, justices or barons, or any of them, upon view of the copy or copies of the warrant or warrants of commitment and detainer, or otherwise upon oath made that such copy or copies were denied to be given by such person or persons in whose custody the prisoner or prisoners is or are detained, are hereby authorized and required, upon request made in writing by such person or persons, or any on his, her, or their behalf, attested and subscribed by two witnesses who were present at the delivery of the same, to award and grant an habeas corpus under the seal of such court whereof he shall then be one of the judges, to be directed to the officer or officers in whose custody the party so committed or detained shall be, returnable immediate before the said lord chancellor, or lord keeper, or such justice, baron, or any other justice or baron of the degree of the coif of any of the said courts; and upon service thereof as aforesaid. the officer or officers, his or their under officer or under officers, under keeper or under keepers, or their deputy, in whose custody the party is so committed or detained, shall, within the times respectively before limited, bring such prisoner or prisoners before the said lord chancellor or lord keeper, or such justices, barons, or one of them, before whom the said writ is made returnable, and in case of his absence, before any other of them, with the return of such writ, and the true causes of the commitment and detainer; and thereupon, within two days after the party shall be brought before them, the said lord chancellor or lord keeper, or such justice or baron before whom the prisoner shall be brought as aforesaid, shall discharge the said prisoner from his imprisonment, taking his or their recognizance, with one or more surety or sureties, in any sum according to their discretions, having regard to the quality of the prisoner and nature of the offence, for his or their appearance in the court of king's bench the term following, or at the next assizes, sessions, or general gaoldelivery of and for such county, city, or place where the commitment was, or where the offence was committed, or in such other court where the said offence is properly cognizable, as the case shall require, and then shall certify the said writ with the return thereof, and the said recognizance or recognizances into the said court where such appearance is to be made; unless it shall appear unto the said lord chancellor or lord keeper, or justice or justices, or baron or barons, that the party so committed is detained upon a legal process, order or warrant, out of some court that hath jurisdiction of criminal matters, or by some warrant signed and sealed with the hand and seal of any of the said justices or barons, or some justice or justices of the peace, for such matters or offences for the which by the law the prisoner is not bailable. neglecting to pray a 4. Provided always, That if any person shall have wilfully Persons neglected by the space of two whole terms after his imprison- two terms ment, to pray a habeas corpus for his enlargement, such person habeas corso wilfully neglecting shall not have any habeas corpus to be pus, shall granted in vacation time, in pursuance of this act. have none in vacation time, in pursuance ceeded not obeying 5. If any officer or officers, his or their under officer or under of this act. officers, under keeper or under keepers, or deputy, shall neglect or refuse to make the returns aforesaid, or to bring the body or bodies of the prisoner or prisoners according to the command of the said writ, within the respective times aforesaid, or upon demand made by the prisoner or person in his behalf, shall refuse to deliver, or within the space of six hours after demand shall not deliver, to the person so demanding, a true copy of the warrant or warrants of commitment and detainer of such prisoner, which he and they are hereby required to deliver accordingly; all and every the head gaolers and keepers of such officers how prisons, and such other person in whose custody the prisoner to be proshall be detained, shall for the first offence forfeit to the prisoner against for or party grieved the sum of one hundred pounds; and for the such writs. second offence the sum of two hundred pounds, and shall and is hereby made incapable to hold or execute his said office; the said penalties to be recovered by the prisoner or party grieved, his executors or administrators, against such offender, his executors or administrators, by an action of debt, suit, bill, plaint or information, in any of the king's courts at Westminster, wherein no essoin, protection, privilege, injunction, wager of law, or stay of prosecution by non vult ulterius prosequi, or otherwise, shall be admitted or allowed, or any more than one imparlance; and any recovery or judgment at the suit of any party grieved, shall be a sufficient conviction for the first offence; and any after recovery or judgment at the suit of a party grieved for any offence after the first judgment, shall be a sufficient conviction to bring the officers or person within the said penalty for the second offence. at large not committed 6. And for the prevention of unjust vexation by reiterated Persons set commitments for the same offence, Be it enacted, that no person to be reor persons which shall be delivered or set at large upon any but by order habeas corpus, shall at any time hereafter be again imprisoned of court. or committed for the same offence by any person or persons whatsoever, other than by the legal order and process of such court wherein he or they shall be bound by recognizance to appear, or other court having jurisdiction of the cause; and if |
