Jersey Law 22/2001
CRIMINAL JUSTICE (INTERNATIONAL CO-OPERATION) (JERSEY)
LAW 2001
____________
A LAW to
enable Jersey to co-operate with other countries in criminal investigations and
proceedings; to repeal the Drug Offences (International Co-operation) (Jersey)
Law 1996; and for related purposes, sanctioned by Order of Her Majesty in
Council of the
18th day of JULY 2001
____________
(Registered on the 10th day of
August 2001)
____________
STATES OF JERSEY
____________
The 27th day of March 2001
____________
THE STATES,
subject to the sanction of Her Most Excellent Majesty in Council, have adopted
the following Law -
ARTICLE 1
Interpretation
(1) In this Law -
“document”
includes information recorded in any form and, in relation to information
recorded otherwise than in legible form, references to its production include
references to producing a copy of the information in legible form;
“evidence”
includes documents and other articles;
“items
subject to legal professional privilege” has the meaning assigned to that
expression by the Drug Trafficking Offences (Jersey)
Law 1988;
“letter
of request” means a letter of request issued under Article 4(1) or (2);
“police
officer” has the meaning assigned to that expression by the Police Force
(Jersey) Law 1974;
“premises”
includes any place and, in particular, includes-
(a) any vehicle, vessel,
aircraft or hovercraft;
(b) any offshore
installations; and
(c) any tent or moveable
structure;
“serious
offence” means an offence for which the maximum sentence in the Island is not less than one year’s imprisonment.
(2) A reference in this Law
to a Part, Article or Schedule by number only and without further
identification is a reference to the Part, Article or Schedule of that number
in this Law.
(3) A reference in an
Article or other division of this Law to a paragraph, sub-paragraph or clause
by number or letter only and without further identification is a reference to
the paragraph, sub-paragraph or clause of that number or letter in the Article
or other division of this Law.
(4) Unless the context
otherwise requires, a reference in this Law to an enactment is a reference to
that enactment as amended from time to time and includes a reference to that
enactment as extended or applied under another enactment, including another
provision of this Law.
ARTICLE 2
Service of overseas process in the
Island
(1) This Article has effect
where the Attorney General receives from the government of, or other authority
in, a country or territory outside the Island -
(a) a summons or other
process requiring a person to appear as a defendant or to attend as a witness in
criminal proceedings in that country or territory; or
(b) a document issued by a
court exercising criminal jurisdiction in that country or territory and
recording a decision of the court made in the exercise of that jurisdiction,
together with a request for it to be served on a person in the Island.
(2) The Attorney General
may cause the process or document to be served by post or, if the request is
for personal service, instruct the Viscount to cause it to be personally
served.
(3) Service by virtue of
this Article of any such process as is mentioned in paragraph (1)(a) shall
not impose an obligation under the law of the Island to comply with it.
(4) Such a process served
by virtue of this Article shall be accompanied by a notice -
(a) stating the effect of
paragraph (3);
(b) indicating that the
person on whom it is served may wish to seek advice as to the possible
consequences of his failing to comply with the process under the law of the
country or territory where it was issued; and
(c) indicating that under
that law he may not, as a witness, be accorded the same rights and privileges
as would be accorded to him as a witness in criminal proceedings in the Island.
(5) If the Viscount is
instructed under this Article to cause a process or document to be served, he
shall, after it has been served, forthwith inform the Attorney General when and
how it was served and (if possible) furnish him with a receipt signed by the
person on whom it was served; and if the Viscount has been unable to cause the
process or document to be served he shall forthwith inform the Attorney General
of that fact and of the reason.
ARTICLE 3
Service of Island process overseas
(1) Process of the
following descriptions, that is to say -
(a) a summons requiring a
person charged with an offence to appear before a court in the Island;
(b) a summons or order
requiring a person to attend before a court in the Island for the purpose of
giving evidence in criminal proceedings,
may be issued or made notwithstanding that the person in question is
outside the Island and may be served outside the Island in accordance with
arrangements made by the Attorney General.
(2) Service of process
outside the Island by virtue of this Article shall not impose an obligation
under the law of the Island to comply with it and accordingly failure to do so
shall not constitute contempt of court or be a ground for issuing a warrant to
secure the attendance of the person in question.
(3) Paragraph (2) is
without prejudice to the service of any process (with the usual consequences
for non-compliance) on the person in question if subsequently effected in the
Island.
ARTICLE 4
Overseas evidence for use in the Island
(1) If it appears to the
Attorney General -
(a) that an offence has been
committed or that there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that an offence
has been committed; and
(b) that proceedings in
respect of that offence have been instituted or that the offence is being
investigated,
he may issue a letter of request, requesting assistance in obtaining
outside the Island such evidence as is specified in the letter for use in the
proceedings or investigation.
(2) If an application is
made by the person charged in proceedings for an offence, the Bailiff may issue
a letter of request, requesting assistance in obtaining outside the Island such
evidence as is specified in the letter for use in the proceedings.
(3) A letter of request
shall be sent to either -
(a) a court or tribunal
specified in the letter and exercising jurisdiction in the place where the
evidence is to be obtained; or
(b) any authority
recognised by the government of the country or territory in question as the
appropriate authority for receiving requests for assistance of the kind to
which this Article applies.
(4) Except with the consent
of the court, tribunal or authority that supplied the evidence, evidence
obtained by virtue of a letter of request shall not be used for any purpose
other than that specified in that letter.
(5) If the court, tribunal
or authority that supplied a document or other article pursuant to a letter of
request so requests, the document or other article shall be returned to that
court, tribunal or authority when it is no longer required for the purpose
stated in the letter of request or for any other purpose for which consent has
been obtained in accordance with paragraph (4).
(6) Evidence obtained by
virtue of a letter of request shall, without being sworn to by a witness, be
admissible in evidence and in exercising any discretion to exclude evidence
otherwise admissible in relation to a statement contained in evidence taken
pursuant to a letter of request the court before which it is sought to
introduce that evidence shall have regard -
(a) to whether it was
possible to challenge the statement by questioning the person who made it; and
(b) if proceedings have
been instituted, to whether local law allowed the parties to the proceedings to
be legally represented when the evidence was taken.
ARTICLE 5
Evidence for, and assistance in,
criminal proceedings
in overseas court
(1) This Article applies
where the Attorney General receives -
(a) from a court or
tribunal exercising criminal jurisdiction in a country or territory outside the
Island or a prosecuting authority in such a country or territory; or
(b) from any other
authority in such a country or territory which appears to him to have the
function of making requests of the kind to which this Article applies,
a request for assistance in obtaining evidence in the Island in
connection with criminal proceedings which have been instituted, or a criminal
investigation that is being carried on, in that country or territory and the
Attorney General is satisfied -
(c) that an offence under
the law of the country or territory in question has been committed or that
there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that such an offence has been
committed; and
(d) that proceedings in
respect of that offence have been instituted in that country or territory or
that an investigation into that offence is being carried on there.
(2) Where this Article
applies the Attorney General may, if he thinks fit, issue a notice in
writing -
(a) specifying the evidence
to be obtained in response to the request; and
(b) nominating a court or
the Viscount to receive that evidence.
(3) The Schedule to this
Law shall have effect with regard to proceedings before a nominated court or
the Viscount in pursuance of a notice under paragraph (2).
ARTICLE 6
Additional co-operation powers
(1) Subject to paragraph
(2), if on an application by the Attorney General the Bailiff is satisfied
that -
(a) criminal proceedings
have been instituted against a person in a country or territory outside the
Island, or that a person has been arrested in the course of a criminal
investigation carried on there, or that there are reasonable grounds for
suspecting that criminal proceeding will be instituted against a person in a
country or territory outside the Island, or that a person will be arrested in
the course of a criminal investigation being carried on there;
(b) the conduct
constituting the offence which is the subject of the proceedings or
investigation would constitute a serious offence if it had occurred in the
Island; and
(c) there are reasonable
grounds for suspecting that there is on premises in the Island evidence
relating to the offence, other than items subject to legal professional
privilege,
he may issue a warrant authorizing a police officer to enter, if need be
by force, and search those premises and to seize any such evidence found there.
(2) The power of search
conferred by paragraph (1) is only a power to search to the extent that is
reasonably required for the purpose of discovering such evidence as is there
mentioned.
(3) An application for a
warrant under paragraph (1) shall not be made except in response to a request
received -
(a) from a court or
tribunal exercising criminal jurisdiction in the overseas country or territory
in question or a prosecuting authority in that country or territory; or
(b) from any other
authority in that country or territory which appears to the Attorney General to
have the function of making requests for the purposes of this Article,
and any evidence seized by a police officer by virtue of this Article
shall be furnished by him to the Attorney General for transmission to that
court, tribunal or authority.
(4) If, in order to comply
with the request, it is necessary for any such evidence to be accompanied by a
certificate, affidavit or other verifying document, the police officer shall
also furnish for transmission such document of that nature as is specified by
the Attorney General.
(5) If the evidence
consists of a document the original or a copy shall be transmitted, and if it consists
of any other article, the article itself or a description, photograph or other
representation of it shall be transmitted, as may be necessary in order to
comply with the request.
ARTICLE 7
Enforcement of overseas forfeiture
orders
(1) The States may by
Regulations provide for the enforcement in the Island of an order that -
(a) is made by a court in a
country or territory outside the Island designated for the purposes of this
Article by the Regulations; and
(b) is for the forfeiture
and destruction, or the forfeiture and other disposal, of anything in respect
of which an offence that would constitute a serious offence if the conduct
constituting the offence had occurred in the Island has been committed or that
was used or intended for use in connection with the commission of such an
offence.
(2) Without prejudice to
the generality of paragraph (1) Regulations under this Article may include a
provision which, for the purpose of facilitating the enforcement of any order
that may be made, has effect at times before there is an order to be enforced.
(3) Without prejudice to
the generality of paragraph (1), Regulations under this Article may
provide for the registration by a court in the Island of an order as a
condition of its enforcement and prescribe requirements to be satisfied before
an order can be registered.
(4) Regulations under this
Article may include such supplementary or incidental provisions as appear to
the States to be necessary or expedient and may apply for the purposes of the
Regulations (with such modifications as appear to the States to be appropriate)
any provision relating to confiscation or forfeiture orders under any other
enactment.
(5) Regulations under this
Article may make different provision for different cases.
ARTICLE 8
Rules of Court
(1) Provision may be made
by Rules of Court for any purpose for which it appears to be necessary or
expedient that provision should be made in connection with the provisions of
this Law.
(2) Rules made for the
purposes of the Schedule to this Law may, in particular, make provision with
respect to the persons entitled to appear or take part in proceedings before a
court or the Viscount to which that Schedule applies and for excluding the
public from any such proceedings.
(3) The power to make Rules
of Court under Article 11 of the Royal Court (Jersey) Law 1948 shall include a power to make Rules
for the purposes of this Article.
ARTICLE 9
Repeal
The
Drug Offences (International Co-operation) (Jersey) Law 1996 is repealed.
ARTICLE 10
Short title and commencement
This
Law may be cited as the Criminal Justice (International Co-operation) (Jersey)
Law 2001, and shall come into force on such day as the States may by Act
appoint and different days may be appointed for different purposes or different
provisions of this Law.
M.N.
DE LA HAYE
Deputy Greffier of the States.
SCHEDULE
(Article 5(3))
EVIDENCE FOR USE OVERSEAS:
PROCEEDINGS BEFORE NOMINATED COURT OR VISCOUNT
Securing attendance of witnesses
1.-(1) The
court shall have the same powers for securing the attendance of a witness for
the purpose of the proceedings as it has for the purpose of other proceedings
before the court.
(2) The Viscount shall have
the same powers for securing the attendance of a witness for the purposes of
proceedings before him as the Royal Court has for the purposes of any
proceedings before it.
Power to administer oaths
2. The court
or the Viscount, as the case may be, may in the proceedings take evidence on
oath.
Privilege of witnesses
3.-(1) A
person shall not be compelled to give in the proceedings any evidence which he
could not be compelled to give -
(a) in criminal proceedings
in the Island;
(b) subject to
sub-paragraph (2), in criminal proceedings in the country or territory from
which the request has come.
(2) Sub-paragraph (1)(b)
does not apply unless the claim of the person questioned to be exempt from
giving the evidence is conceded by the court, tribunal or authority which made
the request.
(3) Where such a claim made
by any person is not conceded as aforesaid he may (subject to the other
provisions of this paragraph) be required to give the evidence to which the
claim relates but the evidence shall not be transmitted to the court, tribunal
or authority which requested it if a court in the country or territory in
question, on the matter being referred to it, upholds the claim.
(4) Without prejudice to
sub-paragraph (1), a person shall not be compelled under this Schedule to give
any evidence if his doing so would be prejudicial to the security of the
British Islands, or any of them; and a certificate by or on behalf of the
Lieutenant Governor to the effect that it would be so prejudicial for that
person to do so shall be conclusive evidence of that fact.
(5) Without prejudice to
sub-paragraph (1), a person shall not be compelled under this Schedule to give
any evidence in his capacity as an officer or servant of the Crown.
(6) In this paragraph
references to giving evidence include references to answering any question and
to producing any document or other article and the references in sub-paragraph
(3) to the transmission of evidence given by a person shall be construed
accordingly.
Transmission of evidence
4.-(1) The
evidence received by the court or the Viscount, as the case may be, shall be
furnished to the Attorney General for transmission to the court, tribunal or
authority which made the request.
(2) If, in order to comply
with the request, it is necessary for the evidence to be accompanied by any
certificate, affidavit or other verifying document, the court or the Viscount,
as the case may be, shall also furnish for transmission such document of that
nature as may be specified in the notice nominating the court.
(3) If the evidence
consists of a document the original or a copy shall be transmitted, and if it
consists of any other article the article itself or a description, photograph
or other representation of it shall be transmitted, as may be necessary in
order to comply with the request.
Bankers’ Books Evidence (Jersey) Law 1986 applies
5. For the
avoidance of doubt it is hereby declared that the Bankers’ Books Evidence
(Jersey) Law 1986 applies to the proceedings (before
the court and the Viscount) as it applies to other proceedings before the
court.
No order for cost
6. An order
for costs shall not be made in the proceedings.