Giving the accused person into the charge of the jury—Jury Act, s 51
48 Giving the accused person into the charge of the jury—Jury Act, s 51
After the jury who have been sworn are called and they have answered, the proper officer must address the jury as follows—
‘Members of the jury, AB (and CD) is/are charged that on [state date] at [state place] he/she/they [state the offence charged in the words of the indictment or by stating the heading of the schedule form for the offence].
‘To this charge he/she/they say that he/she/they is/are not guilty.
‘You are the jurors appointed according to law to say whether he/she/they is/are guilty or not guilty of the charge.
‘It is your duty to pay attention to the evidence and say whether he/she/they is/are guilty or not guilty.
‘Members of the jury, as early as is convenient, you must choose a person to speak on your behalf. You may change the speaker during the trial and any of you is free to speak.’.
The proper officer is taken to have complied with subrule (1) if the proper officer uses other words complying with the requirements of the Jury Act 1995, section 51.
The statute text is free to read above. View subscription options to unlock the case-law research tools for each provision.