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R v County of London Quarter Sessions Appeals Committee, Exp. Metropolitan Police Commissioner

The Law Reports Cited in 27 Precedent Map Related
Vincent
JurisdictionEngland & Wales
Year1948
Date1948
CourtDivisional Court
[DIVISIONAL COURT] THE KING v. COUNTY OF LONDON QUARTER SESSIONS APPEALS COMMITTEE. Ex parte METROPOLITAN POLICE COMMISSIONER. 1947 Dec. 11, 19. Lord Goddard C.J., Humphreys and Atkinson JJ.

Magistrates - Appeal - Order made by magistrate under Justice of the Peace Act, 1360 (34 Edw. 3, c. 1) - Binding over to be of good behaviour - Not a conviction.

An order was made by a metropolitan magistrate under the Justice of the Peace Act, 1360, by which, after reciting his finding that the defendant was a person of good fame but had acted in a manner whereby the peace was blemished, he hound over the defendant in his own recognizance to be of good behaviour for twelve months.

Held, by LORD GODDARD C.J. and HUMPHREYS J., ATKINSON J. dissenting, that that order was not a conviction and no appeal lay therefrom.

MOTION for order of prohibition.

On August 8, 1947, Stanley Arthur Williams was charged before a metropolitan magistrate for that he on August 7, 1947, was found acting in a manner likely to cause a breach of the peace by eavesdropping contrary to the Justice of the Peace Act, 1360F1. The magistrate, having heard the evidence, struck the words “by eavesdropping” out of the charge as he did not consider that Williams had been acting in a manner which could fairly be so described, but he was of opinion that Williams had been acting in a manner calculated to blemish the peace and bound him over to be of good behaviour for twelve months. The magistrate's order was drawn up in the following terms: “Whereas Stanley Arthur Williams is brought before me this 8th day of August, 1947, pursuant to the provisions of 34 Edward 3, and whereas I find him to be a person of good fame but who has acted in a manner whereby the peace is blemished, I therefore by virtue of the powers conferred on me by statute above-mentioned do order him to find sufficient surety for his good behaviour towards the King and his people, that is to say to enter into his own recognizance in the sum of 25l. to be of good behaviour during the period of 12 months now next ensuing.”

Williams gave notice of appeal to quarter sessions against the magistrate's order and entered into a recognizance to prosecute it. The commissioner of the metropolitan police now moved for an order of prohibition addressed to the County of London quarter sessions appeals committee to prohibit them from hearing such appeal on the ground that the order made by the magistrate was not a conviction and that therefore no appeal lay therefrom.

Melford Stevenson K.C. and Vernon Gattie for the applicant. The only question for the court is whether the appeals committee have jurisdiction to entertain the appeal. Unless there was a conviction they have no such jurisdiction, and an order made by a magistrate under the Justice of the Peace Act, 1360, binding a person over is not a conviction. The magistrate decided that the charge against Williams was not proved, in other words, that he had not committed any punishable offence, although he was of opinion that his conduct was such as might lead to a breach of the peace. The right of appeal from a magistrate is the creature of statute and there is no statute which provides for an appeal in any case other than from a conviction, except perhaps s. 50 of the Police Courts Act, 1839. The enactments which give a right of appeal to quarter sessions are the Summary Jurisdiction Act, 1879, s. 19; the Criminal Justice Administration Act, 1914, s. 37, sub s. 1; and the Criminal Justice Act, 1925, s. 25, all of which refer only to appeals from convictions. There is the power to bind over under the Probation of Offenders Act, 1907, but that is subject to special provisions as to appeal. In the present case there was no conviction and therefore there is no competent appeal and the order of prohibition should be granted. [Counsel referred to Lansbury v. RileyF2 and Rex v. Sand-bachF3.]

G. O. Slade K.C. and Cridlan for the respondents. The question is what amounts to a conviction. Under s. 37 of the Criminal Justice Administration Act, 1914, any person aggrieved by any conviction of a court of summary jurisdiction in respect of any offence, who did not plead guilty or admit the truth of the information, may appeal to quarter sessions. It is conceded that an order made by a magistrate in accordance with the system of preventive justice, binding a person over to keep the peace, is not a punishment. And it may not be a conviction if the person charged has committed no act by which the peace is blemished. But here the magistrate found that Williams had acted in a manner by which the peace was blemished. Therefore he can be said to have been convicted of an offence against the Act of 1360, namely, blemishing the peace. Conduct can be an offence, although not punishable. “Convicted” means found guilty, in other words, that the act alleged to have been committed is proved: it matters not whether the act is punished or not: Rex v. SheridanF4. Under the Act of 1360 the duty of the magistrate is to bind over those of good fame, but to punish those not of good fame. Therefore, since the magistrate has power to punish, there must be an offence. Davis' caseF5 is distinguishable from the present case, because in that case there was an acquittal of the offence charged, whereas in the present case the magistrate held that the act charged was proved. The fact that the order of the magistrate was not drawn up as a conviction in statutory form is not conclusive.

Melford Stevenson K.C. replied.

Cur. adv. vult.

December 19 LORD GODDARD C.J. It is elementary law that where an order is made or judgment given by a court of competent jurisdiction, an appeal will not lie to any court unless it is expressly given by statute, and, with regard to orders made by magistrates acting as a court of summary jurisdiction, there are three statutes conferring and regulating the right of appeal from their decisions. The first is the Summary Jurisdiction Act, 1879, which by s. 19 gives that right to a person adjudged by a conviction or order of a court of summary jurisdiction to be imprisoned without the option of a fine, provided he did not plead guilty, or admit the truth of the information or complaint. Secondly, by s. 37 of the Criminal Justice Administration Act, 1914, any person aggrieved by any conviction of a court of summary jurisdiction who did not plead guilty may appeal, even though sentence of imprisonment is not passed. Finally by the Criminal Justice Act, 1925, a right of appeal against his sentence is given to a person although he pleaded guilty. In each case, therefore, it is necessary that there should be a conviction, and no provision is anywhere to be found giving a right of appeal in criminal matters against an order of justices who are not sitting as a court of summary jurisdiction; so it is clear that the only question for the court in this case is whether the order of the learned magistrate was a conviction.

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19 cases
  • Williamson v Chief Constable of West Midlands Police
    • United Kingdom
    • Court of Appeal (Civil Division)
    • 21 Febrero 2003
    ...established as a matter of domestic law that breach of the peace is not a criminal offence (see R v County of London Quarter Sessions Appeals Committee, ex parte Metropolitan Police Commissioner [1948] 1 KB 670, 673 and 676. The issue in that case was whether an order of the magistrates bi......
  • An application pursuant to s. 52 of the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act 1961. Paul Thorpe v DPP
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    • High Court
    • 17 Febrero 2006
    ...487 HOLDSWORTH HISTORY OF ENGLISH LAW 5ED VOL 3 603 JUSTICES OF THE PEACE ACT 1360 R v COUNTY COURT QUARTER SESSIONS APPEALS COMMITTEE 1948 1 KB 670 POYNING'S ACT 10 HEN 7 IR CHAP 22 PETTY SESSIONS (IRL) ACT 1851 S10 CRIMINAL JUSTICE (PUBLIC ORDER) 1994 S6 CRIMINAL JUSTICE (PUBLIC ORDER) 19......
  • R (Laporte) v Chief Constable of Gloucestershire Constabulary
    • United Kingdom
    • House of Lords
    • 13 Diciembre 2006
    ...that "Breach of the peace … does not constitute a criminal offence", for which the authority of R v County of London Quarter Sessions Appeal Committee, Ex p Metropolitan Police Commissioner [1948] 1 KB 670 is cited—an authority perhaps more appropriately cited at footnote 15 (although in b......
  • Minister for Home Affairs v Benbrika
    • Australia
    • High Court
    • 10 Febrero 2021
    ...ed (1809), bk 4, ch 18 at 251. 386 R v County of London Quarter Sessions Appeals Committee; Ex parte Metropolitan Police Commissioner [1948] 1 KB 670 at 387 R v Rogers (1702) 7 Mod 28 at 29 [ 87 ER 1074 at 1075]; Ex parte Davis (1871) 35 JP 551 at 551-552. See the concession by counsel in ......
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3 books & journal articles
  • Involuntary Detention and the Separation of Judicial Power
    • United Kingdom
    • Sage Federal Law Review No. 35-1, March 2007
    • 1 Marzo 2007
    ...1; Lansbury v Riley [1914] 3 KB 229; R v County of London Quarter Sessions Appeals Committee; Ex parte Metropolitan Police Commissioner [1948] 1 KB 670. 276 Blackstone, above n 275, 252; R v County of London Quarter Sessions Appeals Committee; Ex parte Metropolitan Police Commissioner [1948......
  • CONVICTION
    • Nigeria
    • DSC Publications Online Sasegbon’s Judicial Dictionary of Nigerian Law. First edition C
    • 24 Enero 2019
    ...word "conviction" given by Atkinson J. In R. v.London County Quarter Sessions Appeals Committee Exp Metropolitan Police Commissioner (1948) 1 K.B. 670, 679 - 680 wherein the learned Judge said: - " a conviction is an act of a Court of competent jurisdiction adjudging a person to be guilty o......
  • Common Law Offence: Breach of the Peace
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    • Sage Journal of Criminal Law, The No. 71-1, February 2007
    • 1 Febrero 2007
    ...English Law, vol. III, 5th edn (1942) 603), as well as R vCountyQuarter Session Appeals Committee, ex p. Metropolitan Police Commissioner[1948] 1 KB 670. In that case, Lord Goddard CJ considered the Justice ofthe Peace Act 1360 (which applies in Ireland by virtue of Poynings Act,10 Hen. 7 (......

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