The Law of Evidence
| Published date | 01 January 1939 |
| Date | 01 January 1939 |
| Author | John Cameron |
| DOI | 10.1177/0032258X3901200110 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
The
Law of Evidence"
By
JOHN
CAMERON,
Esq.,
K.C.
Formerly
Advocate
Depute,
Crown
Office,
Edinburgh
IT
is obviously impossible within the compass of a short
lecture to deal fully with the mass of rules which make up the
Law of Evidence in its relation to the Criminal Law, and what I
propose to do isto state to you, in a condensed form, the funda-
mental principles which govern
that
law in Scotland and then
to attempt to show you how these principles fall to be applied
in the course of criminal investigation. In so doing, I wish
to concentrate upon the practical rather than the theoretical,
because so long as you have before you the general principles
of the Law of Evidence in making your investigation, you will
not go very far wrong in the preparation of any cases committed
to your care.
The
first question then that arises is " What is evidence? "
You are familiar enough with the old phrase that "what the
soldier said is not evidence,"
and
into
that
phrase is con-
densed agreat deal of the principles which govern the matter.
Evidence, in the legal sense, consists of those facts upon which
aCourt of Law will proceed to a legal determination.
The
Law
of Evidence relates to the proof of those facts which bear upon
the issue which the Court is called
upon
to try.
There
are
certain rules which govern what lawyers call the admissibility
of evidence and the effect of evidence, and these make up the
Law of Evidence.
The
fundamental principle is fair play.
That
is the true
basis of the Law of Evidence and from that springs the
primary requirement of our
law-that
only the best available
evidence will be admitted in proof, and that the evidence
• A
lecture
delivered at an
Advanced
Course
for
senior
police officers in
Scotland.
Here
printed
by
permission
of
H.M.
Secretary
of
State
for
Scotland
and
by
courtesy
of W. B. R.
Morren,
Esq.,
Chief
Constable
of
the
City
of
Edinburgh.
10
9
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