# Criminal Evidence Act (Northern Ireland) 1923

1923 c. 9 (N.I.) · enacted 10 May 1923 · revised to 4 May 2010

An Act to amend the Law of Evidence in its application to Northern Ireland.

## Introductory text

An Act to amend the Law of Evidence in its application to Northern Ireland.
[10th May 1923]

## 1 Competency of witnesses in criminal cases.

. . .
(1) A personcharged in criminal proceedings shall not be called as a witnessin the proceedings except upon his own application;
Provisos (b), (c), (d) rep. by 1989 NI 12
(2) Subject to Article 6 of the Criminal Justice (Evidence) (Northern Ireland) Order 2004 (admissibility of defendant’s bad character), a person chargedin criminal proceedings who is called as a witness in the proceedings may be asked any question in cross-examination notwithstanding that it would tend to criminate him as toany offence with which he is charged in the proceedings:
(3) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(4) Every personcharged in criminal proceedings who is called as a witness in the proceedings shall, unless otherwise ordered by the court, give his evidence from the witness box or other place from which the other witnesses give their evidence:
Proviso (h) rep. by 1989 NI 12

## 2 Evidence of person charged.

Where the only witness to the facts of the case called by the defence is a person charged, he shall be called as a witness immediately after the close of the evidence for the prosecution.

## 3 Right of reply.

In cases where the right of reply depends upon the question whether evidence has been called for the defence, the fact that the person charged has been called as a witness shall not of itself confer on the prosecution the right of reply.

## 5 Application of Act.

(1) This Act shall apply to all criminal proceedings,. . . .
Subs. (2) rep. by SLR (NI) 1952; subs. (3) rep. by 1954 c. 33 (NI); subs. (4) rep. by SLR (NI) 1952

## 6 Short title.

This Act may be cited as the Criminal Evidence Act (Northern Ireland), 1923.

## 

First Schedule rep. by 1989 NI 12

## 

Second Schedule rep. by SLR (NI) 1952

---
Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/apni/1923/9 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/criminal-evidence-act-northern-ireland-1923
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.