Mr. Peelrose to make his promised motion relative to the shameful neglect that at present prevailed in enforcing the payment of fines incurred by persons in Ireland, inconsequence of the Forfeiture of their Recognizances in criminal cases. The present system of entreating or enforcing such fines, had been settled by the act of 1798 of the Irish parliament—a period peculiarly unfavourable to legislative accuracy or precision. By this act the estreats of all fines were ordered to be certified to that officer in the exchequer, denominated the comptroller of fines and estreats, who made a return thereof to the directors of green wax process. These parties were empowered by the said act to direct warrants to be issued to the collectors of baronial assessments, empowering them to levy these fines, to assist and thereby lighten these assessments. It was perfectly clear to the House, that unless persons giving their recognizance to appear and prosecute criminal offences were, in the event of their non-appearance, punished by estreating their recognizances thus forfeited, there must be an end put to any expectation that justice in criminal matters would be done in any part of Ireland. The fact was, that nothing was more common than informations against individuals to-day, which, through partiality, interest, or the more flagitious means of bribing, were abandoned to-morrow. The sum total of these estreats during the last seven years amounted to 200,000l. of which not a third part had been levied; and of such as had been levied, the amount, instead of being applied to ease and aid the baronial assess- 534 ments, had been pocketed by the constables, whose duty it now was to collect them, and appropriate one-third to themselves for the trouble of their collection. At the assizes for one town he had been informed that of 900l. estrentable fines, which might and ought to have been collected, only 300l. was levied, all of which had gone into the constable's pocket. The mode these, gentlemen adopted was ingenious and rather original. Supposing that of this 900l. he levied 300l. in the first instance, he drew the 100l. to which he was by law entitled, and then drew the remaining 200l. as his poundage upon the 600l. still remaining estreatable, although not collected. Thus, in the seven years in which the comptroller of the pipe in Ireland, should have received 500 returns upon estreats, not more than twenty or thirty had been received; all of which were, in consequence of the above practices, merely useless forms. In the king's county alone, in the course of the seven years, although estreats accrued to the amount of 7,500l., no attempt had been made to levy any one recognizance. Here, then, the whole law of forfeited recognizances had been rendered a dead letter. At the assizes for Birr, 111 indictments were found, and not more than 20 came to trial. The consequence was, the introduction of a system of perjury and fraud, disgraceful and prejudicial to the administration of justice in the country. The practice was detrimental to the morals of the subject, in particular with respect to a practice resorted to, to evade the possible enforcement of these estreats. The party thus forfeiting their recognizance came into court at one assizes, and made oath they would take up or fulfil their recognizance, and at the next assizes came into court and swore that they were in a state of insolvency, and could not make good the fine. They were by this summary mode discharged, and all hope of levying the fine vanished—His intention was, to take the power of enforcing these fines out of the hands of the constable and put it into the sheriff's, as was the practice in this country, providing, at the same time, a suitable indemnification to the sheriff. It was his intention also to bring in shortly another bill, regulating the office of sheriff in Ireland, which hitherto had been exposed to great inconvenience, in consequence of the sheriff of the present year being liable to be proceeded against for the acts of his predecessor, 535 and the sheriff having no proper mode of obtaining redress against, or controlling the sub sheriff. These disabilities and inconveniences of the present system, it should be his study to remove by the provisions of the act proposed.
§ Sir John Newportcomplimented the right hon. gentleman upon the sincerity of his intentions, and the correct view he had taken of the subject. He considered that the evil called aloud on parliament for its interference. It was high time the power of levying those fines should be transferred from the constable to the sheriff. The result had proved its impolicy, and he should give the most hearty cooperation to the bill proposed.
§ Leave was given to bring in the bill.