§ CAPTAIN SINCLAIR (Dumbartonshire)I beg to ask the Secretary for Scotland whether Abraham Mitchell, recently tried at Dumbarton, who was arrested in England upon a warrant issued in Scotland at the instance of the Procurator Fiscal, and not indorsed by the English Authorities, was accordingly brought to Dumbarton, bailed out, and remanded for trial, before any authority or sanction for these proceedings was received from him, or from the Crown Office; and whether such proceedings were regular and usual; and, if not, 1785 whether he will take steps to prevent the recurrence of such irregularities?
§ MR. J. B. BALFOUR (who replied) saidThe proceedings mentioned in the first part of the question were taken before the case was reported to the Crown Office. It was reported to that Office for the first time when the pre-cognition was complete. It was within the power of the Procurator Fiscal to take these proceedings, including the obtaining of a warrant to arrest, without previously getting the authority of Crown counsel. The failure to have the warrant endorsed in England seems to me to have been an irregularity, but for this failure no one in Scotland was responsible. After the warrant for arrest was granted, it was handed in at the office of the Dumbartonshire police to be executed. These police had information that Abraham Mitchell was at Bacup, Lancashire, and they forwarded the warrant to the Bacup police, adding in the letter that the warrant would require to be endorsed by a Magistrate at Bacup in the usual way. The Dumbartonshire police afterwards received from the Bacup police a telegram, intimating that the arrest had been made, and, thereupon, an officer was despatched to Bacup to bring Abraham Mitchell to Dumbarton. This officer, upon receiving the warrant from the Bacup police, observed that it was not endorsed, and drew their attention to this, but they said it was too late to endorse it, as Abraham Mitchell was actually in custody.
§ CAPTAIN SINCLAIRAm I to understand from the right hon. Gentleman that the conduct of the Procurator Fiscal with regard to this arrest meets with his approval?
§ MR. J. B. BALFOURThe question is whether there was anything irregular, or any excess of power in the proceedings, and that I have answered.