Evidence Amendment Act 1994
The Laws of Bermuda
Annual Volume of Public Acts 1994 : 20

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143

BERMUDA
1994 : 20

EVIDENCE AMENDMENT ACT 1994

[Date of Assent 13 July 1994]

[Operative Date 1 August 1994]

WHEREAS it is expedient to repeal and replace section 32 of the
Evidence Act 1905 and to amend other laws relating to the corroboration
of evidence in criminal proceedings:

Be it enacted by The Queen's Most Excellent Majesty, by and
with the advice and consent of the Senate and the House of Assembly of
Bermuda, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

Short title
1 This Act may be cited as the Evidence Amendment Act 1994.

Repeal and replacement of s 32 of Act No 20 of 1905
2 Section 32 of the Evidence Act 1905 is repealed and the following
section is substituted—

"Corroboration of evidence
32 (1) Evidence corroborates other evidence in criminal
proceedings if, being admissible in those proceedings, it tends to
confirm that other evidence.

(2) Every rule (not being a rule laid down by a
statutory provision)—

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(a) requiring any evidence in criminal proceedings
to be corroborated by other evidence; or

(b) requiring the judge in criminal proceedings to
instruct the jury whether any evidence is or is
not capable of corroborating, or does or does not
in fact corroborate, other evidence; or

(c) requiring the judge in criminal proceedings to
warn the jury of the danger of convicting an
accused person on uncorroborated evidence,

is abrogated.

(3) Nothing in subsection (2)—

(a) precludes a judge from advising a jury to
consider, in their discretion, whether evidence
ought to be corroborated by other evidence; or

(b) excuses a judge from otherwise assisting a jury
in their consideration of any evidence,

where the interests of justice warrant.".

Consequential amendment of other laws
3 The statutory provisions specified in the first column of the
Schedule (being provisions relating to the corroboration of evidence in
criminal proceedings) are consequentially amended in the manner
respectively specified in the second column of the Schedule.

Commencement and transitional
4 This Act comes into operation on 1st August 1994 and, in
relation to any criminal proceedings, has effect if the trial or, as the case
may be, the preliminary inquiry begins on or after that day.

SCHEDULE (Section 3)

First Column Second Column

The Evidence Act 1905
section 42(1), proviso: delete all the words following the

word "corroborated"

The Criminal Code

The Laws of Bermuda
Annual Volume of Public Acts 1994 : 20

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section 3: delete from the definition of
"uncorroborated testimony" all
the words following the word
"corroborated"

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