Hong Kong Ordinances

CRIMINAL PROCEDURE ORDINANCE - SECT 38

Provisions supplementary to section 37

(1) If the court issuing a warrant in respect of any witness under section 37
is of the opinion that it is appropriate to do so, the court may endorse the
warrant for bail, and in any such case-

(a) on the arrest of the witness under the warrant he shall, unless he can
forthwith be brought before the court specified in the warrant, be taken to a
police station; and

   (b)  the officer in charge of the station shall release him from custody if
        the witness, and any sureties required by the endorsement and approved
        by the officer, enter into recognizances of such amount as may be
        fixed by the endorsement, conditioned for the appearance of the
        witness before the court specified in the warrant.

(2) If a court issuing a warrant in respect of any witness under section 37 is
of the opinion that the evidence of the witness can be dispensed with but that
consideration should be given to dealing with him under section 36 it may
endorse the warrant as issued for the purpose of section 36.

(3) Where a witness appears before a court in pursuance of a recognizance
entered into under section 37 or this section, the court may enlarge his
recognizance and those of his sureties, if any, to any later time appointed by
the court for receiving the evidence of that person or dealing with him under
section 36.

(4) Without prejudice to the enforcement of any recognizance entered into as
aforesaid, section 37 shall apply to any witness who fails to attend before a
court in compliance with such a recognizance as it applies to a witness who
fails to attend in obedience to a witness summons.

(5) In this section "court" (法庭) includes the District Court. (Replaced 59
of 1981 s. 3) [cf. 1965 c. 69 s. 5 (2), (3), (4) & (5) U.K.]

"court" (法庭)