Criminal Code (Cap. 9)

Criminal Code (Cap. 9), article 533

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533. (1) In the case of proceedings instituted by the Attorney General or by the Police ex officio , the court shall, in pronouncing judgment or in any subsequent order, sentence the person convic ted or the persons convicted, jointly or severally, to the payment, wholly or in part, to the registrar, of the costs incurred in connection with the employment in the proceedings of any expert or referee, including such experts as would have been appointed in the examination of the process verbal of the inquiry, within su ch period and in such amount as shall be determined in the judgmen t or order. Procedure in default of payment. (2) In default of payment of the costs as determined by the court, the court shall, on the application of the registrar, is sue a warrant of arrest against the person sentenced ordering the appearance of such person, and the court, upon ascertaining the identity of such person, shall convert the amount so determined into imprisonment at the rate of one day for every eleven euro and sixty-five cents (€11.65) or fraction thereof and shall commit the person convicted to imprisonment accordingly: Provided that a person committed to imprisonment for non- payment of such costs may acquit himself of the substituted punishment by paying the costs determined by the court with the deduction of such amount thereof as corresponds to the part of the punishment undergone at the rate laid down in this article. Power of prosecutor to recover costs as a civil debt. (3) Nevertheless, it shall be law ful for the registrar to recove r the costs aforesaid as a civil de bt by making a declaration to that effect in the record o f the case at any tim e until the costs ha ve been converted into imprisonment; and, on such declaration being mad e, the provisions of sub-articl e (2) shall cease to apply. Mode of recovery. Cap. 12. (4) The recovery of the costs as a civil debt shall be obtained by an application to the same court for the enforcement of the sentence or order, in the manner laid down in the Code of Organization and Civil Procedure . Payment of costs in cases instituted upon the complaint of the injured or aggrieved party, where the complainant waives the action. Added by: XXXI.2019.4.

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Text read from the consolidated PDF published by Legislation Malta. Tables, figures and marginal notes may be incomplete or out of place: the official PDF is authoritative. General information, not legal, tax or accounting advice.