Habeas Corpus History
Introduction to Habeas Corpus History
The earliest use of the writ as a constitutional remedy against the tyranny of the Crown took place in the latter part of the 16th century, when it was applied in behalf of persons committed to prison by the Privy Council. Many ways of avoiding the effectiveness of the writ were subsequently developed. In a case in 1627 the judges decided that a sufficient answer to a writ of habeas corpus was that the prisoner was detained by warrant of the Privy Council. In 1641 Parliament, by legislation that abolished the Star Chamber, tried to increase the effectiveness of the writ. This law provided that persons who were imprisoned by a court exercising jurisdiction similar to the Star Chamber, or by command of the sovereign or of the Privy Council, should be granted a writ of habeas corpus without delay; and that the court was to determine within three days after the return of the writ the legality of such imprisonment. The subsequent refusal of judges to issue writs of habeas corpus during vacation periods resulted in the passage by Parliament of the Habeas Corpus Act of 1679. That statute imposed severe penalties on any judge who refused without good cause to issue the writ and on any officer or other person who failed to comply with it. After that date the authority of the court was paramount to any order of the sovereign, and the writ became a powerful weapon for the protection of the liberty of the monarch’s subjects. The statute, however, dealt only with imprisonment for criminal offenses, and it was not until 1816 that its benefits were extended to persons detained for other reasons.” (1)
Resources
Notes and References
- Information about Habeas Corpus History in the Encarta Online Encyclopedia
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