The West Indian Prisons Act 1838 ( 1 & 2 Vict. c. 67) was an

Act of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, signed into law on 4 August 1838. The Act empowered the Queen in Council and the governor and council of any colony to make rules for the government of the prisons of each colony in the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

. These were to be binding on all persons, but had to be laid before Parliament. It also empowered the Queen to appoint inspectors of prisons, or to authorize their appointment by the governor of the colony; obstruction of these inspectors in their duties would be subject to a penalty of £20. The governor was to be sent regular returns and plans of prisons, and no person was to be kept in a prison which he certified unfit. He had the power to suspend or dismiss officers of prisons. The Act was to be proclaimed in the Colonies.

References

*''The British almanac of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, for the year 1839''. The Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, London, 1839. 1838 in British law United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1838 {{UK-statute-stub