Misprision of treason is an offence found in many

common law In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omniprese ...

jurisdictions around the world, having been inherited from

English law English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures. Principal elements of English law Although the common law has, historically, b ...

. It is committed by someone who knows a

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

is being or is about to be committed but does not report it to a proper authority.

Australia

Under Australian law a person is guilty of misprision of treason if he: The maximum penalty is life imprisonment.

Canada

Under section 50(1)(b) of the Canadian ''Criminal Code'', a person is guilty of an offence (although it is not described as misprision) if: The maximum penalty is 14 years.

Republic of Ireland

Under section 3 of the

Treason Act 1939 The Treason Act 1939 is an Act of the Oireachtas (Parliament) of the Republic of Ireland. It provides for the punishment of treason and related offences. Article 39 of the 1937 Constitution of Ireland defines treason as follows: Section 1 of t ...

a person is guilty of misprision of treason if "knowing that any act the commission of which would be treason is intended or proposed to be, or is being, or has been committed, edoes not forthwith disclose the same, together with all particulars thereof known to him, to a Justice of the District Court, or an officer of the Gárda Síochána, or some other person lawfully engaged on duties relating to the preservation of peace and order."

New Zealand

Section 76(b) of the Crimes Act 1961 provides that any person who "knowing that a person is about to commit treason, fails without reasonable excuse to inform a constable as soon as possible or to use other reasonable efforts to prevent its commission" is guilty of an offence. A person guilty of this offence is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding seven years.

Russia

Russia has no specific offence of misprision. However Article 275 of the

Criminal Code of Russia The Russian Criminal Code (russian: Уголовный кодекс Российской Федерации, frequently abbreviated УК РФ) is the prime source of the Law of the Russian Federation concerning criminal offences. The 1996 Crim ...

encourages people to come forward with information by providing them with a statutory defence to treason and other offences:

United Kingdom

Misprision of treason is an offence under the common law of England and Wales and the common law of Northern Ireland. By statute, the offence of misprision of treason under the common law of England has been made an offence which is cognisable under the law of Scotland. This offence was formerly known as misprision of high treason in order to distinguish it from misprision of petty treason, before that offence was abolished along with its parent offence in 1828. The crime is committed where a person knows that treason is being planned or committed and does not report it as soon as he can to a justice of the peace or other authority. The offender does not need to consent to the treason; mere knowledge is enough. Concealment of treason was itself a treason at common law until the Treason Act 1554 deemed it merely misprision of treason, which was a

felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that res ...

Difference from treason

In ''R v. Tonge'' (1662) 6 State Tr 225, it was said that: (For more information about the "Tonge Plot", see ''Intelligence and Espionage in the Reign of Charles II, 1660–1685'' (Marshall, 1994)). Similarly, in ''R v. Walcott'' (1683) 9 State Tr 519 at 553, Pemberton, LCJ. said:

Penalty

It is punishable by imprisonment for life.

Procedure

The procedure on trials for misprision of treason is the same as that on trials for murder. It is classified as an indictable-only offence.

Limitation

A person may not be indicted for misprision of treason committed within the United Kingdom unless the indictment is signed within three years of the commission of that offence.

Scottish Parliament

Misprision of treason is a

reserved matter In the United Kingdom, devolved matters are the areas of public policy where the Parliament of the United Kingdom has devolved its legislative power to the national assemblies of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, while reserved matte ...

on which the

Scottish Parliament The Scottish Parliament ( gd, Pàrlamaid na h-Alba ; sco, Scots Pairlament) is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. Located in the Holyrood area of the capital city, Edinburgh, it is frequently referred to by the metonym Holyr ...

cannot legislate.

United States

In the United States misprision of treason is a federal offense, committed where someone who has knowledge of the commission of any treason against the United States, conceals such knowledge and does not inform the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

, a

federal judge Federal judges are judges appointed by a federal level of government as opposed to the state/provincial/local level. United States A US federal judge is appointed by the US President and confirmed by the US Senate in accordance with Article 3 ...

, a State

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, or a State

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

('). It is punishable by a fine and up to seven years in

federal prison A federal prison is operated under the jurisdiction of a federal government as opposed to a state or provincial body. Federal prisons are used for convicts who violated federal law (U.S., Mexico), inmates considered dangerous (Brazil), or those s ...

. It is also a crime punishable under the criminal laws of many states.

California

Misprision of treason in California consists of: Treason in the aforementioned quote only refers to treason against California, not treason against the United States or any other entity. The crime is punishable by imprisonment pursuant to subdivisio
(h) of Section 1170
in a county jail for 16 months, or two or three years.

Notes

{{Reflist

References

Halsbury's Laws of England ''Halsbury's Laws of England'' is a uniquely comprehensive encyclopaedia of law, and provides the only complete narrative statement of law in England and Wales. It has an alphabetised title scheme covering all areas of law, drawing on authoriti ...

, 4th Edition, 2006 reissue, Volume 11(1), Paragraphs 365 and 366 * J G Bellamy, The Law of Treason in England in the Later Middle Ages, CUP, Appendix I (2004 ed.

*

William Blackstone Sir William Blackstone (10 July 1723 – 14 February 1780) was an English jurist, judge and Tory politician of the eighteenth century. He is most noted for writing the ''Commentaries on the Laws of England''. Born into a middle-class family ...

Commentaries on the Laws of England The ''Commentaries on the Laws of England'' are an influential 18th-century treatise on the common law of England by Sir William Blackstone, originally published by the Clarendon Press at Oxford, 1765–1770. The work is divided into four volum ...

, Book 4, Chapter 9, paragraphs 120–121 (1867 ed.

(from Google Book Search, Google Books). *

Edward Coke Edward is an English given name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortune; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-Sax ...

Institutes of the Laws of England The ''Institutes of the Lawes of England'' are a series of legal treatises written by Sir Edward Coke. They were first published, in stages, between 1628 and 1644. Widely recognized as a foundational document of the common law, they have been ci ...

, Part 3, Chapter 3 (p.36) (1797 ed.

(from Google Book Search, Google Books). * Edward Hyde East, Treatise of Pleas of the Crown, Volume 1, Chapter 3 (pp. 139–140) (1806 ed.

(from Google Book Search, Google Books). * Matthew Hale (jurist), Matthew Hale,

Historia Placitorum Coronæ ''Historia Placitorum Coronæ'' or ''The History of the Pleas of the Crown'' is an influential treatise on the criminal law of England, written by Sir Matthew Hale and published posthumously with notes by Sollom Emlyn by E. and R. Nutt, and R. ...

(History of Pleas of the Crown), Volume 1, Chapter 28, paragraphs 371 to 377 (1800 ed.

(from Google Book Search, Google Books). * William Hawkins (serjeant-at-law), William Hawkins, Treatise of Pleas of the Crown, Book 1, Part 1, Chapter 5 (pp. 60–61) (1824 ed.

(from Google Book Search, Google Books). Common law Crimes Criminal law Deception English law Inchoate offenses Treason United States federal law Common law offences in England and Wales