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In common law, a hue and cry is a process by which bystanders are summoned to assist in the apprehension of a criminal who has been witnessed in the act of committing a crime.
| | This article needs additional citations for verification .(December 2009) |
In common law, a hue and cry is a process by which bystanders are summoned to assist in the apprehension of a criminal who has been witnessed in the act of committing a crime.
| Hue and Cry Act 1734 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Long title | An Act for the Amendment of the Law relating to Actions on the Statute of Hue and Cry. |
| Citation | 8 Geo. 2. c. 16 |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 15 May 1735 |
| Other legislation | |
| Repealed by | |
Status: Repealed | |
| Hue and Cry Act 1748 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
| |
| Long title | An Act for remedying Inconveniencies which may happen by Proceedings in Actions on the Statutes of Hue and Cry. |
| Citation | 22 Geo. 2. c. 24 |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 26 May 1749 |
| Other legislation | |
| Repealed by | |
Status: Repealed | |
By the Statute of Winchester of 1285, 13 Edw. 1. St. 2. c. 4, it was provided that anyone, either a constable or a private citizen, who witnessed a crime shall make hue and cry, and that the hue and cry must be kept up against the fleeing criminal from town to town and from county to county, until the felon is apprehended and delivered to the sheriff. All able-bodied men, upon hearing the shouts, were obliged to assist in the pursuit of the criminal, which makes it comparable to the posse comitatus . It was moreover provided that "the whole hundred ... shall be answerable" for the theft or robbery committed, in effect a form of collective punishment. Those who raised a hue and cry falsely were themselves guilty of a crime. [1]
The hue and cry was utilized in medieval European towns and villages as a means of community policing. [2]
The oath of office for constables in the United States state of Tennessee specifically mentions that it is the duty of the constable to sound the hue and cry. [note 1]
It is possible that the term is an Anglicization via Anglo-French of the Latin hutesium et clamor, meaning "a horn and shouting". [3] Other sources indicate that it has always been a somewhat redundant phrase meaning an outcry and cry, though such "redundancy" is a feature of the legal doublet. "Hue" appears to come from the Old French huer, which means "to shout", and "cry" from Old French crier ("to cry"). [4] [5] [6] [7]
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