CORPUS DELICTI. The body of the offence; the essence of the crime.
2. It is a general rule not to convict unless the corpus delicti can be established, that is, until the fact that the crime has been actu ally perpetrated has been first proved. Hence, on a charge of homicide the accused should not be convicted unless the death be first distinctly proved, either by direct evidence of the fact or by inspection of the body. Best, Pres. 201 ; 1 Starkie, Ev. 575. See 6 Carr. & P. 176 ; 2 Hale, Pl. Cr. 290. Instances have occurred of a person being convicted of having killed another, who, after the supposed criminal has been put to death for the sup posed offence, has made his appearance alive. The wisdom of the rule is apparent; but it has been questioned whether, in extreme cases, it may not be competent to prove the basis of the corpus delicti by presumptive evidence. 3 Bentham, Jud. Ev. 234; Wills. Circum. Ev. 105 ; Best, Pres. 204.
3. The presumption arising from the pos session of the fruits of crime recently after its commission, which in all cases is one of fact rather than of law, is occasionally so strong as to render 'unnecessary any direct proof of what is called the corpus delicti. Thus, to borrow an apt illustration from Mr. Justice Maule, if a man were to go into the Lon don docks quite sober, and shortly afterwards were to be found very drunk, staggering out of one of the cellars, in which above a million gallons of wine are stowed, "I think," says the learned judge, "that this would be reason able evidence that the man had stolen some of the wine in the cellar, though noproof were given that any particular vat bad been broached and that any wine had actually been missed." Dearsl. Cr. Cas. 284; 1 Tay
lor, Ev. 122. In this case it was proved that a prisoner indicted for larceny was seen coming out of the lower room of a warehouse in the London docks, in the floor above which a large quantity of pepper was deposited, and where he had no business to be. He was stopped by a constable, who suspected him from the bulky state of his pockets, and said, "I think there is something wrong about you;" upon which the prisoner said, "I hope you will not be hard upon me;" and then threw a quantity of pepper out of his pocket on the ground. The witness stated that he could not say whether any pepper had been stolen, nor that any pepper had been missed ; hut that which was found upon the prisoner was of like description with the pepper in the warehouse. It was held by all the judges that the prisoner, upon these facts, was properly convicted of larceny.