Section 329 — Crimes Act 1961: Contents of counts

329 Contents of counts (1) Every count of an indictment shall contain and shall be sufficient if it contains in substance a statement that the accused has committed either some crime therein specified or, except where the indictment contains a count specifying a crime for which an offender may be proceeded against only by indictment, some offence therein specified that is punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding 3 months; and for the purposes of this section and of sections 330 to 344 of this Act the term crime shall be deemed to include any such offence as aforesaid. (2) The statement may be made in popular language, without any technical averments or any allegations of matter not essential to be proved. (3) The statement may be in the words of the enactment describing the crime or declaring the matter charged to be a crime, or in any words sufficient to give the accused notice of the crime with which he is charged. (4) Every count shall contain so much detail of the circumstances of the alleged crime as is sufficient to give the accused reasonable information concerning the act or omission to be proved against him, and to identify the transaction referred to; but the absence or insufficiency of such details shall not vitiate the count. (5) A count may refer to any section or subsection of any enactment creating the crime charged therein, and in estimating the sufficiency of any such count the Court shall have regard to such reference. (6) Every count shall in general apply only to a single transaction. Compare: 1908 No 32 s 387 Subsection (1) was amended, as from 23 October 1963, by section 2 Crimes Amendment Act 1963 (1963 No 120) by substituting the words “ either some crime therein specified or, except where the indictment contains a count specifying a crime for which an offender may be proceeded against only by indictment, some offence therein specified that is punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding 3 months; and for the purposes of this section and of sections 330 to 344 of this Act the term crime shall be deemed to include any such offence as aforesaid ” for the words “ some crime therein specified ” .