TITLE II. CONCERNING THIEVES AND STOLEN PROPERTY.
| I. | He who is Searching for Stolen Property must Describe it. |
| II. | Where a Slave Commits a Theft Before, or After, he has Received his Freedom. |
| III. | Where a Slave who has Become the Property of Another Master, Commits an Unlawful Act. |
| IV. | Where a Freeman Commits a Theft in Company with the Slave of Another Person. |
| V. | Where a Master Commits a Theft in Company with his Slave. |
| VI. | Where a Slave, Belonging to Another Person, is Instigated by Anyone to the Commission of Unlawful Acts. |
| VII. | Concerning Those who Knowingly Associate with Thieves. |
| VIII. | Where Anyone, Ignorantly, Buys Stolen Property of a Thief. |
| IX. | Where Anyone, Knowingly, Buys Stolen Property of a Thief. |
| X. | Concerning Money, and Other Property, Stolen from the King. |
| XI. | Concerning the Stealing of Bells from Cattle. |
| XII. | Concerning the Theft of Mill Machinery. |
| XIII. | Concerning the Punishment of a Thief. |
| XIV. | A Thief, when Taken, shall be Brought Before the Judge; and Where a Freeman Commits a Theft in Company with a Slave, Both shall Undergo the Same Penalty. |
| XV. | Where a Thief, Defending Himself with a Sword, is Killed. |
| XVI. | Where a Thief is Killed at Night, while he is Being Taken. |
| XVII. | Concerning Property Injured or Destroyed; and the Reparation to be Made for what has been Damaged or Stolen. |
| XVIII. | Concerning Property Rescued from Shipwreck. |
| XIX. | Concerning the Property and the Heirs of Thieves. |
| XX. | Concerning Those who Rescue Thieves and Other Criminals, after their Capture. |
| XXI. | Where a Slave Steals from his Master, or from a Fellow-Slave. |
| XXII. | Within what Time, after his Arrest, a Thief must be Brought Before the Judge. |
| XXIII. | Where Anyone Secretly Kills an Animal Belonging to Another. |
I. He who is Searching for Stolen Property must Describe it.
Whoever makes a demand for any stolen property, must privately describe to the judge what he seeks, and show, by manifest proof, what he has lost; as the truth may not be established, where sufficient evidence is not introduced.
ANCIENT LAW.
II. Where a Slave Commits a Theft Before, or After, he has Received his Freedom.
If a slave should be guilty of theft, and should be afterwards set free by his master, the master shall not be liable for any loss on account of any acts previously committed by said slave; but the slave himself shall suffer the penalties prescribed by the law against the perpetrators of crime. Where he commits a theft after he has received his freedom, he shall be compelled to make the same reparation as he would have done while a slave, and shall receive a hundred lashes. If said offence should not be of such a character as to render him liable to be returned to slavery, he shall remain in the full enjoyment of his freedom.
ANCIENT LAW.
III. Where a Slave, who has Become the Property of Another Master, Commits an Unlawful Act.
If a slave who has passed under the control of another master, should steal anything from his former owner, or should inflict any injury upon anyone, the judge shall determine whether he committed the crime; and if he is convicted, his last master, should he desire, may render satisfaction for the acts committed by said slave. But if he should refuse to do so, the slave must be surrendered to be punished according to the nature of his offence.
IV. Where a Freeman Commits a Theft in Company with the Slave of Another Person.
Where a freeman is implicated with the slave of another person in the commission of any crime, whether they steal, or appropriate any property, or are guilty of any other unlawful act; each shall be liable for half the pecuniary compensation required by a former law, and both shall be scourged together in public. And if the master should not be willing to render full satisfaction for the act of said slave, the latter must be surrendered in lieu thereof. But if they have committed a capital crime, the slave and the freeman shall, at the same time, be condemned to death.
ANCIENT LAW.
V. Where a Master Commits a Theft in Company with his Slave.
If a master should commit a theft in company with his slave, we hereby decree that the master, and not the slave, shall make full pecuniary reparation for the same; and the master shall receive a hundred lashes in public, as prescribed by law. The slave, however, shall go free, because he obeyed the commands of his master.
ANCIENT LAW.
VI. Where a Slave, Belonging to Another Person, is Instigated by Anyone to the Commission of Unlawful Acts.
If anyone should instigate the slave of another person to commit a theft, or any other unlawful act; or should persuade him to do anything contrary to his own interest, which may also be the occasion of loss to his master, in order that, by his evil and iniquitous influence, he may fraudulently obtain possession of said slave for himself; and, after proper investigation by the judge, the fraud is detected, the said master shall not lose his slave, or be liable to any penalty; but he, by whose artifice and persuasion, the slave was induced to commit the crime, in order that he might obtain possession of him as aforesaid, shall be forced to pay to the master of the slave sevenfold the value of the property stolen, or the legal damages prescribed for his act. The slave shall receive a hundred lashes in public; for the reason that, despising his master, he plotted against him, and, after the infliction of said punishment, he shall be restored to his master.
ANCIENT LAW.
VII. Concerning those who Knowingly Associate with Thieves.
Not only he who actually commits a theft, but also any person who was aware of it at the time, or knowingly received the stolen goods, shall be considered a thief, and liable to the penalty prescribed for the crime.
FLAVIUS RECESVINTUS, KING.
VIII. Where Anyone, Ignorantly, Buys Stolen Property of a Thief.
It shall not be lawful for a freeman to buy any property from a person unknown to him, unless he can produce a reliable person as a witness, and thereby be able to allege the excuse of ignorance. If he should do otherwise, he shall be compelled by the judge to produce, within a reasonable time, the person of whom he bought said property; and if he cannot find him, he must prove his innocence, either by oath or by witnesses, and show that he did not know that the vendor was a thief; and he must restore the property which he purchased to the owner, after having received from the latter an amount equal to half the price paid for said property; and both shall promise, under oath, that they will make diligent search for the thief. If, however, the latter cannot be found, the purchaser shall only be compelled to restore to the owner the property which he bought. In case the owner of said property should know the thief, and should be unwilling to expose him, he shall lose the property absolutely, and the purchaser shall possess it in peace. This law shall also apply to slaves.
ANCIENT LAW.
IX. Where Anyone, Knowingly, Buys Stolen Property of a Thief.
If anyone should, knowingly, purchase stolen property of a thief, he must at once declare from whom he bought it, and afterwards must make restitution, just as the thief should do. If he should not be able to find the latter, he shall be compelled to pay double the amount required from thieves, because it is evident that he who purchases stolen property is on the same legal footing as a thief. Where a slave commits such an act, he shall pay half the amount required of freeborn persons, or his master shall surrender him in satisfaction of his crime.
ANCIENT LAW.
X. Concerning Money, and Other Property, Stolen from the King.
If anyone should steal, or appropriate to his own use, money or other property belonging to the public treasury, he shall restore ninefold its value.[38]
ANCIENT LAW.
XI. Concerning the Stealing of Bells from Cattle.
If anyone should steal a bell from a mare or an ox, he shall pay one solidus; from a cow, two tremisæ; from a ram or other cattle, one tremisa.
XII. Concerning the Theft of Mill Machinery.
If anyone should steal any of the parts of a mill, he shall return what was stolen; shall also pay the fine provided by law as punishment for other thefts; and shall receive, in addition, a hundred lashes.
FLAVIUS CHINTASVINTUS, KING.
XIII. Concerning the Punishment of a Thief.
A freeman who steals the property of another, shall pay to the owner nine times the value, and a slave six times the value, of the property stolen; and each shall receive a hundred lashes with the scourge. If the freeman has not sufficient pecuniary resources to pay said fine; or if the master should refuse to render satisfaction for the act of his slave; he who was guilty of the theft shall become forever the slave of the owner of the stolen property.
ANCIENT LAW.
XIV. A Thief, when Taken, shall be Brought Before the Judge; and Where a Freeman Commits a Theft in Company with a Slave, Both shall Undergo the Same Penalty.
When a thief is arrested, he shall be brought into court, and, if freeborn, shall pay nine times the value of the stolen property, and shall receive a hundred lashes publicly, in the presence of the judge. If, however, he should not have the means wherewith to make restitution, he shall forfeit his liberty, and become the slave of him whom he robbed. A slave shall make restitution sixfold for the property stolen; shall receive a hundred lashes in the presence of the judge; and shall be kept in custody until his: master is notified to immediately give satisfaction for his act; and, should he not do so, he must, at once, surrender the criminal to the party who suffered the loss.
It is also provided by this law, that if a slave and a freeman, or several slaves and several freemen, should, while together, steal any animal, or any other article of property, they shall make but one compensation for the same; that is to say, freemen shall pay half of its ninefold value, and slaves half of its sixfold value; but they all shall receive the same number of lashes as hereinbefore provided. The aforesaid provision shall also be observed in the cases of slaves and freemen, where property of great value was stolen, and they shall be scourged before the judge as hereinbefore stated.
ANCIENT LAW.
XV. Where a Thief, Defending Himself with a Sword, is Killed.
If a thief should be killed in the daytime, while defending himself with a sword, no responsibility shall attach to anyone on account of his death.
ANCIENT LAW.
XVI. Where a Thief is Killed at Night, while he is Being Taken.
If a thief should be surprised at night, and should be killed while he is attempting to remove stolen property, his death shall under no circumstances be punished.
ANCIENT LAW.
XVII. Concerning Property Injured or Destroyed; and the Reparation to be Made for what has been Damaged or Stolen.
Where anyone damages property or clothing belonging to another, or does any injury to a traveller while on a journey, or deprives him of anything by stealth, he shall immediately give satisfaction according to law; but shall not be compelled to pay the full value of the baggage of the traveller, but only an amount equal to what he damaged, or stole from him.
ANCIENT LAW.
XVIII. Concerning Property Rescued from Shipwreck.
Where property has been saved from conflagration, ruin, or shipwreck, and any of it is abstracted or concealed by any person; he shall be compelled to pay fourfold the value of the same.
ANCIENT LAW.
XIX. Concerning the Property and the Heirs of Thieves.
Where anyone obtains the property of a dead thief, either by will or inheritance, he shall not be liable to any penalty, because the crime died with the perpetrator; but he shall be liable to satisfaction in damages, for the reason that the thief would have been so liable, had he lived. If the damages incurred amount to more than the inheritance, he must surrender the latter in its entirety.
ANCIENT LAW.
XX. Concerning Those who Rescue Thieves and Other Criminals after their Capture.
If anyone should rescue a thief or any other criminal who is in custody, or permit him to escape; if he is a person of rank, he shall receive a hundred lashes in the presence of the judge for his insolence, and shall be compelled to produce in court the party whom he set free. If another person who has no claim against a thief, should arrest him, he shall receive for his services a fourth part of the sum due from the thief in satisfaction of his crime. Where the latter cannot afterwards be found, he who liberated him shall be liable to the punishment prescribed for theft; and shall be compelled to pay, out of his own property, a sum equal to that which the thief would have been compelled to pay, had he been convicted. If, however, he is a person of inferior rank, and should produce the thief in court, he shall receive for his insolence a hundred lashes. Where he is not able to find the thief, he shall be liable to both the penalty and damages for theft, to the same extent as the thief himself would have been liable after conviction.
If anyone should release a person accused of another crime than theft, he shall received a hundred lashes in like manner; and if he cannot find or produce the party he liberated, he shall at once suffer the same punishment to which the law declares the accused would have been liable, had he been found guilty. If a slave should commit this offence, without his master’s knowledge, he shall receive two hundred lashes for his insolence, and shall be compelled to produce the person whom he released. If he should not produce him, then his master, should he wish to do so, may pay for him the sum demanded as compensation for the crime; but if he should be unwilling to pay said sum as provided by law, he must surrender the slave in satisfaction for damages, or to be punished.
ANCIENT LAW.
XXI. Where a Slave Steals from his Master, or from a Fellow-Slave.
If a slave should steal anything from his master or from his fellow-slave, what shall be done with him lies entirely in the discretion of his master; and the judge has no right to interfere in the matter, unless the master should wish him to do so.[39]
ANCIENT LAW.
XXII. Within what Time, after his Arrest, a Thief must be Brought Before the Judge.
When anyone arrests a thief, or any other criminal, he must straightway conduct him before the judge; and he must not keep him in his house longer than one day, or one night. If anyone should violate this provision, he shall be forced to pay five solidi to the judge for his insolence. If a slave should do this, without the knowledge of his master, he shall receive a hundred lashes, but if he should do it with the master’s consent, all liability for damages shall be incurred by the latter. If the slave is of superior rank, his master shall be compelled to pay a fine of ten solidi, half of which sum shall belong to the judge, and the other half shall be given to him who is known to have suffered the injury.
FLAVIUS RECESVINTUS, KING.
XXIII. Where Anyone Secretly Kills an Animal Belonging to Another.
If anyone should, secretly or at night, kill a horse, an ox, or any other kind of animal belonging to another, he shall be compelled to pay ninefold the value of the same. If it is not possible to convict him, he shall purge himself of guilt publicly, by oath. Where a slave commits such an offence, under the direction of his master, and this is proved by competent evidence; the master of the slave shall be compelled to make restitution ninefold, as a thief would have done. If a slave should not be convicted by testimony, he shall be tortured; and after it has been established that he committed the crime, he shall either pay sixfold the value of the animal killed, or shall be transferred to the service of him whom he injured. If, however, he should prove to be innocent, the complainant shall render satisfaction to the master of the slave, as provided by other laws.