254 Admissibility of dying declarations (1) A declaration made by any deceased person upon the apprehension of death shall be admissible or ina dmissible in evidence in every case in which such declaration would be admissible or inadmissible in any similar case depending in the Supreme Court of Judicature in England. (2) When it is made to appear to the satisfaction of any magistrate that any person is dangerously ill and, in the opinion of a medical practitioner, not likely to recover from such illness and is able and willing to give material information relating to any offence or to any person accused of any offence, and it is not practicable to examine in accordance with any other provision of this Act the person so being ill, it shall be lawful for the said magistrate to take in writing the statement on oath of such person. (3) The magistrate taking a statement in terms of subsection (2) shall sign it and set out his reason for taking the same, the date and place of taking it and the names of the persons, if any, present at the time. (4) If afterwards, upon the trial of any offender or offence to which the same may relate, the person who made a statement taken in terms of subsection (2) is proved to be dead, or if it is proved that there is no reasonable probability that such person will ever be able to travel or give evidence, it shall be lawful to read such statement in evidence either for or against the accused without further proof thereof— (a) if the same purports to be signed by the magistrate by or before whom it purports to be taken; and (b) if it is proved to the satisfaction of the court that reasonable notice of the intention to take such statement has been served upon the person, whether prosecutor or accused, against whom it is proposed to be read in evidence and that such person or his legal representative had or might have had, if he had chosen to be present, full opportunity of cross-examining the person who made the same. 255 Admissibility in criminal cases of evidence of absent witnesses in certain circumstances (1) The evidence of any witness— (a) given at a former criminal trial of an accused on the same or a different charge and recorded in a document purporting— (i) to be a transcript of the original record of the said evidence; and (ii) to have been certified as correct under the hand of the person who transcribed it; or (b) whose deposition has been verified in terms of section 115A; shall, subject to subsection (2), be admissible in evidence on the trial of the accused for any offence. (2) The evidence of a witness referred to in subsection (1) shall not be admissible unless— (a) it is proved on oath to the satisfaction of the court that the witness— (i) is dead or is incapable of giving evidence, or that he or she is too ill to attend; or (ii) is kept away from the trial by the means and contrivance of the accused; or (iii) cannot be found after diligent search, or cannot be compelled to attend; or (iv) is an expert witness whose evidence is given in his or her capacity as an expert witness, and that the nature of the witness’s professional commitments is such as to render it impossible to secure his or her attendance at the trial on any given day; and that the evidence is the same that was given at the previous criminal trial or at the conference referred to in section 115A, as the case may be, without any alteration; and (b) it appears on the record or is proved to the satisfaction of the court that the accused, personally or by his or her legal representative, had a full opportunity of cross-examining the witness, even if the accused or his or her legal representative, did not avail himself or herself of that opportunity. (3) Where is proved on oath to the satisfaction of the court that any witness, other than one whose deposition was verified as mentioned in subsection (1)(b)— (a) is dead or incapable of giving evidence, or is too ill, to attend; or (b) has been kept away from the trial by the means and contrivance of the accused; or (c) cannot be found after diligent search or cannot be compelled to attend; or (d) is an expert witness whose evidence is given in his or her capacity as an expert witness, and that the nature of the witness’s professional commitments is such as to render it impossible to secure his or her attendance at the trial on any given day; the evidence of such witness may, at the discretion of the court, be admissible in evidence on the trial of the accused for any offence. [Section substituted by section 18 of Act 9 of 2006.] 256 Admissibility of confessions and statements by accused (1) Any confession of the commission of an offence and any statement which is proved to have been freely and voluntarily made by an accused person without his having been unduly influenced thereto shall be admissible in evidence against such accused person if tendered by the prosecutor, whether such confession or statement was made before or after his arrest, or after committal and whether reduced into writing or not: Provided that—