Contumacia
The Latin term for disobedience to the commands of a magistrate or judge; especially,
absence from a trial without sufficient excuse. If the accuser were absent, he was considered
as dropping his charge (see
Tergiversatio),
which he was not allowed to renew. The absence of the accused was taken as an admission of
guilt. In a civil trial the consequence was immediate condemnation; and the like was the case
in criminal trials if the accused failed to appear at the appointed time or on the last day of
the trial. If the accused saw that his condemnation was certain, it was quite common for him
to retire, and in capital cases to go into voluntary exile—a
proceeding which in no way influenced the further course of the proceedings.