CRIMINAL SESSIONS.

Evening Post, Volume LXXIV, Issue 125, 22 November 1907, Page 8

CRIMINAL SESSIONS.

ALLEGED CHILD WOUNDING. THE MUBTAGH CASE. After The Post- went to press yesterday afternoon, further evidence was taken in the case of Edward Murtagh, charged with doing grievous bodily liann to a child, by cutting it with a razor, and also assaulting the mother, ilrs. Leigh. Continuing her statement, Mrs. Leigh sakl that after prisoner had been committed for trial he went to the house at Hawera -where witness was staying "with her mother. Prisoner opened her bedroom window, and conversed with •witness. He spoke about tho wound •on the child, and asked her to say it -was not two or three inches long, so as to" make the case not so bad for him. He said he must have been mad when he did-it. She sent- him away. Cross-examined, witness denied that the story was untrue. She had told the Hawera police about it. He took £15 belonging to her, and she had followed j him to get it. Tho trouble did not i srlne oat of tbs fact that prisoner i her the night before the aifair happen* ed that he was going to get married. : She did not tell him that he "should : not iesve the room alive." It was not trae4hat ehe cut the child at all, either jby accident or otherwise. The child, never had the razor, and could not possibly have cut itself. The wound ■was not caused by an accident. Alice Maud West\stated that prisoner told her that the wound was caused by an accident. Detective Cassells deposed that prisoner said tho cut was made by "a fend," referring, as he explained, to Mrs. Leigh. Prisoner said he would "do 12 months'' to get rid of the < ■sromair. Prisbner went into the witness-box, and deposed that on the night before the afiair occurred he told Mrs. Leigh Ittat he had- got married. Next morning she threatened to cut his clothes up. He left the room, and when he returned she had the razor in her hand, and was bending over the child. When ne asked' her what she' was doing she replied, "You cut Tui. I'll tell "the policft.'" Gross-examined, prisoner said he believed Mrs. Leigh cut the child. He had tried to get away from her, but could : not. He did not believe now that the ; child Tui was his. This concluded tho evidence, and the court adjourned. ADDRESSING THE COURT. On resuming this morning, Mr. Wilford addressed the jury on behalf of prisoner. He submitted that it was not for him to shot? that prisoner had not wounded the child ; it was for the Crown to. prove that he had. And he contended that the evidence did not support tho charge, and he urged them not to be led away by sentiment because^n attractive-looking woman went into t'ha bos and told a plausible story. Mr. Myers submitted that ths question of accident was elimenated from the case. It was impossible to conceive that a mother would act so unnatural towards her own child. Prisoner, hecontended, had accused the woman to protect himself. After an absence of just under two hours the jury retured a verdict of guilty. Prisoner was remanded until to-morrow for sentence.