ON PROBATION

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 58, Issue 194, 18 May 1938, Page 3

ON PROBATION

GUILTY OF SHEEP STEALING. COMMENT BY THE JUDGE. (Special to the “Guardian.”) CHRISTCHURCH, This Day. Sharing among them a number oi charges of sheep-stealing in the Ashburton district, Stanley Dudley Keats (Mr R. A. Young), Clarence Burnaby and Maurice Roy Beaven (Mr L. A. Charles) and Stanley Frederick Robert Scott, who was not represented by counsel, appeared in the dock together at the Supreme Court yesterday before Mr Justice Nortlicroft. Mr Young said that Keats had a large family to keep on sustenance, and the meat had been used as food. The probation officer recommended probation. Being engaged to Keats’ daughter, Beaven had joined in as much, out of bravado as anything else, said Mr Charles, while liquor had been the downfall of Burnaby, a. married man with six children. A written statement was submitted to bis Honor by Scott. His Honor said he did not propose to discriminate among these persons. Charges of sheep-stealing were difficult to detect and were regarded as serious. It was rare for men to be placed on probation for this offence, and were it not for the sympathetic report of the probation officer lie would not think of admitting the persons to probation. As it was, they had stolen to relieve the needs of distressed families, and though it must not be taken that he condoned stealing by families in such circumstances, lie proposed to take the unusual but merciful course of placing them on probation.

Each prisoner was placed on probation for two years. Keats and Burnaby were asked to take out prohibition orders, and all four were ordered to abstain from association with one another for tlie period of their probation.