SUPREME COURT.-Criminal Sessions.

Auckland Star, Volume XVII, Issue 234, 5 October 1886, Page 2

SUPREME COURT.-Criminal Sessions.

(Before His Honor Mr Justice Ward.j House-breaking.—Poihipi (a Maori) waj arraigned on the charge of breaking into j. (}, Wuiniesley's store at Opotiki in July last, and stealing lis Gd and sundry goods. —Mr Hammond acted as sworn interpreter. —Mr W ilitamson, Ciovvn Prosecutor, Btated the case to tho jury, which waa that Mr Wnlmesley found accused in his store, and., when caught he had lis 6d in the heel of ' his boot. —The defence was that the prisoner was oh the premises in search of his hohe.-— Henry George Walmßeley, auctioneer's* Opotiki, deposed that ho closed his utoro in the ovening, and left lis 6d in the cish box. Tho store was locked up. Oa - tho same ovcniDg ho lost £2 out of his caehbox. Witness saw prisoner shouting for a number oi his Maori friends. He returnbd tt> his store some time after and caw soffie oiie in his store. He got a Mr Hume to assist him; and ho caught the prisoner" with the help of a constable. —By the prisoner: Was certain tho prisoher: was tho man caught in the yard. Had given prisoner money, but not 10b! The amount found in his boot corresponded with what I had missed from my cash box. —The prisoner continued the crosa-examina^ tion at gt-eat length, asking a number of irrelevant questions. D^vid Hume confirmed the last witness's evidence; and was cross-examined for nearly 20 minutes by the prisoner,—Alfred John Sisam, constable iv the Opotiki township, gave evidence as ' to arrest of prisoner. He aleo said that Mr Walmesley had told him he had left a sum of lis Gd as a trap, having lost £2 before that evening. The prisoner having made a statement to the jury, His Honor summed up against the prisoner, and the jury gave a verdict of guilty, when his Honor sentenced him to 18 months' hard labour.

Uttering. — Thomas Chambers, alias John Chambers, was indicted on the charge of uttering a false cheque last July,—The prisoner pleaded guilty, and had nothing to say. -His Honor said that as the crime had been assisted by the carelessness of the person who received the cheque he would lighten the sentence. - Judgment, IS months' hard labour.

Illegal Pawning.—James McAnaly pleaded guilty to pawning a watch which he had borrowed.—Judgment: Imprisonment with hard labour for cix calendar months.

Breaking and Entering.—P. Anderson pleaded guilty to stealing a cup from the shop of H. Kohn, but not to breaking in, Ho did not know what ho was doing at the time.—Judgment: Two years' hard labour. Stealing Uarpemerss' Tools. —Luke; alias Laurence O'Brien, was charged with feloniouely stealing a quantity of carpenters' tools,the property of Alexander McLeod.— The prosecutor was working in a house in Hepburn-street, and locked up certain tools there when ho went home. Next morning he found his tools gone.—John Olson, pawnbroker, Constablo Lamb, and Detective .Hughes gave evidence on the part of the prosecution.— His Honor having briefly addrofsed the jury, they returned a verdict immediately of guilty against the prisoner. —Judgment: three years' penal servitude. True Bills.- The following true bills, in addition to those in which the charges wero dealt with, were returned by the Grand Jury : —Henry John Humphrey, larceny ; Michael Lunny, attempted murder (two charges); Stephen Spalding, araon) James Dodde, attempted rape; Thomas Weston, breaking and entering ; and Jobh Tuckwell, larceny. The Grand Jury returned no true bills in the indictment charging Luke or Lawrence O'Brien with breaking and entering, and arEon, FJ Youthful Prisoners—Henry John Humphries, a little boy whose head just appeared- above the dock walls, pleaded guilty to the larceny of a letter, the proporty of the Postmaster-General, and.with stealing a roller, the property of Mr Percy Smith. —Mr Mahony appeared for the prisoner, and spoke as to the prisoner being of very tender age, and having been playing truant ; and finding a koy, tried, as a boy would, to see if the key would open any ot the letter-boxes near which the key was found. The learned counsel called the Court's particular attention to tho boy's perfectly open manner, no concealment being attempted. Good bondsmen could be produced, if the Court would allow the young prisoner to be allowed to go out under bond, and try to recover his character.—Mr Williamson did not object to tho prisoner being allowed to go oat undor bond, to bo liable to be called on to appear when ntoied.— B His Honor spoke in a very kind manner to the littlo prisoner, and told him that his future now depended on himself. He would bo allowed to go out under two bonds of £25 each. He would havo to leave Auckland district so as to be away from bad associates, and would be liable to he calkd on to appear at anj time for 3 yean. Thomas Westou, another youthful prisoner, but-with ranch jnc* ■. — '■■*. 'caturesthan the last, pleaded quAy o breaking in and entering the house of a Mr Hardy.—The prisoner's father applied through the Crown Prosecutor for his son to be allowed to go out under bond. —Ilia Honor allowed this under ono bond of £25, and spoke te prisoner seriously as to his not throwing the cbanco now offered him away.

The Remuora Arson Case,

Stephen Spalding was charged that he did maliciously set fire, on the 3rd of August, to a cattle shed in Remuera, belonging to the Auckland Dairy Company,

Mr Franklin appeared for the prisoner. The Crown Prosecutor stated the case, which was to the effect that the prisoner had been employed by the Auckland Dairy Company, and on leaving it, bound hinuelf not to sell milk aftor a certain time. This agreement appears to have rankled in the prisoner's mind, and he appeared to have mado sundry threats about destroying the building of the Company. Joseph Booth, one of the proprietors of the Auckland Dairy, deposed as 60 the correctness of the plans produced of cattlesheds. Knew prisoner ;he loft the Company's employment in January or February last. Witness gavo evidence as to the agreement entered into by the prisebor whon working for them. When prisoner left he was very excited about this agreement, which would not allow him to set,up in business for himself, and made an offer of £50 for it, which witness accepted* _Ha seemed unaccountable for bis actions, and threatened to destroy himself. Witness then said if tbe agreement was preying on his mind he would give him it free. He also spent three hours with the prisoner trying to soothe him. Prisoner had poison with him, which witness got from him. He would not accept the agreement that time. He was afterwards offered the agreemont for £10, but he said he would have it on his own terms or he would swing for it. He Eaid "he would make it hot for wit ness " Witness considered he had " milk on the brain " from his actions.

Charle3 Clayton, Arthur Halliday, and Constable McGovern gave evidence, j

Mr Williamson thou addressed the jury to the effect that unless the prisoner's counsel could bring proof of poisoner's insanity, they would be obliged to cansider nim sane.

Mr Franklin (for the prisoner) began a statement concerning an accident which the prisoner had met with in England, when the Crown Prosecutor objected. His Honor ruled that it was not admiß' sible for counsel to make a statement, although prisoner could. Mr Franklin, continuing his speech, ran through the evidence, and argued that the prisoner, from the ovidenco brought forward, was evidently suffering from an insane fit when he committed tbo act of sotting fire to sheds.

His Honor, addressing the jury, told them that what they had to decide was whether the "prisoner was suffering from that spocies of insanity which would make him incapable of distinguishing right from

.vrong. Tbo jury then retirod, and on their returning found the prisoner guilty of settiDg fire to tho shed, but that he was not accountable for - his actions. They also brought in a special verdict that tho prisonor was insane. His Honor then committed prisoner to tho Asylum during the Colonial Treasurer's pleasure.