A BRUTAL ASSAULT

Auckland Star, Volume XXXI, Issue 213, 7 September 1900, Page 5

A BRUTAL ASSAULT

HUSBAND GETS FOUR MONTHS'

HARD LABOUR

At the Police Court this morning, before Mr T. Hutchison, S.M., a man named Patrick O'Keefe was charged with having on August 25th assaulted his wife, Sarah O'Keefe. Sub-Inspector Wilson appeared for the prosecution, and Mr Heed for the defence. Sirs O'Keefe, a young woman of respectable appearance, with a quiet, ladylike mariner, stated that she supported herself by laundry work and letting some of her rooms to lodgers, j Her husband earned, a little money, but not enough to live on. and she had ■ to help support him. She had kept him for twelve, months when he was ; out, of work, and had gone hungry, herself to give him nourishment. Con- j cerning the assault witness said: M3 r husband came home about eleven o'clock at night, burst in the bedroom door, and grabbed me by the throat. He dragged me out of bed and then he kicked me on the hip. He was drunk. 1 had to go to the Hospital for five days. The doctor advised, me .to stay longer, but I came out to look a.fter my children. After he kicked me he picked me up and dashed me down on the floor again, and then dragged me by my hair outside the door to the top of the stairs. I held on to the banisters to keep him from throwing- me over. Then some men came up and he let me go. I went downstairs and out of the house in my nightdress with a mackintosh over it —no boots. It was a damp night, I had to hold on to the fence to keep up; when the fence stopped I went along Nelson-street on my hands and knees. I couldn't walk. His Worship: Does he often come home drunk? Witness: Yes, very often. He is more like a maniac than anything elsf when he gets drunk. Witness added that many times after working hard all day she had had to sit in the washhouse all night, fearing to go inside the house when accused came home drunk. He had chased her with a knife, once and with a razor on several occasions. A neighbour named Francis Joseph Morath gave "corroborative evidence. Archibald Johnson; grocer of Cookstreet, deposed to finding Mrs O'Keefe lying outside his door on the night in question. She had only a mackintosh on, and it was a cold, wet night. She could not walk, and seemed in great pain. He helped her into the shop and communicated with the police. Di\ King, who examined Mrs O'Keefe on the night of the assault, stated that her left hip was much swollen and extremely painful. There was a huge bruise about the size of a hand, evidently caused by a severe knock. He went with her to the Hospital. It was a severe blow, but he did not think the injury would be permanent, though the woman still iimped. . Sergeant Forbes also gave evidence. Mr Eeed said he did not propose to call any evidence for the defence; He had little doubt that the assault occurred as described. In mitigation he would point out that the man had for some time been underthe delusion that his wife was drinking, and this appeared to have preyed on his mind, j Counsel also xtrged the fact that ac-

cUsed was drunk and-temporarily olrfc of his senses as a mitigation of tl^e offence. He understood that. Mrs O'Keefe. would be satisfied with a separation order, and this with a fine, would, he submitted, meet the case. His Worship said he entirety disagreed with the suggestion that a fine was sufficient. He considered that hh. assault of a very aggravated description had been proved. As to drunkenness being an excuse, he thought itie opinion expressed by Sir Henry James, an eminent lawyer, was the true onfe, that "ill cases of minor assaults and acts of violence, drunkenn&Ss can never be a legal.answer to the cliarge, and probably aggravates it." In the present case the fact that the lna-n had got into such a. state of drunkenness as to behave like a. maniac, aggravated, the case very much. Accused would be convicted and sentenced to foitr months' hard labour. .. j