A NEW BECK CASE.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 65, 16 March 1907, Page 11

A NEW BECK CASE.

(From Our Special Correspondent.) LONDON, February 1. Another Beck case has come to light. A young commercial traveller sentenced to three years' hard labour for cashing a valueless cheque for £2—a terrible sentence for a first offender in a case of small felony—is now believed to have been wholly innocent. His liberly was sworn away by a servant girl who confessed last Saturday that she gave false evidence against him in order to shield her lover.

George Lewis, the commercial traveller referred to, was arrested early in November last on a charge of obtaining £2 by means of a worthless cheque from Messrs Mainprice and Lord, Highroad. Kilburn. The date of this transaction was Saturday, September 29, and he was immediately able to assure his solicitors, not only that be did not know the firm, but that he had a complete alibi for that day. A startling feature was that ou the arrest Mr Turner, manager of the business, at once picked out Lewis as the man for whom he cashed the cheque. It may be said here that Lewis is strikingly similar in facial appearance to a young man named Brady, who is now under arrest for another cheque trouble. There is no doubt that the manager made a genuine mistake.

At Harlcsden Police Court, where Lewis was brought up for the preliniinary investigation into the charge, he was astounded to sec a girl go into the witness-box against him whom he did not recognise as ever having seen before. Her story was most vital to the case. She was Millie Marsh, a young servant in the employ of Mrs Josephs, of Brondesbury-road. Kilburn. She told the magistrate that she first met Lewis on Friday. September 2S, and that on the following day she saw him as she was going to cash a cheque for her mistress. He mentioned that he also wanted a cheque cashed, and wanted her to do it for him. She refused. As the man who did that evening cash the cheque for £2 with Messrs Mainprice and Lord said that he came from Mrs Josephs, whose name was known to the firm, this was important evidence. Coupled with the identincation of Lewis by the manager it looked irresistible. But Mr Black reserved his defence for the trial, relying upon a very strong alibi.

When the case came before Sir Ralph Littler on November 24, at the Criminal Court, it was the last on the list, and Sir Ralph, anxious to get away, sent a note to Mr Black, defendant's counsel, intimating that he could see no defence. I-t -.-res. _. plain _x--.-ita.tio_, to t__«_ «_.._:___,- dant to plead guilt-v- and let everybody ,1 L_ ,-fi- M LSI! I. ill. — !_" —a— t. — i_«J refused to oT_l__;e. and both his counsel and his solicitors, knowing the strength of the defence (which was not on the depositions) agreed with him. So the prisoner was tried.

Millie Marsh Lad amended her policecourt depositions considerably. Xliey needed strengthening. Instead of saying that she had only known Lewis for two days, she said she first met him in July, and that he had become her lover. But Mr Black was. not allowed to bring out the full discrepancies in cross-examination. Sir Ralph warned counsel that his line of defence would do the prisoner no good. The girl had not told everything at first, because she wished to shield the man! "We believe the girl is telling nothing but the truth," said a member of the jury.

At this intimation that the case against Lewis was already prejudged, Mr Black acted within his rights in demanding the release of the present jury, and a new trial in more judicial circumstances. The chairman refused to entertain the application. Mr Black struggled on with the defence. He put Lewis into the box to tell a straightforward story of how he lost possession of the cheque-book, and of how (what is now admitted) he knew nothing of the girl Marsh. Five witnesses followed him to swear that he was at a suburban card-party at the hour when the bogus cheque was cashed. Mr Black told the jury that the case had been prejudiced from the outset by remarks made from the Bench, and Sir Ralph Littler followed ' with severe comments on the nature of the defence. The jury quickly made up their minds to a verdict of guilty, and Sir Ralph gave Lewis a sentence of three years' penal servitude.

Sir Ralph Littler has often been criticised for" the severity of his sentences. To give a young man. for a first offence, penal servitude for three years was excessive punishment. The Home Office, at least, thought so, for on counsel and solicitors presenting the facts the sentence was reduced to 15 months in the second division. Even that is too much for a small felony, which is a first offence. And now Miss Marsh has been arrested on.a charge of perjury, and has confessed that it was Brady, her lover, who cashed the cheque, and who coached her in the evidence she gave against the unfortunate Lewis. The friends of Lewis are now agitating for his release.