HAMILTON COURT.

Auckland Star, Volume XLVI, Issue 63, 15 March 1915, Page 2

HAMILTON COURT.

AN ALTERED CHEQUE. {By Telegraph.—Own Correspondent.) HAMILTON, this day. In the Magistrate's Court to-day, William Johnstone was charged with altering and uttering a cheque from £5 15/ to £15 15/. The cheque was made out to-him by H. Bshelby, of Kawhia. Accused was remanded to Kawhia. "I consider this a case where the" criminal law has been put in motion to collect a civil debt," waß the comment of Senior-sergeant Cassells at the S.M. Court to-day. He referred to a case in which the police had received instructions from Dunedin to arrest and have remanded to Dunedin a previous resident of the southern city on a charge of Selling a cash register, which he falsely represented to be his. The arrestee appeared in Court to-day, when a loca> member of the legal profession said he had been instructed by the Dunedin firm of solicitors who began criminal proceedings to withdraw the charge." His Worship said he did not think there was any doubt the criminal side of the law had been used as a lever to enforce payment. (Sergeant Cassells: Simply making the Court and the police debt collectors, your Worship. It is like enforcing payment at the point of the bayonet. Withdrawal of the charge was permitted.