ELSIE WALKER CASE

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 244, 15 October 1929, Page 8

ELSIE WALKER CASE

PUBLIC MEETING CALLED

"IMPORTANT INFORMATION."

SOCIETY ACTS.

"THE PUBLIC SHOULD KNOW."

The Auckland branch of the New Zealand Society for the Protection of Women and Children has decided to call a public meeting at the Town Hall to discuss the fate of Elsie Walker. ' This decision was made at a meeting of the society last evening, when general dissatisfaction was expressed with the reply of the Minister of Justice (the Hon. T. M. Wilford) to the society's appeal for amended legislation to enable the reopening of inquests'. Kindred societies have been invited to give' their co-operation. "Some important information came to the inspector of our society," said the Rev. P. S. Smallfield, president, to-day, "and, in consequence of that, new evidence has been gathered within the past week or two. A typed statement was prepared, a duplicate copy being retained by the society, and I personally handed over that statement to- the Inspector of Police, so that ho* might know what had come before our committee. "I consider the public should know what the society has been doing in the matter," continued Mr. Smallfield. "Our inspector arranged certain interviews, and obtained information on facts that had not come out at the Jnquest, for the simple reason that the people who could have given that evidence were not called as witnesses." Object of Meeting. "The object of the meeting is to get an expression of public opinion on the question of amending the law," said Mr. A. J. Stratford, J.P., chairman of the committee of the society. Mr. Stratford added that the lav/, as it stood at present, did not provide for the reopening of inquests once a verdict had been given. The society had been frequently asked whether it was taking any action and, if so, what it proposed to do. There was no antagonism to the Government in its attitude, declared Mr. Stratford, but he said that the committee was strongly of the opinion that the law should be amended to provide for obtaining additional information, not only in the Elsie Walker case, but also in any other case where that could only be done by the reopening of the inquest.