"LIKE MAD BULLS."

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 305, 26 December 1929, Page 10

"LIKE MAD BULLS."

INTOXICATED MOTORISTS. MR. TATE'S STERN METHODS. PROBATION AND PROHIBITION. (By Telegraph.—Own Correspondent,) NEW PLYMOUTH, Tuesday, "I shall treat them all alike—old or young, rich or poor," said Mr, li. W. Tate,°S.M., when dealing with two intoxicated motorists to-day. Mr. Tatc was the first magistrate to pinish intoxicated motorists by adm'tting them to probation, prohibiting them from drinking, and depriving them of their driving licenses. He followed this course to-day. Thomas Fleming, of Westown, pleaded guilty. Senior Sergeant McCrorie said defendant ran his car into a gutter and carried a bicycle with him. He then chaige-1 a man *on a bicycle and ran him off the road, and finally ran his car on to the footpath near the police station. Mr. Tate said defendant was in charge of a dangerous vehicle with which damage to life and property might be enormous. In sonic cases he had grant?.-! j probation, which was a kind of deferred imprisonment. Since then there had been an absence of this class of offence, but they were now coming again. They were like mad bulls capable of doing ail sorts of things. Defendant was disqualified from holding a license, placed on probation for 12 months, nnd ordered to take out a prohibition order. W. PI. Ackland also pleaded guilty Senior Sergeant McCrorie said that at about 7.40 on Monday evening a constable saw Ackland, who had another young fellow on the back of his machine riding. He was riding in an erratic manner and a tram driver had to apply the emergency brakes in order to avoid a collision. The constable rrot into a taxi and followed Ackland. The man on the- back of the bicycle fell ofT and later Ackland had a spill and finished up underneath his bicycle. lie was pulled out. The other rider had to be taken to the hospital.

Mr. A. A. Bennett, who appeared for the defendant, said that in view of what the magistrate had said in the previous , case, tbnt ho intended to treat all those cases alike, it scorned a farce for anyon* , to pjisrawc counsel to appear.

Defendant w,i=; admitted to probation for a period of 12 months, during which lime he wpr disqualified from holding a license. He was ordered to take out n prohibition ovdnr. He was also ordered to pay 5/ taxi hire.

WHANGAREI CASE.

(By Telegraph.—Own Correspondent.) WHANGAREI, Tuesday. A charge of being intoxicated while in charge of a motor car on the Kamo Road was admitted by Robert Cowan, of Hukerenui, in the Police Court. He was fined £10 and his driving license was cancelled for six months.