GUILTY OF ASSAULT.

Auckland Star, Volume LXII, Issue 53, 4 March 1931, Page 10

GUILTY OF ASSAULT.

MAN WHO POSED AS DOCTOR.

EXAMINATION OF WOMAN. INDECENCY CHARGE. (By Telegraph.—Own Correspondent.) HAMILTON, this day. A plea of not guilty was entered by a middle-aged one-armed man, Joseph Pollard Tattam, at the Hamilton Supreme Court yesterday, to a charge of an indecent assault on a young woman at Matamata on November 12.

Mr. H. T. Gillies, for the Crown, described the facts of the case as most unusual. Prisoner was formerly a farmhand at Lichfield. In October of last year he rode into Matamata and called on Mr. Duxfield, jun., and represented that he had been asked to call by a friend of the Duxfields. He remained with the family for a time, and, representing that he was a doctor, he persuaded a young lady at the house to allow herself to be examined. It was upon this examination that the charge of indecent assault was based

The young woman, whose age was given as 22, said accused gave his name as Dr. Tattam. He said he had been superintendent at the Auckland Hospital for about twelve years, and that he had held a medical appointment at Hamilton for about five years. He suggested on several occasions that he should examine her. Finally an examination took place in one of the bedrooms. She removed some of her clothing for the examination. Mr. W. Xobie, of Auckland, said all defendant did was to perform a friendlv act towards the girl. The young woman herself said there was no act of indeceny, and it would be monstrous to send accused to gaol for giving advice to her. After being in retirement an hour a verdict of guilty was returned, the iurv making a recommendation that prisoner be medically examined before sentence was passed. Sentence was postponed till the end of toe criminal sessions.