MAREO'S COMMENTS TO DETECTIVES.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 136, 10 June 1936, Page 8

MAREO'S COMMENTS TO DETECTIVES.

AFTER WIFE'S DEATH

RETRIAL OF MUSICIAN. MEDICAL EVIDENCE ENDS. Comments made by Eric Mareo, the Auckland musician, charged with the murder of his wife by the administration of veronal, on the night of his wife's death were recounted by DetectiveSergeant A. B. Meiklejohn when the retrial was continued before Mr. Justice Gillian in the Supreme Court this morning. Most of the morning session was taken up with the evidence and crossexamination of Dr. S. L. Ludbrook, who corroborated in detail the conclusions drawn by Dr. Gilmour and Dr. Gunson. Chief counsel for the defence spent much time in cross-examination, and when that concluded, the medical evidence had been finalised. Mr. V. l<. Meredith and Mr. F. McCarthy arc conducting the case for the Crown, while Mareo is defended by Mr. Humphrey O'Leary, K.C., of Wellington, Mr. Trevor Henry and Sfr. K. C. Ackins. Medical Men Corroborated. Evidence corroborating that of Dr. Gilmour and Dr. Gune'on was given by Dr. S. L. Ludbrook, consulting physician, when he enjered the witness-box on the resumption of the Court this morning. From the evidence, witness said he had come to the conclusion that Mrs. Mareo had died of veronal poisoning, and that she had probably had about 100 grains of veronal, taken at different times. Witness considered that a doee had been taken on the Saturday morning. The evidence that she woke of her own accord in the evening indicated that she was recovering from a dose. Her reported symptoms throughout Sunday and Monday were consistent with the effects of a further clohc. Witness considered that from the time Mrs. Marco fell asleep after going to the lavatory until the arrival of Dr. Drcadon she was in a continuous j. - oma.

Possibly slip had had three doses, witness continued. There may have been one on Friday night, one on Saturday morning, and one parly on Sunday morning, just before the lavatory incident. Possibly she had had only two doses. and none on Friday night. From the evidence he did not think it possible (hat Mrs. Marco could have taken veronal herself between the time eho awoke and the time she palled Freda Stark on the Saturday evening. A further dose then would have, produced sleep very rapidly, for she already had some veronal in her system. When Mr. O'Leary started his crossexamination of Dr. Ludbrook after the morning adjournment, counsel asked whether witness had listened to his cross-examination of Miss Freda Stark. Dr. Ludbrook replied that he had not. Mr. O'Leary: Was my cross-examina-tion worthless or useless for your guidance? Dr. Ludbrook: No. Why did ypu not listen to it? —[ formed my opinions on the evidence-in-chief of Miss Stark an I listened to your cross-examination of her at the last trial. And have you not clone me the courtesy of listening to my cross-examina-tion on this occasion? —I have read part of it, but I cannot give you any particular answer that Freda Stark gave you. Conscious Period. Dr. Ludbrook agreed that he had said during his evidence that Mrs. Mareo was awake from four Jo four and a half hours on the Saturday night.

Mr. O'Leary: Do you remember that your computation of that time after listening to the evidence at the firet trial was two hours?

Br. Ludbrook: I remember that in the previous trial my estimate wns shorter than I have now stated. Now that you read it to me I remember that on that occasion I did say she remained awnke for two hours. "Had you listened to my cross-exami-nation at this trial or read it carefully you would have noticed that Freda Stark eakl 'there may have been three hours or more between tile time I went in in answer to her call and the time I took her to the lavatory,'" said Mr. O'Leary. Dr. Ludbrook agreed that his theory —ivi. he understood it was the theory of I) , -. Gilmour and Dr. Ciunson as well —was that a person who had had veronn' "Mid awoke would not go into a coma a'flih without a further dose. Mr. O'Leary: If that theory is wrongs ami if t'rere are exceptions to it. it i= of no ii:o to prove a murder?— Not necessarily. Why do yo'i say that? —I do not think that it wou'd be possible to get two cases in whirl) all the circumstances were the same. 11l every case there are differences. If you cannot get two cases the same, what is the good of the theory? —It is not a theory; it is an opinion based on evidence placed before us. -1 came to that opinion, and the others evidently did as well, on the evidence of the circumstances placed before Ms, that is, the opinion that on the evidence in this case Mrs. Mareo would not have gone into a coma on the Sunday morning without.a further dose. Basis of Opinion. Witness said that his opinion was based on authoritative knowledge of' th« chemistry of veronal, on its action on the human body and on animate. "I

can think of much more, Mr. O'Leary," he said. Mr. O'Leary referred to the case in Taylor's "Medical Jurisprudence," and Dr. Ludbrook said that the patient in this case would have recovered if he had not been such "poor stuff" and if his system had not been damaged by previous indiscretion in veronal and other things. Mr. O'Leary: It is a possibility that Mrs. Mareo was also of "poor stuff" and that she, too, died without a further dose? Dr. Ludbrook: It is quite possible that there was something weak in her constitution. Could I go on to say that it may have led to death without a further dose on the Saturday night ? —No, because Mrs. Mareo was suffering from a slight degree of veronal poisoning on the Saturday. She went through a gradual period of rousing from that, then early on the Sunday morning she went into a degree of ' coma much greater than elie had exhibited previously. Ido not consider that up to nine o'clock on Saturday niglit she did go into a true coma at all, as I define it. Detective-Sergeant A. B. Meiklejolin described in detail his activities at the Mareo home when he arrived there about eight o'clock on the night of Mrs. Marco's death. He asked Mareo about purchases of veronal, and Mareo said lie had bought three lots from chemists within the previous three weeks. The detective asked him if he had given his wife any veronal. Mareo said. "Do you think lam a murderer?" Witness, told him he was only inquiring into the matter. Mareo said that lie had got veronal for sleeplessness, and remarked to the detective, "Do I look like a drug addict ?" The luncheon adjournment was taken' with Detective-Sergeant Meiklejolin still giving evidence. MEDICAL EVIDENCE. Evidence heard at the afternoon sitting of the Court yesterday.- as published in the late edition of the "Star," is summarised below: — Re-examined by Mr. Meredith Dr. Gilmour said ho had heard since the first trial of an Oamaru case in which a mother had administered veronal to herself and her three children. The youngest child had died. Dr. Gilmour considered that Mrs. Marao'a clenching of her teetli and turning her head away while she was being given milk on the Saturday, as Freda Stark had related, was ail indication that she did not want any more milk, possibly because she had by then noticed the taste of veronal. Dr. Gilmour left the box at 3.40 p.m., when a ten-minute break was taken. lie had been in the stand since early on Monday afternoon. Dr. E. B. f!unson followed the pathologist into the witness box and in the main gave corroboration of Dr. Oilmom's evidence. The Court adjourned i>n the completion of his evidence.