GIRL MURDERED.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 248, 19 October 1937, Page 5

GIRL MURDERED.

YOUTH SENTENCED. BACKBLOCKS TRAGEDY. JURY RECOMMENDS MERCY. (From Our Own Correspondent.) SYbNEY, October 15. Last Tuesday George Thornton, a youth aged 19, waa sentenced to death at Bathuret for the murder of Mary Leary (22). The chief ground for the conviction was a statement produced by the police which, they said, had been made by Thornton of hi* own free will. The young man was employed as a groom on Angullong Station where Mary Leary was housekeeper. Thornton disclaimed any idea of being in love with the girl, or being jealous about her. According to thie statement, she had some grievance against him: they had a 'tiff" and he decided to shoot her. It appears that the girl had been in hospital for some time, and that after ehe came back to the station Thornton had made a practice of helping her in varioue w&ys. But he seems to have been "chaffed" by the other hande and to have resented it. Damage to Car. Then ehe complained that he would not help her, and after she had cost him more than £6, through damaging a car which be was teaching her to drive, he became still more resentful. On the morning of September 20 he had a dispute with the girl—apparently no serioue quarrel—and then, according to his own account, while he was milking the cowe he decided to shoot her. He describes himself as "a little annoyed" by what ehe had eaid. and he treated the whole tragedv in an extremely matter of fact fashion.

His statement explains how he got a rifle, loaded it, walked round the houtse *»o that they couild not see him, went round to the laundry door, from which he could see Mary's head, and then delibertely shot her through the back. She fell "with a terrible scream," and Thornton, fearing to etay there, hid the rifle, took hk employer's car ami drove away. He meant to find his father, who was] in Sydney, and to discuss his plans with him. But the girl's body had been found, and when he got to ("arcoar he wae stopped by the police. No Tangible 'Cause. Apparently, for no tangible cause but simply because he was annoyed, he deliberately murdered thie girl with whom previously he had been on quite friendly terms. This apathetic and impassive attitude Thornton maintained in Court, apparently unmoved by his own danger and smoking a cigarette after the death sentence had been pronounced. It is true that speaking from the dock Thornton practically repudiated the statement that he had given to the police. According to this second version of the tragedy Thornton "did not mean to do the girl any harm"—he meant j>nly to frighten her and while he v--vs holding the rifle "it happened to go off." But the Court preferred to accept the statement put in by the police as authentic. Counsel for Thornton attempted to auggeet that this statement was elicited from Thornton by an ingenious trick on the part of the detectives; but Mr. Justice Maxwell discounted this argument altogether. Another point raised in Thornton's favour was that the statement on which he was convicted had been typed by the district coroner —a distinct irregularity: but both these objections were over-ruled. At the inquest and the trial it was hinted that Thornton was mentally of low grade—apparently on the ground that he had read Wild West stories and liked to dress, up as a cowboy—but. no medical evidence was produced on his behalf. However,' the jury put in a rider recommending Thornton to mercy on account of his youth, and in spite of the brutality of the crime this plea may possibjy save him from the gallowe.