MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

Press, Volume LXIV, Issue 13018, 21 January 1908, Page 2

MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

t ♦ j Mr H. W. Bishop presided at the j Magistrate". Court yesterday. ! John Kerr, an elderly man, -was fined 10s, in default 48 hours' imprisonment, for insobriety, and 20s, in default 14 days' imprisonment, for procuring liquor whiio subject to a prohibition order. John Gribble, a young man, was ' sentenced to three months' imprisonment for stealing a pair of boots from Stewart Uobinson's shop. Jt v/as stated that the prisoner was caught red-handed, and the Magistrate, in passing sentence, said that the theft. i was a most impudent one. ( ! VAGABONDAGE. | Thonia- Veitch was charged with be- ' ing a rogue and vagabond, and with | consorting with thieves and persou.s with no lawful visible means of sup- I port. Tiie accused had been previously i : convicted at Ashburton. I J-vidence w_s given by Detectives I ', \\ ard, Bishop and Kennedy, to th" . ! effect that during the past week tho | accused had been associating with | j thieves, reputed thioves, and prosti- . ! tutes. Detective Bishop stated that ' ;he had warned Veitch. that ho woulc | get into trouble. Tho accused replied . that the people were his friends, am. ' tliat wherever he met a thief, lie would j associate with him. Detective Kennedy said that when accused was ar- ( rested, a thimble-rigging apparatus t | was found on him. \ The accused admitted associating ( with tho persons named by tho detect tives; but he alleged that not one- , ' fourth of them were known to him j ( personally. He had been drinking, i j and as ho expressed himself, 'You ' " aro not particular with whom you as- ( sociate, when you're drunk." He had . worked for fourteen months out of the 1 last eighteen. i The Magistrate said that in cases oi this sort a man was judged by the \ company ho kept. A sentence ol i twelve months' imprisonment was j passed. I Prisoner (jauntily): "Thank you." j "WIFK MAINTENANCE. ] George Tree admitted that he hml { failed to comply with orders requiring ' * him to contribute towards tho support 1 ot his wife and child. The evidence * showed that the accused had left his . wife and child, two years ago, and the \ arrears on tho order amounted to £05 A Bs. Tree said that he had a billet worth 27s 6d a week, and his employer was \ willing to keep it open for him. He g would pay £1 a week into court„if his I Worship "would give him a chance. 4 Tho Magistrate: "Yes, I dare say. _ For two years-you havo left your wifo % to starve, for all you carod, and you g aro tho sort of man to ask mc to give 1 you a chance to pay. Sis months' im- { prisonment.' 1 g ATTEMPTED SUICIDE. * Leonard an elderly man, ( apparently in a deplorable condition, g was charged with attempting to com- \ mit -uicide at Lakeside, on January g 13thj by cutting his throat. Tlio accus- _ ed, in reply to the Magistrate, 6aid ( huskily that he did not try to commit g suicide ''altogether, but only to punish f himself." bub-Inspector Dwyer ex- g plained that the man had been in tho _ Hospital for a week, and had only been \ discharged that morning. In the cir- g cunistances, the police nad no option ' but to bring him before the Court. As 4 thero were no relatives of the man present, tho Magistrate adjourned tlio \ case until the afternoon, iv order to g secure the attendance of souto person ™ who would be responsible for the ac- '£ cused's future behaviour. g At tho afternoon hearing it was •S stait-ed tQ_aifc two c£ the man's .ieitere 4 had iiit-imoted to the police that they J were willing to accept responsibility ' for his t-ia-fe keeping. A brother, who # did not know that Accused had been _j discharged from the HotipitoJ, avus on \ Jus way to Claristohurch. The Magis- £ trate Mid that in -ill i j-cib-nbility the _J flccneeel nrouJd take _-h_i.i_.ge of the \ first opportunity to connmit suidiie 4 unless he was supervised carefully. He *J would r.ot discharge the mon unless there was 6omcone to take cha.rgo of gj hl.m. The ease wis adjourned until _j iS-turday, the accused to Ik-> kept under \ observation in the meantime, with a ft view -to his mental condition being i_ ascertained. C