ALLEGED JOY-RIDING.

Press, Volume LVI, Issue 16883, 10 July 1920, Page 4

ALLEGED JOY-RIDING.

MAGISTRATE ALTERS A CHARGE. The bearing was continued at tho Magistrate's Court yesterday, before Mr S. E. McCarthy, S.M., of the 6even charges of breaches j of the City Council's motor regulations ', against Harold Roy Paynter (Mr Sargent, with him Mr Thomas), "a taxi driver, who was alleged to have, on the evening of June 20th, indulged in a "joy-ride" round Cathedral 6quare, with a result that he was ' charged with having failed to 6ound an alarm when passing tie intersection of Colombo street and Cathedrcl Bquare, with having driven across the Bank of New Zealand crossing at other than a walking pace, with having driven through the Square in a manner dangerous to the public, with having failed , to keep to the near side of the street, with ; having driven round ths eouth-east corner of j the Square at a speed greater than sis miles per hour, with having failed to give notice of his intention to turn, and with having allowed gases to escape from his exhaust without any reduction of noise. The case for the prosecution and the opening for tho defence, had been taken at a previous sitting of the Court. In furtherance of the case for the defence, Ronald Virtue said that he had left in the car from the White Hart Hotel about 7.15 o'clock on the evening in question. On the way to the Poet Office something went wrong , with the exhaust, with a result that there | was considerable noise, but on arriving at the . Post OiEce, Paynter got out and put things j right. The car had proceeded at an ordinary pace, and on tho proper side of the road, and Paynter 'was perfectly sober. Some of the men in the car—all were returned soldiere — had sung snatches of songs on the way. Leaving the Poet O'Sce, the cat went round the Square. Its speed was not dangerous, in. the opinion of witness, and the driver indicated by raining his hand the direction in which ho propossd to turn. After leaving the Poet Office there was no further trouble with the cat-out. In renly to Senior-Sergeant Boddam, witness said that, previous to having dinner at the White Hart Hotel, the party had gone to Sumner and thence to Lyttelton and Governor's Bay, stopping near the hotel, but not going in. Later they went to tho Motukarara racecourse, arriving at the White Hart Hotel about 6 o'clock. They had dinner there at the invitation of Kirk, one of the party having a glass of port wine with the meal. In th 3 journey to and round the Square witnesshad charge of the siren, which he sounded during the greater part of the time. The 6peed of tho car was practically normal during the whole time. There was nothing exceptional in the manner in which it wvis driven, nor in the conduct of tho party, lb© constable who stopped the car replied in the to Payntcr's query as to whetner u was going too fast.' The only reason witness could think of for the constable stopping .ho car was that, it being a high-powered machine and proceding on the low gear, _it was making a big noise, caused, by the engine. Similar evidence was given by _ Sydney Walters, Stewart Le. Motto, Frederick William Kirk, and Alfred Redman, who were all in the car at the time. ~ Mr Sargent, in addressing the Court, eaid that it was unfortunate that long, misleading reports had appeared in certain of the Christchurch newspapers, which evidently couid have been supplied by nobedy but the constable who had taken the defendant to the Police Station. The Magistrate: I did not see the newspaper reports. Mr Sargent: I am pleased to hear tfict, your Worship. ' M'r Sargent dwelt on what he termed exaggeration" by the constable, who, he eaid, was evidently bent on exaggerating to secure a conviction, seeing that he had been "turned down" by his superiors at the Police Station when he averred that the defendant was drunk. .He submitted that, on tho evidence, tho charges should be dismissed. The Magistrate said that he proposed to take notice of onlv one of the informations, that charging defendant' with having driven through the SquaTe in a manner dangerous to the public. There was no evidence as to Cathedral square itself, but that did not conclude the matter. The evidence of one of the witnesses who liad taken particular notice of the car went to show that the car had been dangerously driven north of Broadway's corner into Gloucester street. What was alleged to have taken place in Cathedral souare did not take placo there, but in Colombo street, north of the Square. The only question was whether the information could be amended to cover tie part of the road lie referred to, and he considered that it could, under section 79 of th© Justices of the Peace Act. Mr Sargent contended that in that case he should be allowed to call evidence as to what happened in the part of Colombo street referred to. His Worship's decision placed counsel in a most unfair and unjust position, and he' would apply for an adjournment in order to meet the new aspect of the case. His Worship said that he had followed such a course before. The whole thing was merely the question of an error in the information. Mr Sargent urged that tie position was nothing of tho kind. There was no application to amend the information on the part of the police, who relied entirely on the Cathedral square incident. His Worship eaid that he had power to amend the information to meet tie evidence. Mr Thomas contended that the section of the Act mentioned by his Worship referred only to the form, of an information. His Worship eaid that in his opinion the information could be amended. Mr Sargent entered a formal objection to the ruling, and pointed out that he had already applied for an adjournment, which his Worship had refused. Eventually his Worship decided to adjourn tho case until Wednesday next, at 10 o'clock, and, in answer to Mr Sargent, said that he would amend that particular information as ho had indicated, and would dismiss tho others.