MAGISTRATE’S COURT

Press, Volume LXXIX, Issue 23947, 14 May 1943, Page 7

MAGISTRATE’S COURT

THURSDAY (Before Mr E. C. Levvey, S.M.) DEFAULTER'S ESCAPE "You have chosen to defy all the authorities, and you have chosen to spoil such good record as you have. You are not now going to be treated as a person to whom any consideration should be shown.” This comment was made by the Magistrate when he sentenced Harold Wheeler McAuley, a gardener, aged 38, to two months’ imprisonment with hard labour for escaping from the defaulters’ detention camp at Balmoral on April 28. The assistant superintendent of the camp, John Gladstone Greenwood, said the camp had been in existence since September 20, 1942, and was gazetted as a detention camp in October. Accused, who had been convicted at Auckland in March, 1942, was transferred from the Strathmore camp in the North Island because of his good conduct. He was missed on April 28 from the camp, whicn he had no authority to leave, as he had not been granted parole. Accused, who pleaded not guilty, said he did not leave the camp for a selfish reason, but because of his mother’s illhealth. He had written to the Minister in charge of the camps (the Hon. H. G. R. Mason) asking for a brief parole to assist his mother, as his returned soldier brother had been the victim of an assault at Oamaru, and was hopelessly crippled, as he had lost a leg. His mother had written to the Controller of Detention (Mr L. J. Gree-berg) and his brother had written to the Prime Minister, but the'r requests had been refused. “I then spoke to the superintendent and said I could no longer conform to the rules of the camn,” said accused. ”1 did not want to sit back in comparative idleness while my mother was being punished.” The Magistrate: Do you realise what you are saying? Do you forget that you are a defaulter who has refused to serve his country, and you talk about your mother b°ing punished? Senior-Sergeant J. Bickerdike said the camp was one for men of good conduct, and it %vas asked that something should b° done in this case as a deterrent to the others. LIST OF CONVICTIONS “This man has a frightful list—7s previous convict’ons for all classes of offences." said Senior-Detective H. Nuttall when John Arthur Crawford, a cook, aged 51. admitted the theft of two pullovers, va'ued at £2, the property of John Michael Coffey, and a rug. valued at 10s. the property of Ernest Sollitt. Accused also admitted obtaining liquor during the currency of a prohibition order, and being drunk. Senior-Detective Nuttall said the articles had been stolen from a hotel and sold to a second-hand dealer, who repotted accused to the police. Accused was sentenced to three months’ imprisonment. NAME SUPPRESSED A young woman, whose name was ordered not to he published, was remanded to anpear on May 20 on a charge of congnaling th« birth of a child. Ball was allowed in the sum of £SO and one surety of £SO. REMAND FOR WEEK On a charge of scaling a bicycle, valued at £ls, the property of persons unknown, on May 12, L°o Joseph Callan, a labourer, aged "0, was remanded to appear on May 20. FINE FOR ASSAULT A fine of £6, in default 21 days’ imprisonment, was imnesed on Clive Edward Lambert, who appeared for sentence on a charge of assaulting John Clifford Timaru Hamuton on Anril 9. 'Hie Magistrate said that the Probation Officer’s report on accused was not very satisfactory. Accused had chosen to commit an unprovoked assault, and t’”> Court was not very patient with such offences. STX MONTHS’ GAOL For stealing a bicycle, the property of Ronald L. longley, and valued at £lO 15s. Leonard Hilton Lowndes, a painter and cook, aged 45. was sentenced to 3‘X months’ imprisonment. On a charge of obtaining £4 18s by false pretences, he was convicted and discharged. SeniorDetective Nuttall said that accused had bee” arrested In Grevrnouth on a charge of fatso pretences and sentenced to two monti's’ imnrisonment. Since 1930 he had had 13 convictions. The Magistrate ordered that Lowndes should s°rv° his s'x months’ sentence at the conclusion of his present sentence. WORE UNIFORM ILLEGALLY For unlawfully wearing military uniform, Charles Edgar Joseph White was fined £5 and ordered to pay costs. SeniorSergeant Bickerdike sa’d that accused had been d'smissed from the Army in August, 19*2. He was arrested by the mil tery police wh”" under the influence of linuor, and explained that he was going to have his photograph taken. PLEA OF NOT GUILTY On a charge cf being idle and disorderly Rose May Beattie, a domestic, ag’d 21. who pleaded not guilty, was remanded to appear on May 18. CHIMNEY ON FIRE ‘ For allowing a chimney to catch fire Leonard Ernest Benfell was convicted and discharged. LICENSING CASES The licensee of the Central Hotel, Gerald Patrick Gouldlng, was fined £lO and ordered to pay costs on a charge of selling liquor after hours. L"o John Paviett was fined £2 and ordered to pay costs for being on the hotel premises after hours. CHARGES OF ASSAULT Three chargest of assaulting young women were preferred against Frank Burke, aged 74 fMr J. K. Moloney). He was remanded until May 20 for medical observation. COMMITTED FOR SENTENCE An aircraftsman, Noel Wilfred Lloyd, aged 18 (Mr R. P. Thompson), who pleaded guilty to a charge of committing perjury in the Magistrate's Court on January 14, was committed to the Supreme Court for sentence. Accused was allowed bail on his own recognisance of £2OO and ordered to report to the police as directed. The basis of the charge was that accused gave evidence of having been in the company of Clifford Fox, who was being prosecuted for theft. Constable L. W. C. O’Sullivan, the Court orderly, described how hj? heard accused give evidence to this effect after being sworn. Detective D. G. Simpson read a statement by accused in which he said that all the evidence he had given was false, and that he did not realise the seriousness of what he did, but was only trying to save Fox from going to prison. Fox had asked him to give the evidence. ELEVEN CHARGES Eleven charges, involving the theft of various articles, of a total value of £147, and obtaining or attempting to obtain a total amount of £26 11s 6d by false pretences, were preferred against a young man whose name was suppressed Accused was remanded to appear on July 13. COSTS ONLY On a charge of selling milk containing less than the prescribed standard of but-ter-fat, Robert James Nixon was ordered to pay costs only. FINE OF £2 For casting offensive matter in a public place, Frederick James Sheridan was fined £2 and ordered to pay costs. LIQUOR AT DANCE HALL Norman Cecil Whitelaw was fined 10s and ordered to pay costs for bei"g in possession of liquor at a dance hall.