SUPREME COURT

Press, Volume LXXIX, Issue 24074, 9 October 1943, Page 6

SUPREME COURT

PRISONERS SENTENCED

Several prisoners appeared tor sentence before Mr Justice Northcroft yesterday in the Supreme Court, in Christchurch Ronald James Hastings, aged 18. and Brian William Bulman aged 17, who had ■ pleaded guilty to two charges ol breaking and entering at Christchurch, were represented by Mr J. K. Moloney Counsel commented on the youth oi the prisoners, and said they had come from good homes in Wellington. Both were unsettled, he said, and' had corne to Christchurch, where the offences had been committed, ' His Honour; Did they come here for employment? .. ... w*. • ‘No. sir." replied Mr Moloney, they ran away from their homes.’’Counsel asked the Court take .tfito consideration the fact that _both were hungry at the time of the offences. His Honour; It is rather dangerous to advance that by way of an excuse, and it would be. dangerous for me to accept it. The pressure on them was to get work' one of the prisoners had been earning as much as £5 weekly,• Mr Moloney asked for strict supervision and that the reports of . the Probation Officer be given effect to. • ’T cannot accept the view, that merely because vou were hard up you can break into other people’s homes,", said the judge when -directing that the prisoners should be placed on probation for two vears. The Court ordered that the prisoners should completely dissociate from each other, and. further, that they should accept the direction of the Probation Officer as. to where they should live.

Leniency for Soldier Lewis William Passchendaele McGcorge. a young soldier in uniform, when asked whether he had anything to say before sentence was pronounced, replied 1 would like one more chance so that I can go away with my draft,” The prisoner who had served previously in Fiji, had pleaded guilty to breaking, entering, and theft. “You are a first offender." said his Honour, “and. taking all the circumstances into consideration. I am prepared to accent the view that you yielded to temptation. and I will give you 'he opportunity for which you have asked." McGeorge was ordered to come up lor sentence if called upon within a year, “If you behave yourself, as I trust you will, you will hear no more aboul it.’ the iudse added. A Serious Offence

Thomas James Kevern (for whom appeared Mr W, R. Lascelles). w’as sentenced to 13 months’ hard labour, having pleaded guiltv to a charge of carnal knowledge Addressing the prisoner (who was 53 vears old and married), his Honour said' "This offence is a serious one. especially when it takes place in the home of vour sister where you were a guest. You had a clear dutv to protect, instead of to defile, a member of your own family. . I have to take steps to deter others who might be similarly inclined." ‘