SUPREME COURT

Press, Volume LXXXI, Issue 24570, 19 May 1945, Page 8

SUPREME COURT

PRISONERS SENTENCED “The evidence shows that you shamelessly deserted your wife and children and impudently married another woman,” said Mr Justice Northcroft. in the Supreme Court vesterday, sentencing George O’Neill pore to two years’ imprisonment with hard labour for bigamy. “There are some cases of bigamy with extenuating circumstances. I see nohe in this case.”Negligent Driving Fining Murray Hyde (Mr J. T. Watts) £lO and disqualifying him for two years from holding a driver’s licence, on a charge of negligently driving .a motor-car and causing death, his Honour said he was prepared to take 1 the view that this ease had none of the elements of indecency and irresponsibility which, sometimes accompanied fatal accidents on the road. At the same tinie. Hyde had done a dreadfully careless and negligent thing and caused the death of a young woman. He must take notice of that. “A Bad Record” Appealing for- leniency for Faithful Charles Meikle, who had been found guilty of false pretences and two charges of forgery, Mr J. A. Johnston said lie was the father of eight children, triplets having been born five months ago. As was inevitable in these cases, the .punishment imposed on the father, was borne largely by the children ... ~ “You .have a bad record, said his Honour, sentencing Meikle to 12 months’ imprisonment on eacli Charge, the sentences to be concurrent, "There have been many convictions against you for crimes of this character—of false pretences. Your wife has made a plea, slating that this occurred while she was in hospital and that she is able to keep you living a decent life. That does not appear to be the fact and 1 am concerned to protect the community from the activities of a crooked-minded person as you have proved yourself to be. Apparently you select people of simple disposition more likely to be persuaded by you into these crooked transactions. For their protection, it is my duty to send you to prison." Married Man’s Offence A sentence of three months’ imprisonment with hard labour was imposed on Leonard William Walker (Mr J. K. Moloney), a married man. aged 21 years, for unlawful carnal knowledge. His Honour said he was disposed to agree witli counsel that Walker did not have a proper conception of what was decent behaviour, and there appeared to be only one way to treat him. The probation officer’s report showed delinquency from childhood. The evidence did not show that-the girl had sought him out. Habitual Criminal’s Offence A long plea for mercy was made by George Cecil Horry, who appeared in an Air Force uniform for sentence on charges of breaking and entering, forgery, and Uttering Horry traced his experiences when he was sent, at the. age of 16, to the Borstal Institution for three years. The first two or three months were “pure hell," but after that a prisoner got into a groove and the trouble was that when he came out he felt that it was not so bad, he said. If a person were first sentenced to three months, he had the opportunity to reform. , „ His Honour: I am dealing not with a first offender, but with a fiftieth offender. Horry said that since then he had had little freedom between sentences. He had been released in 1942 after being declared a habitual criminal. He was still out on licence, and had not renewed an application for its lifting after two years because it kept him on the right path. If a sentence of six months were now imposed. he might be imprisoned for two or four years. He appealed for a suspended sentence. The black sheep of a respectable family, he had been punished enough. He was at an age at which he could think for himself, and he also had home responsibilities. Horry’s record showed that in the last 20 years he had been convicted for 47 different crimes of dishonesty, the greater number being false pretences. Mr Justice Northcroft said. That, by itself, made him sceptical about placing any reliance on anything coming from Horry, who had deliberately offended with full knowledge of the consequences. He was prepared to deal with it as a separate incident detached from his previous record. No additional penalty would be Imposed on the uttering charge, which was incidental to enable him to enjoy the fruits of the theft. On the charge of breaking and entering, the sentence was 12 months’ imprisonment with hard labour: the sentence was six months on each of the other charges, all to be concurrent. When Horry asked for a recommendation that his licence be cancelled, his Honour said that was outside his function: it would be impertinent for him to make any representation to the Prisons Board.