MAGISTRATE’S COURT Licensee Acquitted Of Delivering After Hours

Press, Volume XCII, Issue 27735, 12 August 1955, Page 3

MAGISTRATE’S COURT Licensee Acquitted Of Delivering After Hours

A hotel licensee who delivered to a customer, after hours, liquor which had been paid for during normal trading hours, was acquitted on a charge of opening his premises for the sale of liquor after hours, by Mr L. N. Ritchie, S.M., in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday. The Magistrate held that as there had been a complete appropriation of the liquor to the contract, and the property in it had passed to -he buyer during opening hours, the licensee could not be convicted of opening his premises for sale merely because the purchaser called at the hotel during closing hours and took away the liquor. He dismissed a charge of opening licensed premises after hours for the sale of liquor which had been brought by the police against Thomas Edward Johnston, licensee of the Hotel Esplanade, New Brighton. Johnston pleaded not guilty to the charge. Senior-Sergeant S. J. Anderson prosecuted for the police. Defendant was represented by Mr R. P. Thompson. James Jackson, a sergeant of police stationed at New Brighton, said that at 10.30 p.m. on Saturday, June 11, with Constable G. Carson, he saw a car draw up outside the Hotel Esplanade. Two men got out and went to the door of the hotel. After a short interval, the door was openea and the men went in. Witness went to the hotel and the door opened and a man stepped outside. When he saw witness, he stepped back into the hotel and witness followed, inside were defendant and two men. One of the men was Peter Nelson Gardner, who held bottles of beer. The other man was Leslie Maxwell Palmer. When asked fo» an explanation of his presence, Palmer said that on the day before, Friday, he had ordered and paid 14s for six bottles of ale. When he left the hotel at 6 p.m. the bar slide was closed and he could not get his beei He telephoned Johnston and askea to be allowed to collect the beer he had previously purchased. Gardner said he had followed Palmer into the hotel and had taken possession of the beer to carry it out to the car. Johnston had given the liquor to Palmer wno had given it to him. Johnston corroborated the facts outlined b# Palmer and Gardner to witness. There was no question of drinking on the premises. To Mr Thompson, witness said that the men concerned in the incident were respectable, decent citizens. He had known them all for a long time. Mr Thompson said that there had been no sale and no opening of the hotel for a sale. The fact that delivery had been effected during a closed period was beside the point. Defendant, in evidence on his own behalf, said the hotel had been granted a licence last year. Palmer’s usual practice was to go to the hotel at 5.45 p.m., buy his beer and pay for it at the slide. Then he would go and have a drink and pick up his beer on the way out. On June 10, a Friday. Palmer bought his beer which was left on the bar and went off to have a drink. The bar was very busy. At 6 p.m. he pulled the slide down and then noticed that Palmer had act collected his beer. Palmer rang up the following night and asked to collect his beer. Defendant agreed to let him have the beer. He had never had any conviction for a licensing offence. Palmer also gave evidence. Mr Thompson contended that the matter rested on the actual sale of the liquor which had taken place during normal trading hours. ILLEGALLY ON PREMISES Bruce James Munroe, aged 30, a soldier (Mr A. Hearn), pleaded guilty to charges that on August 9, he was found by night without lawful excuse on premises occupied by John Robert Petersen, at 255 River road, and that he was found drunk in River road. He was remanded in the custody of the Army for sentence on August 18. The Magistrate asked the Probation Officer for a report. Detective-Sergeant G. C. Urquhart said that at 8.15 p.m. on August 4 Mrs Petersen, her daughter, and a youth, returned to their home. From the outside they saw a shadow moving in a room. The youth and Miss Petersen entered the house and found accused in an upstairs room. Accused, who was under the influence of liquor, said he was looking for lodgings. The home had previously been a lodging house. Nothing appeared to be missing from the house.

Mr Hearn asked that' the matter be dealt with immediately, as the Army authorities would like accused back to duty as soon as possible. “I have no doubt of that,” said the Magistrate. “Where a man is liable to imprisonment, as this man is, I think it is only right and proper that the Court, before it imposes such a term, should have the assistance of the Probation Officer.” /, THEFT OF GOAT Violet Richardson, aged 24, a domestic, pleaded guilty to a charge that between May 5 and May 7 at Wellington she stole a coat valued at £4 10s, the property of Patricia Kuiti. The case was adjourned to August 18 for a report from the Probation Officer. Detective-Sergeant G. C. Urquhart said that accused had been a housemaid in the Ascot Private Hotel, Wellington and had occupied a room with Kuiti. On May 5 accused was dismissed from her employment and left the hotel the same day. Two days late Kuiti, who had been away, returned to the hotel and found that some of her clothing was missing. Accused was apprehended by the police. FIREARM BREACHES Leslie Ernest Jones, a taxi proprietor, who did not appear, was convicted and fined £2 on a charge of delivering possession of a firearm without a permit. Constable William Mather said that Jones had given the firearm, a .22 calibre repeating rifle, to James Mitchell, a salesman, who was thinking of buying it. The ejector mechanism of the rifle was faulty. Mitchell gave the rifle to a friend, Athol William Whiston, a student, who was going to take the rifle to have it fixed. Whiston went shooting near Hawarden and accidentally wounded a man. The man was unlikely to suffer permanent injury. Neither Mitchell nor Whitson had permits to be in possession of the rifle. Whiston, who pleaded guilty, and Mitchell, who did not appear, were each convicted and fined £2 for procuring possession of a firearm without a permit. WANDERING STOCK Douglas Eden, who did not appear, was convicted and fined £1 on a charge of permitting a horse to wander in Arawa street on July 16. TWO CHARGES OF THEFT Harold Maurice James Smithers, aged 37, a labourer (Mr D. W. Russell), pleaded not guilty to a charge that on August 6 he stole a sack of potatoes, valued at 255, the property of Cecil James Sowry. He was convicted and remanded for sentence on August 18. Smithers pleaded guilty to stealing an overcoat valued at £l5, the property of George Louis Taylor, at Christchurch, on January 23, 1954. He was convicted and remanded to August 18 for sentence. CASE DISMISSED Ivan Raymond Stehr, a bus driver (Mr W. F. Brown) pleaded not guilty to a charge that on January 31 at Christchurch, he stole a man’s bicycle 1 valued at £2, the property of lan ; Henry Harper. He was acquitted. LICENSING BREACHES Peter Dalliessi, licensee of the New Zealander Hotel, was convicted and fined £5 on a charge of selling liquor after hours, and £5 for opening his premises for the sale of liquor after hours. He pleaded not guilty to each charge. Senior-Sergeant S. J. Anderson prosecuted. Mr W. F. Brown appeared for defendant. Margaret Elsie Garthwaite, also known as Powell, a kitchenhand, said that at 10.35 p.m. on July 11 she went to Coffey’s hotel in Lower High street to get a half-gallon jar filled with beer. She was refused and then went across the road to Dalliessi’s hotel. People were coming out of the door of the hotel. Witness said she asked Norma Dalliessi to fill the jar, paid 4s 9d for it, and then left. She had not gone far when she was accosted by a police constable. Gerald William Anthony Gallagher, a police constable, gave evidence of Garthwaite’s movements at the two hotels, and described how he had seen her get her flagon filled at the New Zealander Hotel, but he did not see who served her. Norma Dalliessi. said she was the daughter of the licensee or the New Zealander Hotel. She had not served Garthwaite with liquor after hours. Last year she had ordered Garthwaite from the premises after some unpleasantness and the staff had been instructed not to serve her. She, herself, certainly would not have served Garthwaite after hours. Norma Dalliessi, who pleaded not guilty, was convicted and fined £3 on a charge that being a person/ other than the licensee she unlawfully supplied Margaret Elsie Powell with liquor. ADMITTED TO PROBATION Robert lan Thorby, aged 26, a clerk (Mr B. J. Drake), charged with stealing £5O, the property of Hugh Allan Hoare. appeared for sentence and was admitted to probation for two years. Mr Drake said the medical report suggested that accused’s early life had been responsible for his present state of instability. The act was a stupid one and accused had made a full confession. There was nothing suggesting criminal tendency and it was his first appearance before a Court. He asked for suppression of the name of accused. The Magistrate, in refusing to order suppression of the name, said the offence was a particularly mean one and Thorby knew what he was doing was wrong. Accused was ordered to make restitution of the sum of £5O as directed by the Probation Officer. REMANDED FOR SENTENCE Peter William King, aged 24, a farm, labourer, pleaded guilty to Charges of stealing an overcoat valued at £ll, the property of John William McKenzie and a lumber jacket and blazer valued at £8 Ils 9d, the property of Doris, Jackson and others, the offences being committed- on August 3. Detective-Sergeant G. C. Urquhart said accused lived in a bach on property occupied by the Jacksons. Ac«i cused knew where the key of the house was and in the absence of the occupiers had taken the goods. Accused had been drinking methylated spirits. He had a previous conviction of being idle and disorderly. Accused was remanded for sentence and a Probation Officer’s report to August 18. Patrick Dennis Treves, aged 23, charged with converting to his ownuse a motor-cycle valued at £l9O, the property of William Ritchie Russell, was remanded to August 18 for sentence and a Probation Officer’s report. Detective-Sergeant Urquhart said that at 10.15 p.m. on July 28 Treves called at the Police Station and gave himself up. saying that he had converted a motor-cycle which he had ridden round the town. He had the idea that the police would catch up with him and he thought he had better get it over. Accused did not appear to be of very strong character. WAR PENSIONS BREACH Bertram Augustine O’Connor (Mr A. Hearn) pleaded guilty to three charges of making false statements in making application for a renewal of a war veteran’s allowance, contrary to the War Pensions Act Regulations. Detective-Sergeant Urquhart said defendant had been in receipt of a veteran’s allowance since 1941 under the conditions of which a person was allowed to earn £7B a year. Accused had been selling newspapers and had not declared all his earnings. In pensions he had been over paid £123. If he had declared the full amount of his income his pension would have been cut down. O’Connor was remanded until August 18 for a Probation Officers’ report. ' BREACH OF SECOND-HAND DEALERS’ ACT John Henry Leigh (Mr J. R. Woodward), pleaded guilty to a breach of ■the Second-Hand Dealers* Act. [ For the prosecution it was said that defendant was in business in Regedh under -tbe -namewjf CameiS

Craft, Ltd., and for six years had held a second-hand dealers’ licence and had failed to renew it. Mr Woodward said his client was not a second-hand dealer in the true meaning of the word, but to take a second-hand camera as a trade-in in any transaction it was necessary to have a licence. A fine of £1 was imposed. BEMANBEB Gordon David Healey, a clerk (Mr B McClelland). charged with stealing £97, the property of MeDonald Bros. (Amberley), Ltd., while a servant of the company, was remanded to August 18. Terence Desmond Bradshaw, aged 21, a labourer (Mr N. Hattaway). wasl remanded to August 18 on a charge! of converting to his own use a motors car valued at £650, the property off Haymond Buben Ayers. . Bail aUoWMt an I&g.,BUin a pq