Magistrate’s Court Idle And Disorderly Charge Against Youth

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28539, 19 March 1958, Page 9

Magistrate’s Court Idle And Disorderly Charge Against Youth

Evan Siewert Junes Watson, aged 17 years seven months, pleaded guilty to a charge in the Magistrate's Court yesterday that on March 17 he was idle and disorderly, in that he had insufficient lawful means of support. He was convicted and remanded to March 20 in custody for sentence. Mr Raymond Ferner, S.M., ordered that he be kept separate from other prisoners. Sergeant V. F. Townsend, who prosecuted, said that Constable G. Dynes had noticed Watson in Cathedral square. When interviewed, Watson said that he had just arrived from Mataura. He lived in Mataura with his mother. On March 16, Watson was seen again and taken to the police station and placed in the care of the Salvation Army. The Salvation Army purchased a railway ticket for Watson to go home, and he was put on the south express. Before it departed, Watson left the train and cashed his ticket at the ticket office.

At 7.45 p.m. on March 17, Watson was noticed again by Constable Dynes in Cathedral square. He had spent money at various milk bars in the city and had 14s 3d- of £1 16s left.’ Watson had previously appeared in the Children's Court, Invercargill. The probation officer was prepared to assist if the boy was to be sent home, said Sergeant Townsend. Watson told the Court that he had nothing to say. The Magistrate: What are you doing here loafing about Christchurch? Why didn’t you go home? Accused: I got off the train. The probation officer said that he understood circumstances at Watson’s home were not particularly favourable. The solution might be to send Watson home, but from what he had learned from him there might be difficulty in getting him to go there. REMANDED Peter Albert Wright Delaney, aged 24, a workman, was remanded in custody to Thursday on a charge of stealing £22 10s from Brian David Sparks at Balmoral State Forest on March 16. Errol Leslie McConchie (Mr M. G. Loughnan) was remanded to March 24 on a charge of stealing a stop-watch valued at £26, the property of the Waimairi Beach Surf Club. Ball was allowed at ■ £ 100 in his own recognisance and one surety of £lOO or two of £5O. I Charged with using obscene language in a public place on March 17, James Miller Connell was remanded to Thursday on bail of £25 in his own recognisance and a surety of a like amount. DESERTER’S APPLICATION An application by a Maltese ship deserter, Paul Sammut, aged 28 (Mr J. G. Leggat), for permission to stay in New Zealand under the Shipping and Seamen Amendment Act, 1057, was declined by the Magistrate. Mr J. R. Woodward appeared for the New Zealand Shipping Company, Ltd. Mr Leggat submitted that Sammut had deserted five years before the new legislation became effective. The applicant had a good record and Character, he had met his obligations scrupulously, and had turned into a decent citizen.

The Magistrate said the 1957 amendment empowered the Court to authorise a deserter to remain in New Zealand in special circumstances, but it was not a general amnesty. The act took into account the necessity of ships leaving New Zealand with adequate crews. There were no special circumstances to justify the applicant being allowed to stay. DROVE WHILE DISQUALIFIED Kenneth Charles Brown (Mr P. G. S. Penlington), who pleaded guilty, was convicted and fined £lO on a charge of driving a motor-car on March 7 while disqualified from holding a driver's licence. He was also disqualified from holding a driver’s licence for a year. The prosecutor, Senior Patrol Officer J. Brown, of the Christchurch City Council’s traffic department, said that the matter had arisen after Traffic Officer 1. McLaughlan had noticed a cent piece in a parking meter instead of the proper coin. He had advised the meter mechanic and it was decided to interview the owner of the car parked in the meter space. The owner was Brown’s father. Brown admitted that the car belonged to his father, ■ but that a person called ’’Jim" had driven the car. Mr Brown said that he had been present when a statement to this effect was taken from Brown and Brown had been told that his father would be interviewed in connexion with two charges that could arise. The defendant then admitted that he had driven the car from a St. Asaph street garage to Oxord terrace where it was parked outside the Working Men's Club. Brown's driver’s licence had been cancelled for 28 days on March 3 at Oamaru, where he was convicted and fined £7 for driving in a dangerous manner. His father had not been aware that he had lost his licence. Mr Penllngtoh 4ald that he must criticise the actions of the City Council in taking the statement. They had contravened the Home Office or Judges’ Rules in that there had been some threat in taking the statement. The Magistrate said that he did not think that it could make any difference to what could be done in view, of the plea of guilty. As far as the offence itself was concerned, Brown's father had asked him to pick up the car because he was busy: He had done it to assist his father. The defendant’s character and the circumstances did not warrant imprisonment and on account of his age, the Court’s discretion should be exercised in this case.

The Magistrate said that Brown had blatantly defied the order and only his age prevented his going to prison. MONTH’S GAOL On a charge of driving while disqualified, to which he pleaded not guilty, Gavin Edgar William Kinsman (Mr R. B. Shand) was convicted and sentenced to one month's imprisonment. CHARGES DISMISSED The Magistrate dismissed a charge brought by the Christchurch City' Council against Mathias Joseph Gerardus Immera (Mr R. E. Wylie) that on October 7, 1957, he drove a bus in

Colombo street without reasonable consideration for others using the road. James Gillespie said that between Tuam street and Lichfield street a bus had pulled out from a bus stop, forcing him to swing the car he was driving on to the wrong side of the road. Traffic Officer H. Lovell gave similar evidence that the bus, driven by Immera, pulled sharply into the line of traffic.

Imjners said that he had no knowledge of the incident. It took three or four seconds to pull a bus on to the roedway and if vehicles had to swerve on to the wrong side of the road his bus must have already been well on to the road. The Magistrate said that he saw nothing unusual from the evidence in what Immera had done.

A charge that Harry Saville drove a taxi in Cathedral Square on December 30, 1957, without due care and attention was dismissed. Mr B. J. Drake appeared for Saville, who pleaded not guilty. The information was laid by the Christchurch City Council. Traffic Officer G. W. C. Franklin, Ernest Cecil Achilles, Sidney John Woods, Clifford Hague and Ethel Hague gave evidence on a collision between cars driven by Saville and Clifford Hague. The Magistrate found that both drivers appeared to be equally to blaffie and it would be unfair to convict one without convicting the other. The incident pointed to a possible need to improve route signs and markings in the square. TRAFFIC OFFENCES In prosecutions brought by the Transport Department fines were imposed as follows: Exceeding 30 miles an hour: Cedric Alexander Benny, £2; Aubrey James Boveit, £3; Deinifrids Corrs, £3; Winton Michael Claney, £2; Trevor William Counihan, £2; Frederick Leslie Dix, £3; John Barry Ferguson, £2; Thomas Stanley Ferguson, £2: Ramon Francis Fitzpatrick, £3; Douglas James Franks, £5; Keith Harrington, £5 (no warrant of fitness, £1); James Henry Hooper, £3; William James Jeffreys, £3; Ronald Thomas Jenkins, £3; Peter Michael Indel, £7 and licence suspended for two months; James Martin Le Conte, £5; John Joseph McCormack, £3; James Henry Mills, £3; John Gerard Mullins, £2; Patrick O’Connell, £3; Scott Mathew Park, £3; Erick Cyril Philpott. £3 (no warrant of fitness, £2); Erroll Bertram Price, £5; Brian Fancis Quigley, £3; Roderick Smith, £4; Maxwell Alfred Tippet, £3; Veibren Vandenburg, £2; Jacolius Van Tongerln, £4; James Lane Were, £3; Peter Frederick Whitbrock, £2; Eric George Wood, £2. Parked over vehicle entrance: Hugh Teneycliffe Hubbard, £2; Norman Howson, £2; Graham Edward Parker, £2. No warrant of fitness: Aril Adrian Van Zelderen, £2.

Failing to stop at stop sign: James Alexander Hunter, £2. Exceeding 50 miles an hour: Douglas Arthur Presto, £4.

Exceeding 30 miles an hour in heavy motor vehicle: David Errol Parker, £3; Carmen Edric Renkie, £4.

Passing when road not clear: James William Powick, £5 and licence suspended for 28 days. On charges brought by the Christchurch City Council’s Traffic Department the following fines were imposed:— Exceeding 30 miles an hour: Hugh Andrew Boyd, £5; John Dyksma, £2; Joseph Fulop, £4 (no safety helmet £2, no driver’s licence £3); Christopher John McFall, £2; Graham Rennie Hughes, £5 (no warrant of fitness £5); lan William McGregor, £4 (no safety helmet £2); Hector Norman Martis, £3 (no warrant of fitness £2); Graham Alexander Nutt, £2 (no warrant of fitness £2); Dulcie Paterson, £4; John Charles Rowe, £4 (failing to stop at compulsory stop sign £3); Robert James Sparks, £2; John Edgar Wain, £2 (no warrant of fitness £1); Lawrence Godfrey Graeme White, £3; Walcot Robin Wood, £39. No warrant of fitness: Rodaid pineen, £2; Walter John Dockery, £1; Ronald Henry George Parke, £2; Robin Bernard Thomas, £l. Parked on bus stop: Margaret Rose Denmonth, £2; Douglas James Frank Ridden, £2. Driving without due care and attention: Eric Shaw Haughton Johnston, £7.

No driver’s licence: Stephen Kanten, £3;* Ivan Stanley Nankivell, £3 (no warrant of fitness, £2).

Driving at speed which might have been dangerous: Brian David Kennelly, £5 and licence suspended for 28 days. Obstructing vehicular entrance: William Charles Frank Kimber, £l. No prescribed lamps on car: Hubert Edmond Wheatley Knight, £3. Passing when road not clear: Lawrence Hugh Knight, £5.; Brian McLeod Thompson, £6. Parked in expired metered space: Andrew Malcolm Perry, £5; Gerald George Sussman, £4. Failing to yield right of way: Alexander John. Princep, £5. Parting with licence: Antal Sandon Szabo, £5. CIVIL CASES

(Before Mr E. A. Lee, S.M.) CLAIMS GRANTED

Judgment for the plaintiff was given in the following cases for the amounts stated:— R. L. Best, V. C. F. Reid, £47 10s; Kenneth Knowles Purver v. W. Martin, £2l 3s; A. A. G. Reed, B. McClelland and A. D. Holland v V. B. Benham, £23 14s. JUDGMENT SUMMONSES

On judgment summonses, the following orders were made:— Hector G Acker to pay Weston, Ward and Lascelles £4 12s 6d, in default 15 days’ imprisonment, warrant to be suspended as long as defendant pays 10s a week; T. F. Whittle to pay Max Mills, Ltd. £8 10s, in default nine days’ imprisonment; L. M. Matthews to pay Annat Stores. Ltd. £5 2s, in default six days’ imprisonment: D. A. Harper to pay G. J. Grenfell £289 Hz, in default three months’ imprisonment, warrant to be suspended as long as defendant pays £2 a week; A. O. S. Carlaw to pay Wardells, Ltd. £l9 7s 3d, in default 21 days' imprisonment; L.

J. Hill to pay E. D. Wilson £lO7, in default three months’ imprisonment; L. J. Hill to pay D. W. Bennington £ll2, in default three months’ imprisonment; L. J. Hill to pay W. H. Pegg £B3. in default three months’ imprisonment; Ivan Keith Cook to pay Sandrey Motors (1953), Ltd. £lO 14s lOd. in default 11 days’ imprisonment. warrant suspended as long as defendant pays £1 a week; C. Halliday to pay Sandrey Motors (1953), Ltd. £5 19s 7d, in default six days’ imprisonment; R. F. Ladbrook to pay Smith and Wilson. Ltd. £3. in default three days’ Imprisonment.

The Mayor of Hamilton's fund for the relief. of distress among those who suffered in the recent Waikato floods closed yesterday, £2857 being given, mostly in donations of £5 and under.— (P.A.)