Divorced Husband Charged With Attempted Murder

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28701, 26 September 1958, Page 10

Divorced Husband Charged With Attempted Murder

(New Zealand Press Association)

DUNEDIN, Sept. 25. Annie McGrath Gordon, aged 35, of Fairfield, Otago, alleged in the Magistrate’s Court at Dunedin this morning that she was shot in the body on the night of July 28 when she ran between her divorced husband, who had a shotgun, and her eight-year-old son, Malcolm. Mrs Gordon was testifying in a charge of attempted murder against Richard Neville Gordon, aged 32. Police photographs of the interior and locality of the house were produced, and Sergeant G. P. Dwan, of Dunedin, testified that fingerprint tests on a shot-gun examined by him had proved negative. The hearing is before Mr J. D. Willis, S.M. Mr R. J. Gilbert appeared for Gordon and Mr F. S. Adams for the Crown. Mrs Gordon said she married Gordon in 1948 at Fairfield, and her divorce became absolute on September 11 last year. Her only child, Malcolm, was born in 1950. Until July 28 she had not seen her husband since 1955. She was in the kitchen—alone except for her young son—on that evening, Her father had left at 8 o’clock, leaving the back door closed but unlocked. She and her son were playing ludo; she was facing the back door. Ten minutes after her father left the house she heard a noise. Looking towards the back door, she saw the handle begin to turn very slowly. She halted her son, who was about to answer the door. Gordon walked in, with a double-barrelled shotgun held at his side. He moved “a couple of steps” forward and she told him to get out, Mrs Gordon said. He raised the gun, pointing it at Malcolm. She ran around in front of Malcolm. Then she heard the bang. The shot went into her body. She had touched neither the gun nor her husband. She moved another step forward to take Gordon’s glasses off, and threw them away. Without glasses he was short-sighted, she explained. Then she grasped the barrel of the gun and pushed it aside. As she did so, she heard another bang. She did not know where this shot had gone, but it might have been into the floor. Her husband had not moved between shots.

Boy Not Hit Mrs Gordon said she called to her son, who told her he was not hit. She took him by the hand and went behind Gordon—who was looking for his glasses—out the back door. She pushed Gordon back when he tried to stop her shutting the door, and went to a neighbour’s home.

Mrs Gordon identified clothing she wore on the night. The holes in the jersey and skirt were caused by shotgun pellets, she said. Malcolm Kennedy Gordon cor-’ roborated his mother’s evidence. Norman Demmock’', a workman, said the shotgun, cartridge-belt and cartridges produced in Court belonged to him. They had been left in the workshop where ho and Gordon were employed. He said the gun was missing on July 28. Detective-Sergeant J. K. Hamilton said that when he arrested Gordon he told him Mrs Gordon had been admitted to hospital with serious injuries, and it was believed he had been responsible. “Gordon then said: ‘lt’s a pity I didn’t do it 10 years ago,’ ’• said witness. Accused later repeated the statement. When he was arrested Gordon was quite sober, and appeared to be quite normal. His truck was searched, and a belt containing shotgun cartridges and a .22 rifle were found. The hearing will be resumed tomorrow morning.