Magistrate’s Court Charge Of Assaulting Pensioner Dismissed

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29178, 12 April 1960, Page 20

Magistrate’s Court Charge Of Assaulting Pensioner Dismissed

A m-year-old widow, a pen- ft lien er. gave evidence in the A [Magistrate’s Court yesterday of an alleged assault in a house in L Gloucester street on the evening ft Of March 31.. tl -The Magistrate (Mr A. P. Blair, i: SM.) dismissed a charge of as- N seult against Edgar James Dav- ft iteona, aged G* B. Lmfan. He pleaded guilty toteS e faarge. Witness said she and two g women friends called Kathy and o J and had dot been there for more « than 10 minutes when Davidsons w came in. She did not think be g had been invited. . * tJ Then Dfivtfafaa took tea a woman, pfasTSTthe shoulders " and bundtesTwr-wiit ; of- th* room, 'a along tfaSgeW «« fato J his own room. tl the door with a bottle, and Dav- b idsons opened it. Witness said te stde > lylng on A the floor, she could see Freda. a Then Davidsons struck her with j his hand, knocking her to ' the r floor, and kicked het'. ' c Cross-examined by Mr Las- a

celles, witness admitted she and the other two Women had gone to the house from the White Hart where they had been drinking. She said she went to the hotel fairly often, but could not be called a “frequenter.” , .Witness also denied being drunk at the time. ; ■- Constable W. Bithell said he went to the house after a complaint of noise from the neighbours. When he knocked on Davidsons* door, he came out dressed in a pair of trousers. He was in an arrogant mood. At all times, Davidsons denied the assault, said the constable. He said he did not see any marks on the witness, and later, although the woman, Freda, came to the police station with the witness, she would not make a complaint

Davidsons said the woman called Freda came to the ropm quite willingly. They were standing in the room when the woman called Kathy bashed on the door with a beer bottle. She kept striking the door until the panel splintered. He opened the door and orderer her away. Later she came back and started striking the door again. Davidsons denied assaulting the witness. He said at no time did he see her in the passageway. The Magistrate Mid there was a great amount of conflict in the evidence, and he was left in a state of doubt. He would give the benefit of that doubt to DavidSfas.*-- . SMASHED WINDOW A £5O plate'glass window in the front of the premises of Kodak Ltd. at 881 Colombo street, was smashed with a piece of concrete about 6.45 p.m. on March 26 by a man who snatched a camera, valued at £9B 10s and ran south along Colombo street towards Sydenham, Mid Sergeant E. S, Tuck. Maurice James Hogg, aged 41, a workman (Mr C. J. O’H. Tdbin) pleaded guilty to a charge of breaking and entering He Was remanded to April 14 for a probation officer’s report and sentence. Hogg was chased by a man who had seen him smash the window and he was apprehended some distance away, Sergeant Tuck said. Hogg had said he had been drinking heavily at tee time. He had a number of previous convictions. His bail was renewed. MOTOR-CYCLE CONVERSION Two youths, who took a motorcycle from outside the Hibehiian Hall in Barbadoes street had difficulty in starting it and this had aroused the suspicions of two traffic officers of the Christchurch City Council traffic department, said Sergeant Tuck. The traffic officers followed the youths and stopped them in Lincoln road outside the Addington police station where they admitted that they had unlawfully taken the motor-cycle for a joy ride. George Winiana, aged 19, an apprentice boiler maker, and Kauiwaititl Makuika Wawatai, aged 18. an apprentice carpenter, were each fined £l5 when they pleaded guilty to a charge of converting a motor-cycle valued at £B5 on April 9. Mr R. Flesher, who appeared for both accused, said this rash act had been carried out without any thought. They had attended a dance and as it was hot had gone outside to get some fresh air. They decided to take the motor-cycle and go around the block. They intended to return the machine. They both lived at the Methodist Maori Boys’ Hostel and they had never given any trouble. They were both extremely sorry for what they had done. “You have got to realise that if you do this sort of thing you stand a good chance of going to prison," said the Magistrate. He refused an order for the suppression of their names. ATTEMPTED ENTRY

Seen acting in a suspicious manner outside the second-hand shop at 1A Ferry road at 2.50 a.m. on April 12. two persons made off when they were approached by Constable L. E Foster, said Sergeant Tuck. Peter Robert Webb, aged 26. a woodwork machinist, pleaded guilty to a charge of attempting to break and enter a shop and was remanded in custody to April 14 for a probation officer’s report and sentence.

Constable Foster found a glass cutter on the shop window ledge and the window, valued at £lB, had been extensively damaged by the glass cutter, said Sergeant Tuck. The window has to be replaced. A 15-year-old youth was apprehended and later Webb was interviewed. He said he had gone to a midnight picture session with a youth and they had shared a bottle of sherry after the pictures concluded. They then decided to break into the shop and steal some transistor radios, Sergeant Tuck said. Webb said the youth supplied the glass cutters and the youth said it was Webb. Webb had previous con* victions. STOLE WATCHES The time of leniency and short sentences was a thing of the past

for Frederick Robert Allen, alias Allan, said the Mfaistirate. Allen, aged 31, a butcher (Mr L. J, Steel), was sent to gaol for one monte bn a charge of theft of a jersey valued at £1 15s lid from Woolworths, Ltd., on March 31, for Which he appeared WS & £ SSSw' T*h« »entenees - fab'-W be served cumulatively. */ Sergeant Tbck Mid fh**'wt S- 45 pjn. on March 17,. tee /.fatifa received a compiatet • &mn a jeweller in Hlgf Street. The complainantj C woman, Mid she Was out tee back of the shop when she heard » noise from the showroom. When she went to investigate, she found a glass slide had been opened and the watchee had been taken from a showcase. ; Interviewed by the police, nn April 4, Allen admitted taking the watches. He Mid he gave them to a man with whom he had previously been drinking. The mart gave him in return about £4. The man had not been traced, mid Sergeant Tuck. Mr Steel Mid drink had been Allen’s weakness. He was drunk at the time of the offence, and drink had broken up his marriage. Allen had come to Christchurch from Auckland to make a new start

THREE MONTHS* GAOL Daniel Farrington was sentenced to three months’ imprisonment on a charge of theft of a watch from a parked *car at Milton, for which he was originally placed on a year’s probation bn November 16, 1959. A Probation officer, Mr J. H. Jeffrey, said he was making the application to have Farrington sentenced, because he ■ had committed other offences since. The sentence is to be served cumulatively with another sentence Farrington is now serving. DROVE UNDER INFLUENCE

For driving while under the influence of drink, on .the PictonBluff highway on April 2, James Clough Robinson, aged 39, a farmer, was fined £3O, his driver’s licence was cancelled, and he. was disqualified from obtaining’ another for three years. He was represented by Mr A Hearn. Sergeant Tuck Mid that after a. telephone call on April 2, about 12.30 a.m. a police car went to the scene of an accident near Belfast. Robinson’s car, going south, had collided with a car travelling north. Robinson was unsteady on his feet, his speech was slurred, and after examination by Dr. F. L. Scott at the Central Police Station, he was certified unfit to drive. SENT TO GAOL For failing to report to a probation officer at Hokitika on January 4, William Joseph Leader, aged 31, was sentenced to one month’s imprisonment to be served concurrently with a three months’ sentence he is now serving. Sergeant Tuck said Leader was placed on probation after being released on good behaviour from • prison farm where he had been serving a sentence of 12 months. He reported regularly until January 4 when he left the district Leader’s, present prison sentence of three months was for obtaining credit by fraud at Invercargill, said Sergeant Tuck. REMANDED Charged with committing rape at Rangiora on March 27, Gavin Harold Baynon, aged 22, was remanded to April 20. He was represented by Mr C. J. O’H. Tobin. John Joseph O’Dell, aged 33, a linesman (Mr C. J. O’H Tobin) was remanded to May 2 on a charge of driving under the influence of drink or drugs on March 24. Bail was renewed. John Robert Hawthorne, aged 36, was remanded to May 2 on six charges of obtaining credit by fraud.

Michael Nui Rhodes was remanded to May 2 on a charge of leaving an indecent document on premises occupied by another person, on or about November 21.

Alfred Edward Billing, aged 29, married, was remanded to April 14 on charges of attempted rape and assault causing actual bodily harm on April 1. .John Leslie Maguire, aged 28, was remanded to April 14 on a charge of aiding and abetting another to attempt rape on April 1. Mr A. D. Holland appeared for both accused and made an application for bail.

Sergeant Tuck, opposing the application for bail, said the charges were serious, and that evidence of violence was to be called.

Charged with driving under the influence of drink or drugs at Christchurch on March 27, Norman Lyall Stewart, aged 41, was remanded to May 2. Bail was renewed.

Peter John Ambrose Harrington, aged 20, was remanded to April 13 when he appeared on charges of inciting violence and using obscene language in Christchurch on March 19.

Charged with rape at Rangiora on March 27, Ted Reo Aorangi, aged 22, was remanded to April 20. He was represented by Mr G. W. Rountree.