Charges Against Driver Reheard At Rangiora

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30626, 17 December 1964, Page 27

Charges Against Driver Reheard At Rangiora

After the charge had been amended from one of dangerous driving, Harry Leonard Gilmore (Mr B. M. Joyce) pleaded guilty to a charge of driving carelessly, before Mr E. S. J. Crutchley, S.M., in the Magistrate’s Court, Rangiora, yesterday. Gilmore was fined £7. His licence was cancelled for six months and endorsed for three years. Gilmore will be granted a conditional licence for use in travelling to his employment. This licence will entitle him to ride his motor-cycle to and from work between the hours of 7 a.m. and 5.30 p.m., from Mondays to Fridays. For giving a false name he was fined a further £3; as well he was ordered to pay witness expenses of £3 and court costs of £1 10s on each charge. The case was by way of a rehearing of one from the previous sitting of the court two w eeks ago. Barry Nelson Jones, a former traffic officer stationed at Rangiora, said in evidence that his attention had been attracted to a car by the speed and manner in which it took a left hand corner on to a bridge at Evans road, Kaiapoi. The vehicle, driven by the defendant, was travelling from the direction of Rangiora towards Kaiapoi. The car straddled the centre line of the road and its left-hand wheels appeared to be lifting. If there had been another vehicle travelling in the opposite direction it would have had nowhere to go. The defendant first gave his name as Geoffrey Richardson.

After the original charge of dangerous driving had been amended to one of careless driving, Mr Joyce entered a plea of guilty for the defendant.

It was a serious case of careless driving, said the Magistrate in convicting the defendant. Giving a false name was a foolish thing. INCIDENTS AFTER DANCE Arising from the one set of circumstances, Richard Charles Broughton, aged 19, was convicted of driving without reasonable consideration and James Douglas Turwell Winham was convicted of assaulting Murray James Watson. The charge against Broughton was amended from one of dangerous driving. Broughton was fined £5 and ordered to pay witness expenses of £3 on the driving charge and W'ingham was fined £l5 and ordered to pay witness expenses of £3 on the assault charge. Half of Wingham’s fine was ordered to be paid to the complainant, Watson. The charges arose from circumstances which developed following attendance by both parties at a dance at Clarkville on November 1. Sergeant L. Dowell prosecuted and Mr R. H. Bowron appeared for the defendants.

The defendants alleged that Watson had pulled his car alongside theirs and sworn at them. Two girls had been in the defendants’ car and the defendants had followed W’atson’s car to get the person who had used the bad language to apologise to the girls. The episode had ended with Wingham punching Watson. No matter what the provocation persons could not take matters into their own hands, said the Magistrate, in convicting the defendants. There were proper channels for them to follow and the country had set up a police force and courts for Just such a purpose. CASE ADJOURNED Charges against Ronald Henry Miligan, licensee of the Anglers’ Arms Hotel, Sefton, of supply Ing liquor to minors and allowing an unlawful lottery on October 10 were adjourned to January 27. SIX YOUTHS FINED Six Christchurch youths were convicted and fined for being on the licensed premises while minors. AU six youths pleaded guilty by letter. Fines of £5 were imposed on Graham Reginald Broadbelt, Brendon John Harris, Frazer Todd Heller, Colin John Wilson and Thomas Edward Whale. Michael George Dearman, who had a previous conviction, was fined £7. LICENCE CANCELLED A driver’s licence was a privilege and not something one could hold indefinitely, said the Magistrate fining Kevin Wayne Sincock £5 and cancelling his licence for two months and en-

d2Tvi ing U ,or thrfre years for d .7Y in g carelessly. On a furmer charge of operating a fine'd ehlcle - the defendant g was

The defendant was told to L e J? e J nb ? r that when behind the a car be was behind something potentially dangerand he was required at all times to exercise courtesy to other road users, other road users. The charge of careless driving arose from d . efendant ’s passing another at a pedestrian crossing in Rangiora on November 6. SLOW DRIVER FINED F° r L a i ! lng keep to the left daar on November 14 lan Smith was fined £7 and nad his hcence cancelled for six months and endorsed for three years. . The ,„ defendant had been travelling at 20 to 25 mUes an hour said Traffic Officer Clarke, and there was a line of traffic behind him. Defendant had veered across the road. The defendant had been somewhat unde ’’ the influence of alcohol and his car keys had been removed for two hours. Slow drivers in those circumstances created a measure of danger, by causing other driver?.,n. a hurr y t 0 be impatient, said the Magistrate. DRIVERS FINED As a result of an accident, when the defendant made a right-hand turn at Amberley on October 22, Michael lan Ritchie was fined £6 for careless driving.

For driving a car-load of youths round Kaiapoi streets shortly after the pictures came out at Kaiapoi on October 31 without the vehicle’s lights being on, Allan John Gibson was fined £5.

Crossing the railway line at Kaiapoi at a speed of 50 to 55 miles an hour resulted in Garry David Hampton being fined £6 for exceeding 30 miles an hour. The defendant had consumed some liquor, said Traffic Officer J. W. Clarke.

Also for exceeding 30 miles an hour at Kaiapoi on the same date, Raymond Henry Miller was fined £5. Traffic Officer Clarke said the defenndant had crossed an intersection and passed several other vehicles at 45 to 50 miles an hour.

Russell Wallis Pengelly was fined £5 for driving carelessly and had his licence cancelled for three months and endorsed for three years. On November 12 the defendant’s vehicle had mounted the left-hand footpath on a bridge at Kaiapoi, endangering two girls, said Traffic Officed Clarke. Defendant’s excuse had been that his windscreen wiper was not working and he had pulled to the left with the intention of stopping. THREW FIREWORKS FROM CAR Errol Rang! Smith, 16, who lit fireworks on a cigarette and threw them out of the window of his car while driving, was fined £5 and had his licence cancelled for six months and endorsed for three years for failing to keep to the left at Kaiapoi on November 5. CHARGE DISMISSED A charge against Denis John Ealam, a bushman (Mr R. H. Bowron), of being in charge of a vehicle while under the influence of drink or drugs, was dismissed without prejudice. The Magistrate held that the information was defective. NO RED LIGHT For having no red light displayed on a truck parked in Featherston avenue, Kairaki, on the night of October 11, Phillip Araitihau Pohio was fined £5. OTHER TRAFFIC OFFENCES Other penalties for traffic offences were: Exceeding 30 miles an hour: James Douglas Wingham, £3. No licence: Geoffrey William Taylor, £2. Noisy vehicle: lan James Liebert, £3.