Manslaughter Charge Depositions Taken

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31753, 9 August 1968, Page 7

Manslaughter Charge Depositions Taken

Marian Benton, aged 64, a 1 housewife, was remanded in j custody to August 21 by Mr KI H. J. Headifen, S.M., yesterday I after depositions had been ’ taken from 14 witnesses on a j charge of manslaughter against i Benton. 1 Benton is charged with using i a syringe on a girl, aged 15, i with intent to procure a mis- i carriage and killing her, I thereby committing manslaughter. I Mr D. H. Stringer appears for I the accused. Mr N. W. William* 1 son is prosecuting and Detective Senior-Sergeant B. I. S. Kimber is the officer in charge of the case. Twentyeight witnesses will be called by the prosecution. A woman, whose name was suppressed, said she learned in April that her daughter, . aged 15, was pregnant. It had been decided that the pregnancy should be terminated. Witness had had an abortion by the accused, for which she paid £3O, about six years before. Her daughter was operated on at a motel and she gave Benton $6O although payment had not been discussed. On the Monday, when nothing had happened, another operation was done at a residence of a relative of the witness. Witness and her daughter returned home but the next week-end came back to Christchurch where a third operation was done in a motel. The girl made four trips to Christchurch and was operated on five times. “After my daughter came home she said: ’I can’t breath, mum,’ and collapsed,’’ the witness said. “I got my : eldest son to help me put her on her bed. A neighbour came in and said the girl was unconscious. She was breathing heavily and was frothing at the mouth. She was taken to the Oamaru Hospital where she died at 6.30 a.m. the next morning.’’ Witness said that at first she had told the police that she

had operated on the girl as she ddd not want anyone else to be involved. To Mr Stringer, witness said It was her idea that her daughter have an abortion and she made the arrangements for it. She denied that she had difficulty finding the accused, that she had to beg the accused to help her and that she had told the accused that she would be eternally grateful if she could help her. Benton had not asked her for money and she had paid hsr the same amount she had paid on the previous occasion.