Assault On Constable Brings 8 Years Gaol

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31770, 29 August 1968, Page 20

Assault On Constable Brings 8 Years Gaol

(New Zealand Press Association)

AUCKLAND. August 28.

Two of the four youths who kicked and beat a policeman into unconsciousness, using fists, boots and beer bottles, were each sentenced to eight years imprisonment by Mr Justice Speight today. The other two were sentenced to seven years and six years.

All appeared , for sentence on a total of 60 charges, after their escape from the Waikune penal institution on June 25.

Dempsey Roberts, aged 21, a workman: Julian Barbarich, aged 18, a farmhand; James Simon, aged 21, a carpenter; and Frederick White, aged 21, a shearer, pleaded guilty to a charge that on June 27, with intent to cause grievious bodily harm to a Papakura police constable, Paul James Sheriff, they caused him grievous bodily harm.

They pleaded guilty to this charge after the taking of depositions.

Roberts had also admitted a charge of escaping from lawful custody, 11 charges of car conversion, one of attempted car conversion, four of burglary, one of wilful damage, one of theft, and one of interfering with a motor vehicle. - He was sentenced to two years gaol for escaping; convicted and discharged for the theft and interfering with the vehicle; and sentenced to three years on each of the other charges, the terms being concurrent. Similar Sentence On the charge of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm he was sentenced to five years, making a total cumulative term of eight years.

Simon was similarly sentenced on one charge of escape, 11 of car conversion, one of attempted car conversion, three of burglary and one of theft. White was sentenced to a total of two years on one escape charge, five of car conversion, one of attempted car conversion, one of burglary and one of theft. On the assault charge he was also sentenced to five years, making a total of seven. Barbarich also received a two-year sentence for escape, five charges of car conversion, one of attempted car conversion, one of burglary and one of theft. With a sentence of four years for assault, his total was six years. His Honour said that al-

though all four were equally culpable for the assault, he had given some recognition to the fact that Barbarich was much younger than the others. His Honour said the fact that the youths were all immature and irresponsible had lightened what otherwise would have been maximum sentences

Two of them had planned the escape originally and the other two had joined in. The number of crimes committed as a result had been substantial.

“With your experience you must have known that capture was inevitable,” he said. “But, when confronted by the policeman, rather than giving in to his courageous

and single-handed attempt to arrest you, you resorted to violence of an extreme degree.”

They had used bottles, fists and boots to knock the policeman into unconsciousness. They had called out “kill him,” beaten him insensible and booted him.

“Fortunately this man did not die. If he had, you could have been facing a charge of murder,” said his Honour. Appearing for all the youths, Mr D. A. M. Graham submitted that because of their ages, their backgrounds and the amount of liquor they had consumed after their escape, they had lost their reason completely and had an almost maniacal desire to stay at large.