94 arrested in New Year’s Eve incidents

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32494, 2 January 1971, Page 1

94 arrested in New Year’s Eve incidents

Ninety-four persons were arrested during New Year’s Eve celebrations in New Plymouth, Napier, Nelson and Christchurch. In some places there were nasty bottle-throwing incidents and clashes with the police.

Sixteen were arrested in Christchurch, nine of them in Cathedral Square, and 20 were arrested in Nelson. Arrests in New Plymouth totalled 31 and in Napier, 27.

The Nelson reporter of “The Press” says that 18 of the 20 arrested there paid a total of, $855 in fines and Court costs yesterday morning.

Two more spent the night in Nelson Hospital, where they were admitted as a result of fights in Trafalgar , Street. One young man, struck in the face by a flying bottle, was still in hospital yesterday. Two of the 20 persons arrested were females. In the Magistrate’s Court yesterday morning two of the 20 pleaded not guilty and were remanded. Most were arrested for depositing dangerous litter but others were charged with assault, disorderly behaviour and obstructing the police. Mr J. W. P. Watts, S.M., imposed fines ranging from $lO to $75. Casualties Eight persons were treated at the casualty department of the Nelson Hospital for gashes and cuts. Throughout the evening the police snowed extreme forbearance. They were punched, kicked and abused whenever the opportunity presented itself to sections of the liquoraffected crowd. Dogs and their handlers were on call, but were not used. During the evening there was little of the festive atmosphere normally associated with New Year’s Eve. The presence of a big group of visiting motor-cyclists seemed to engender ill will among a big section of the crowd of above 2000. At one stage bottle throwing and fighting broke out >and the police had difficulty in controlling the situation, i “Many of the crowd expected to see trouble develop between the police and the motor-cyclists, but it did not arise," said Senior Sergeant C. Graham yesterday. “The motor-cyclists were not responsible fior the main trouble, but their presence here may have been responsible for some of it. They did not start it.”

The unprepossessing appearance of the motor-cyclists was very much at variance with their behaviour, which was praised by policemen, traffic officers, Mr R. G. Riach manager of the Hotel Nelson, one of the headquarters of the group, and Mr R. Thompson, manager of the Nelson Motor Camp. Policemen and traffic officers deplored the attitude of some of the crowd in Trafalgar Street. “They turned out not to take part in festivities, but to watch and enjoy the trouble they thought would break out,” said one. “They seemed to think this sort of thing is an annual spectacle put on for the tourists.” From about 9 p.m. crowds lined the footpaths in Trafalgar Street, particularly at the Hardy Street intersection. There, outside the Hotel Nelson, about 20 motorcycles were parked while their owners were inside the hotel. Policemen stationed at this point dispersed the crowd.

Trouble begins The motor-cyclists rode away, but returned to Trafalgar Street about 10.30 p.m. and parked. It was then that the trouble began. According to Traffic Officer D. Boyes, who was on duty in the area, the crowd began to gather round the motorcyclists. There was an exchange of words and a blow was struck—not by a motorcyclist. “And away it went,” Traffic Officer Boyes said. “Bottles started to fly. The police assisted the motorcyclists from the area, but some returned to rescue their friends who were still fighting. The police were able to disperse the crowd and the motor-cyclists moved away. “These blokes are kicked and battered around a Ipt, and nine times out of 10 they deserve it. But not this time,” said Traffic Officer Boyes. The Nelson police staff for the evening had been increased to 25.

Senior-Sergeant Graham said that one of the main concerns of the police was the possibility of damage to plate-glass windows in Trafalgar Street stores by flying bottles. This did not occur, and as far as he knew little damage was done to private property. Police sworn at Apart from the initial fighting the only other real trouble faced by the police occurred during the arrest of the second woman. Some in the crowd objected to the arrest and the police were abused and sworn at. Two more arrests resulted. Empty bottles were smashed on the street when the police were elsewhere. Not all were empty. About 12.45 a.m. a unit of the Nelson Fire Brigade raced down Trafalgar Street, through broken glass, to a call from the Hardy Street intersection which proved to be a malicious false alarm.