MAGISTRATE’S COURT Men sentenced for thefts from cars

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33539, 21 May 1974, Page 15

MAGISTRATE’S COURT Men sentenced for thefts from cars

Two men who had earlier pleaded guilty to two charges of unlawfully getting into a car and 11 _f. ha of stealing articles worth $829.41 from cars on April 13 were sentenced by Mr F G Paterson, S.M., in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday. Richard John White", aged 25, a building contractor (Mr P. F. Whiteside), was placed on probation for one year, disqualified from driving for six months and ordered to pay restitution of $45. As a special condition of probaHon ne was ordered to undertake luO hours of community work. Maurice Albert Johns, aged 24, a horse trainer (Mr M. J. Glue), was ,J. in ? d a total of $325, disqualified for six months and ordered to pay restitution of $45. Mr Glue submitted that the offences could be dealt with as an isolated incident in the life of each defendant. “They are tw'o normally wellbehaved young men who had too much to drink and made idiots of themselves.” He said Johns intended to leave for Australia in about two weeks. Mr Whiteside said the defendants set out on a shooting expedition. They committed the offences on the spur of the moment after consuming too much liquor. The offences were committed at Arthur’s Pass, the Temple Basin car park, and at the Rahu Saddle near Springs Junction during Easter week-end. Radios, tools, spotlights, rugs, clothing cameras and tape recorders worth $738.55 were later recovered by the police. ATTEMPTED ARSON A man, whose name was suppressed in the interim, appeared on a charge of attempting to set fire to the Christchurch Town Hall on May 17. No plea was entered. On the application of the duty’ solicitor (Mr R. S. D. Twyneham), , the defendant was remanded to: Sunnyside Hospital for a prelimi-i nary psychiatric examination. DRUG OFFENCES Barry John Latham, aged 19, unemployed (Mr G. R. Lascelles),! was placed on probation for two years with the special conditions' that he undertake 120 hours com-i munity work, and not associate j with any person of whom the; probation officer does not ap- I prove. He had previously pleaded: guilty to charges of theft as a' servant of a quantity of pre-i scription poison tablets, posses-1

r’sion of those tablets, and selling; if a prescription poison. d The Court had s heard that Latham stole 2300 il tablets of prescription poison? I. worth $12.14, the propertv of i- Kempthorne Prosser and Com-: pany Ltd, Invercargill, between; a February and May. He had been; ’. urged by others to obtain the i i- tablets, and had been influenced; d by promises of large sums of/ d money. i. Mr Lascelles said it was a< i-1 classic case of a young boy. lack- i e ing maturity, faced with financial pressure, through his marital I, responsibilities, and tempted bv| , someone abundantly more ex-: i- perienced. He had learnt a les-1 d son. and would not appear again. ’ Tile Magistrate said that the' e defendant was tempted by pro-, s ] fits which did not materialise. As I f a first offender he was entitled I to some leniency despite the . seriousness of the offence. 5' CAR OFFENCES s : Two young men who accepted ■a lift in a Jaguar car and made' , no attempt to leave when they J :were told It was stolen, were(convicted and remanded on bail - to May 27 for sentence when j •(they pleaded guilty to charges of- : i unlawfully getting into a car. t Sergeant K. T. Boyle said that: > i the defendants, Mark Eramiha I and Hugh Allan Bennie, both fac-' 11 tory-hands, aged 17, accepted a i :.lift in the car at Kalkoura while. ! hitchhiking from Nelson to Ti- ! maru. They were told the car ; was stolen but, in spite of ; frequent stops for petrol, did not 5 leave. The defendants told the police they stayed in the car because 1 they wanted to get to Christchurch, and did not want to have ' • to sleep on the side of the road. 1 Another young man has been I j remanded in custody until May 1 i 27 on a charge of unlawfully tak- ■ ing the car, a 1956 Jaguar, valued , :at $ll9O. the property of Sun 1 City Motors. Nelson, Ltd. ; ; I $5O FINES < J Two young men who ran 1 around naked outside the sleep- ' ing quarters of a girls’ school at’* night were convicted; ,jand each fined $5O when they ’ ./pleaded guilty to charges of 1 being found without lawful ex- 1 >icuse in an enclosed area. 1 Sergeant Walsh said that the • police were called to the school ; after the defendants were seen ! i iby the matron running around’l an enclosed area of the grounds. ( II The defendants told the police i they had been waiting for a i friend and had done it to fill tn t (time. Both had been drinking. I

Ji Mr C. A. McVeigh said his clients were not normally in the ■’ habit of taking off their clothes ) and running about to fill in time. J They had been in Christchurch t j for the day, from the farm, and ■ had been drinking. It was done i|as a harmless prank, and both i; defendants realised now, the stuiipidity of it. ! THEFTS FROM SHOPS ; Leslie Tite. aged 63, was conevicted and released on probation |for 12 months when he pleaded . guilty to three charges of theft ■ of goods totalling $11.87 in value ..from three New Brighton shops. . Sergeant Boyle said that the defendant was apprehended out- ’ side one of the shops by the ,(store detective after not paving ( for an item. Other goods were found on the defendant which he 11 eventually admitted taking, without paying, from other shops. For the defendant, Mr M. T. (Boyce said he had recently undergone a complete change in :his life style, and the offences , i were out of character. WILFUL DAMAGE John Smithe, aged 40. a facitoryhand was convicted and .’released on probation for 12 /months with the special condition that he undertake 54 hours community work, and ordered to i pay $75 resitution when he ■ pleaded guilty to a charge of wilfully damaging a television set, the property of Bateman TV Hire. Ltd. Sergeant Boyle said that on April 15 the defendant, was drinking sherry at a friend’s place. He went to the kitchen and got a frying pan and hit the screen of the television set four or five times, causing the set to explode. His explanation to the police was that he had been drinking. THEFT AS SERVANT Terry Hayes-Jones, aged 37, an assistant chef, pleaded guilty to a charge of stealing meat and vegetables worth $45 from his employer, P. Burke and Company, Ltd, on May 18. He was convicted and remanded on bail to May 27 for sentence. | Sergeant Boyle said that the defendant was seen leaving the Riccarton Road premises of the company at 10 a.m. with two crates of foodstuffs. ARSON A man. whose name was suppressed, was placed on probation I for two years when he was sentenced on two charges of arson involving a garden shed, and a rubbish tin set on fire against the door of Sedley Wells, Ltd, New Brighton.

s. As a special condition of proei bation he was ordered to unders go medical or psychiatric treati.iment as directed. h: The defendant had previously I pleaded guilty. e He was represented by Mr G. a |R. Lascelles. •’ | THEFT ( Thomas Robert Allingham, aged 44, a scrap metal dealer. • was convicted and sentenced to three months imprisonment, to J : be served concurrently witli his II existing term, when he pleaded 5 1 guilty to a charge of theft of three children’s coats, to a total 5 value of $31.40, the property of ■ Mrs Popes Ltd. 5 Sergeant Boyle said that the ’ defendant was seen looking in 3 the window of Mrs Popes, Ltd at 3 7.15 p.m. on April 26. by a shop ■ assistant. Later he was observed holding three childrens coats, ; which were unwrapped. He took ’ these to a nearby tearooms. Lwhere he asked a waitress to ’,wrap them. Then he offered them free to the tearooms staff. Inquiries were made, and it was found I that the coats had not been sold , to the defendant. ( Mr M. J. Glue said the defendant was very drunk indeed at the . time of the offence and that it , had been more of a nuisance ( value than anything else. , ASSISTED ESCAPER ' David Lester Humphreys, aged 34, a cleaner (Mr A. W. Robini son), was fined $2O on a charge i of assisting a girl to escape from i Kingslea Training Centre on i March 26. He pleaded guilty. i Sergeant Boyle said that the ■ girl was picked up by the defendi ant from Aulsebrooks where she i had been working. Siie was i apprehended the next day at a house in Lincoln Road. The defendant told the police he had tried to persuade her to i return but she would not go. He i said he liked her and was trying to help her out. Mr Robinson said Humphreys had known the girl earlier. He had visited her at the centre. He had given her a lift to work, and picked her up afterwards, but was not strong enough to inform the authorities. She used him as a chauffeur, and the offence was one of omission rather than criminality. PERIODIC DETENTION Kevin Francis Cunnard. aged 18. a workman (Mr O. T. Alpers), was sentenced to periodic detention for six months, ordered to pay compensation of $2O, and disqualified from driving for six months when he was sentenced

on charges of burgling a shed and a garage on April 7. receiving a stolen tool kit worth $lO. and wilfully damaging a car dooi on May 7. He had earlier pleaded guilty to the charges. THEFT FROM CARS An 18-year-old trade trainee whose name was suppressed was convicted and remanded on bail until May 27 for a probation report and sentence when he pleaded guilty to two charges of theft of a car coat, valued at $15.00, a sheepskin rug valued at i $7.00 and three jackets to a total .value of $2O, all the property of i person or persons unknown. i Sergeant Boyle said that the defendant and a friend were stopped in Ferry Road at 1.30 ia.m. on. May 12 carrying the rug ; and items of clothing. When (questioned the defendant admitted stealing the articles from .unlocked cars in the area. He :had no explanation for his (actions. RECEIVING Robert Lachlan Grant, aged 18; an apprentice mechanic (Mr G. IM. Brodie), was placed on probai tion for one year, fined $5O, and 'disqualified from driving tor six months from June 4 when he was sentenced on a charge of receiving goods worth $ll5 stolen from a transport firm. He had previously pleaded guilty and been convicted. PROBATION

Anthony Haden Haynes, aged 18, a student (Mr D. J. R. Holderness), was placed on probation for one year when he was sentenced on a charge of having possession of three capsules of a prescription poison on April 23. He had previously pleaded guilty and been convicted. ASSAULT ON WIFE

John Raymond Stocker, aged 24, a plasterer, pleaded guilty to a charge of assaulting his wife, Rosemary Alice Stocker, on May 18. He was convicted and released on probation for one year with the special condition that he undertake 27 hours of community’ work.

Sergeant Boyle said that the defendant kicked the complainant in the shins during an argument.

1 THEFT CHARGE •' A woman, whose name was . suppressed, was released on pro- / bation for one year when she appeared on a charge of theft of '(goods valued at $36.76 from a (city department store where she was working on April 26. She pleaded guilty. 1 Sergeant Boyle said that the ’ defendant was employed as a dis- ■ patch clerk and removed the articles from warehouse shelves. Mr N. Weatherhead, who appeared for the defendant, said' ;.(that, she had thought of return(ing the articles when she had the J opportunity, but was appreiltended before the opportunity; occurred. EXCESSIVE ALCOHOL Graeme David Wood, a dicker, pleaded guilty to a charge of driving with an excessive blood- ; alcohol concentration 1188 mgi on ■ March 9. He was convicted and 'fined $lOO and disqualified from .driving for one year. . (Before Mr W. F. Brown, S.M.) i i BURGLARY CHARGES I Euan Elvy Dennis, aged 18. adriver (Mr K. X. Hampton', was; 'remanded on bail to May 28 for [sentence when he pleaded guilty! (to two charges of burglary, and' ; one of unlawfully taking a ear on: (December 21. ! He was remanded on bail to- ; July 3 for the taking of depos- • itions on two charges of assault! after he had elected trial by jury. 'Two further charges ofi burglary to which he pleaded not! guilty were dismissed. Sergeant R. H. Prouting said a car worth $l5OO was taken from! Christchurch. It was later recovered in a damaged condition after it had struck a lamp post. McAlpine, Rangiora, Ltd, was burgled and liquor and calcu- < lators valued at $940 were taken. Later property valued at $290 j was recovered. The same night the shop of >1 (Greigs Jewellers at Rangiora was!] burgled and rings valued at' $141.17 were taken. Some were! 1 later recovered, valued at i $108.59. i. The defendant told the police-' he had been attending a party ‘ and he and two others decided toll take a car and go for a ride. I. Compensation of $264.99 was: sought. |i