Man found guilty of manslaughter

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33540, 22 May 1974, Page 3

Man found guilty of manslaughter

After a retirement of an hour and 45 minutes, a jury in the Supreme Court last evening found James David Wilson, aged 21. a lubrication bay attendant, guilty on charges of the manslaughter of Way ne 1 lartMcEwen, aged 22. and of assaulting John Bernard I ball, a taxi-driver, while armed with a shotgun, with intent to rob.

Mr Justice Roper remanded Wilson in custody to May 29 for sentence. The jury found Wilson not guilty on a charge of murdering Wayne HarlMcEwen. Messrs N. W. Williamson and G. E. Langham appeared .for the Crown, and Messrs ■ B. McClelland and P. II B. Hall for Wilson, who pleaded not guilty to charges of murdering Wayne HartMcEwen and of aggravated robbery of Mr Hall. The defence called no evidence. Detective Senior-Sergeant P .1. O'Donovan, the officer tn charge of the ease, said that on February 17 Wilson said when interviewed that he and his friend had intended to hold up a taxi-driver. Wayne (Hart-McEwen) was to hit the taxi-driver over the head and knock him out but things had gone wrong and he had shot his friend. Wilson asked if he was dead, and when witness said that he was Wilson began to cfy. in a written statement Wilson said that he was employed by the Cashel Service Station and worked parttime at: night for Appollo Security as a doorman at hotels and similar places. He had known Mr HartMcEwen, who was a carpenter and came from Tokoroa, for about a year. Bobbery suggested On the night of February 16, Wilson said, he worked ■at the Black Horse ‘Hotel and then at Moby Dick's. He had discussed with HartMcEwen going shooting on the Sunday. After finishing work he went to HartMcEwen's place about 2.30 a.m. He was in bed but was awake and was fully dressed except for his shoes. They drank two cans, of beer.. Wilson said that he had drunk three small bottles of beer at the Black Horse Hotel about 10 p.m. but had nothing to drink after that. He told HartMcEwen that he had the guns—a .22, a .303 and the shotgun — in the car. He brought the guns and ammunition inside. Hart-McEwen grabbed the .22 and put ammunition in it, saying that he wanted more money and suggesting that he could rob a taxidriver and no-one would get hurt. He had a hammer, and knew where to hit the taxidriver where it would not harm him. They would put the driver in the boot and take him to the Waimakariri riverbed. “I just listened to him,” Wilson said in the statement. “The way he put it it sounded that bloody easy that anyone could do it. He said that we could take his car and I agreed to go along with him.” Taxi called They drove out to Marshland Road. The car was parked north of Prestons Road and they walked back to a telephone box. Wilson telephoned for a taxi and gave the name of Jones. They walked back down the road and stood behind a bush. “I had the shotgun,” Wilson said. “I didn't think that it was loaded. He had a bag with him and it had some black tape in it. It was to be; used to tie the driver’s hands together after he had i been knocked out. I think hej also had the rubber-handled'

hammer in it, too. I had some shotgun cartridges in ■my pocket, and I know that Wayne had some, too.” Hart-McEwen stood on the side of the road with two .suitcases. The taxi-driver walked around to the back of the cab. lowered the carrier. and put one suitcase on it. . "I stepped out from behind the tree and said something like ’freeze.’ The driver sort of froze and started to walk back towards the driver's side of the car. 1 told him something like' ‘A shotgun makes a bloody mess.' "There was a cat coming down the road so I told the driver to come around to the back of the boot. After the car had gone past Wayne hit the driver with the hammer. The driver screamed and ran Towards the driver’s door. Gun, went off "I think that Wayne hit him a couple ol' limes more. I’m not sure. I went to jump in the front passenger’s door. When 1 was getting in I heard the gun go off. 1 just ■don’t know if I pulled the trigger or whether it caught on something, or what happened. “Anyway, it went off and ; I heard Wayne scream. I I jumped out because Wayne i ran around the back of the [taxi and fell on the ground. I The taxi-driver ran to a [house on the other side of ■ the road. It all happened I that quick. i "I picked Wayne up and [pushed him into the back seat and slic. him along. He was not making any sound. I jumped in the driver’s seat and took off up Marshland Road,” the statement said. Wilson said that he drove to Spencer Park. Because Hart-McEwen might still be alive he thought that he iwould take him to hospit?', ■so he turned the car and drove back towards Marshland Road. Through gale About 200 yards short of Marshland Road, Wilson said, he stopped again and had another look at HartMcEwen. He was sure that he was dead. He then drove towards Kaiapoi. He saw a closed wooden gate and drove straight through it into the paddock. He turned the lights off but the taxi sign would not turn off so he smashed it with his hand. He checked that Hart-McEwen’s pulse had stopped and listened for heartbeats, the statement said. Senior - Sergeant O’Donovan said that Wilson had difficulty in reading the statement but he ensured that he understood it. Original charge To Mr McClelland, witness said that Wilson was originally charged with manslaughter and aggravated robbery. He knew that Wilson had money in the bank, that he had two jobs, and that his wife was working part-time. Wilson had no criminal convictions. In his final address to the jury, Mr McClelland said that all the facts were consistent with an accidental shooting. Even the Crown did not suggest that Wilson intended to murder his friend. “Unbelievable” He submitted that the driver's door was open and; that Wilson would have seen; both Mr Hall and Hart-1 McEwen and would not have fired in those circumstances.' It was unbelievable that rhe

shotgun was fired on the passenger's side of the taxi and the shot passed across the front seat, past Mr Hail who was standing with the door closed and with the upper half of his body inside the car. and struck HartMcEwen, If Wilson had intended to kill Mr Hall he could have put the barrel against his' head and pulled the trigger because Mr Hall was leaning through the. window. Wilson could nut possibly have aimed the shotgun at Mr Hail because he would not have missed him. No-one knew how the shotgun went off. The trigger could have caught on projections inside the car or it could have caught on the duffle coat Wilson was wearing, said counsel. Wilson could have had his finger on the trigger and could have stumbled as he was getting out of the car. Il was not a deliberate killing but a ghastly accident. Wilson had said in his statement that he did not know the gun was loaded. There was no evidence of Wilson's fingerprints on the cartridge. Hart-McEwen could have put the cartridge' into the shotgun unknown to Wilson, counsel said. Wilson could have cocked the shotgun to frighten Mr Hall, believing that the gun was unloaded. Judge’s view Summing up. his Honour said that there were somei unusual and bizarre features about, the case. There was the incredible escape of Mr Hall. Had Hart-McEwen been as adept with a hammer as' he thought he was he would [ be alive today. Wilson was' charged with murder, yet he' apparently had no intention ot causing the death of his friend. The death had occurred in the course of a planned robbery. His Honour said that he proposed to express a view on the facts but if the jury did not agree with it, it was entitled to reject it. If he had to decide on the first count of murder then he; thought he would be left in' reasonable doubt, but that, was a matter for the jury to decide.