S.M. dismisses case ot ‘knife assault’

Press, 26 May 1977, Page 11

S.M. dismisses case ot ‘knife assault’

Nelson reporter The “vague memory” of the complainant in an assault charge brought under the Crimes Act was referred to by Mr K. H. J. Headifen S.M., when he dismissed a charge in the Magistrate’s Court at Nelson. The complainant, Neville John Jones, was the brother of the defendant, Gary Jones, aged 22, a labourer. Sergeant J. S. Paterson appeared for the police and Mr H. W. Riddoch for the defence. Neville Jones said he could not remember much about what happened when he returned with his brother to the latter’s house after drinking at a Nelson hotel. He recalled that there was some sort of an argument, that he lunged forward on to a knife, apd that his brother did not slash at him. Under crossexamination, witness said he went after his brother, pushed him and kicked him, and chased him into the kitchen. His brother

had a knife and witness had “leaped in on it.” In re-examination by Sergeant Paterson, witness said that his story now was different from what he had given in a police statement because he was wild with his brother and he had a terrible temper. Constables F. K. Parfitt and B. E. Gause! gave evidence of going to the disturbance at the defendant’s home and finding the complainant with a deep knife gash in the right upper arm. At the time, the defendant had said that his brother had attacked him and when asked about the gash in Neville Jones’s arm had said, “I did it, I did it.” In a statement made at 8.32 p.m. that day and produced by Constable Gausel, the defendant said that when the brothers went home the defendant’s eldest child misbehaved and he had smacked her. His brother had then grabbed him by the hair and dropped him to the floor. “Fie put his knee on my stomach and both hands

around my throat and was shaking me. He said ‘I am going to kill you.’ I thought he would try and kill me as he was really angry,” said the statement. Defendant flung his brother off and as defendant was rising from the floor, his brother kicked him three or four times. His brother kept punching and kicking him and to avoid him defendant backed into the kitchen. A knife was on the kitchen table, and defendant picked it up to scare his brother. “I waved it around at him and told him to back off,” defendant said. “He was acting crazy and kept'eojing. I waved the knife to frighten him but he let out a scream and ran back,” said the statement. Mr Riddoch submitted that there was a reasonable doubt and that there was no case to answer. The Magistrate referred to section 48 of the Crimes Act regarding justification for repelling force with force, and dismissed the charge.