Court excludes public

Press, 28 August 1979, Page 6

Court excludes public

PA Whangarei All spectators will be barred from the Magistrate’s Court at Whangarei during hearings against 28 defendants arrested at a gang riot at the Northland- town of Moerewa on August 4. Mr J. C. K. Fabian, S.M., a retired magistrate from Auckland, yesterday made an order under section 156 of the Summary Proceedings Act, excluding ail except the police, witnesses, and reporters from the court. The defendants have been held in custody in Auckland since their arrest.

The preliminary hearing was adjourned until today at the request of the Crown solicitor, Mr P. J. Smith, who

said that all the defendants had been assigned counsel but because they were held in Auckland, some had not been able to see their lawyers. The Magistrate remanded all the defendants, with the exception of one aged 16, in custody to appear today. The hearings are expected to take several days; about 70 witnesses will be called and more than 100 exhibits presented. About 25 gang members gathered quietly on the front steps of the courthouse yesterday. The police said they “had heard” that about 80 were expected. Before the hearing started the police were briefed on

security arrangements. Additional policemen arrived at Whangarei on Sunday from Auckland. At Auckland yesterday 10 gang members denied charges of being part of an unlawful assembly and other charges, when their trial began in the Supreme Court before Mr Justice Mills. They comprised the second group to be tried on charges arising from an incident at Panmure last March. A total of 59 gang members were committed for trials as a result of the gang confrontation. The first group from the 59 were tried two weeks ago.