‘Light’ sentences for rioters

Press, 19 April 1980, Page 2

‘Light’ sentences for rioters

PA Auckland i 1 Seven people have been < sentenced for their part in a riot in which a Mangereu shop owner was injured, p They were told by the Judge f that they were being given i lenient penalties because of < their otherwise exceptional 1 character. I Judge Finnigan made the remarks when sentencing t the group after they had < been convicted of unlawful ; assembly and assault relat- < ing to the incident on February 6 in which 40 people i rioted in a Mangere super- < ette. ’ The shop owner, Mr John t Smith, suffered head injuries < and damage estimated at 1 $5OO was caused to the < shop. The incident began i after a fight involving the I

son of the shopkeeper and! the child of one of the ac-j cused. ! The Judge described the incident as “spontaneous, violent, and vicious. To some degree the complainant invited an incident but what occurred went beyond any form of reasonable reaction.” Counsel for the defendants, who had denied the charges, said that they were all regular church-goers of exemplary character. One of the defendants was jailed for six months for assault and four months for unlawful assembly, the terms to be concurrent. The other defendants were sentenced variously to concurrent six-month and fourmonth terms of periodic detention.