Two Cromwell brawlers fined after sackings

Press, 10 October 1984, Page 22

Two Cromwell brawlers fined after sackings

PA Dunedin Two sacked carpenters at the centre of a Clyde dam dispute changed their pleas to guilty when they reappeared in the District Court at Alexandra this week.

Graeme David Kelly, aged 23, and Neville James Mercer, aged 31, both of Cromwell, had at earlier hearings pleaded not guilty to charges of disorderly behaviour arising out of a brawl in a Cromwell hotel on August 19. Judge Reid convicted and fined Kelly $l5O with costs of $2O, and he convicted and fined Mercer $l2O, with costs of $2O.

Kelly also pleaded guilty to a charge of disorderly behaviour arising out of an incident at the Cromwell Hospital, where he was being treated for an injury to his hand, on the same date and was convicted and fined $BO with costs. For the police, SeniorSergeant Seymour said Kelly was one of a group in the family bar of the Victoria Arms Motel about 10 p.m. when he became involved in the incident with two German supervisors. Defence counsel (Mr R. Blake) said Kelly and Mercer were a minor part of proceedings which involved a lot of other people.