SUPREME COURT.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 596, 26 August 1909, Page 5

SUPREME COURT.

1 THE CRIMINAL SESSIONS. ' A HITCH ,IN THE PROCEEDINGS* ■; ; The first: case callcd, before Mr.- Justice Chapman yesterday , morning, was that, .of , Harry; M'Gill and Herbert Pyko, charged with breaking . and entering - and theft of men's clothing. M'Gill,. who was on bail; foiled to put in an appearance, Mr. Myers, for .'the Crown;' then called Alfred Binder; who is charged with attempted grievous bodily, harm. In this case also there was no appearance. Mr.:Myera asked that Bench warrants should be issued for the arrest of both men, and thai an order should bo made for the forfeiture of . the . recognisances. The application was granted. . A jury was then .empanelled to hoar tho charge against Pyko separately, as Mr. Myers said that the witnesses were not available in any other ease., The case had not been commenced i when Mr. .Wilford announced that Binder had arrived. Accused had just heard, by letter, of the death of his brother, and had come along, to the Court as Boon as ho had dispatched some . telegrams. ' M'Gill;' too came into , Court, and Mr. Wilford (who. appeared t for him also) said that his non-appear-ance had been: duo tor a misunderstanding between counsel and accused. "Ho has been in the. Court every day," said Mr. Wilford, P°uce. officials can prove that. He says that I told him to be in Court on Thursday, morning; but he. is mistaken." ■

Hib Honour remarked that actual expense had been incurred by the Crown through the 'absence of tho two men, and he would have to pousider whether the order for ■ tho estreatment of .the .recognisances should not be enforced. . THE RECEIVING HOME CASE Mary Ann Callingham. of Lower Hutt, came up on a charge of manslaughter, in copnection with the death, on May 18 last, of Harold Leethaui, a five-months-old : infant. There were tiiree counts: (1) That, from April 27 to May 18, sho had charge of the ohild, and no. gleotea, without lawful excuse, her legal duty, to supply him with the necessariea of iite. : so that• hwi-life - was endangered ; (2) thai the oeatli of the child having, occurred , through her neglect, she was guilty of manslaughter; (3) that, on May 18,\shd committed mansTaugh* ter, having wiliully neglected the child in such a. way as to cjiusb injury to health, and death. • Accused (for whom Mr., Herdinan appeared) pleaded not guilty. . .' Mr. Myers, in. the oour&o of his opening, pointed out that, o£ late years, special attention had been given by the Legislature to the protection of infant life. ' , .

Dr. C. M. Hector stated that the accused was an obstetrio nurso, who. took lying-in patients at her house, and also looked after young children. On December 10 last witness attended at the birth of the child at accused's house. It was a small ohild, but there was nothing abnormal li, Witness next saw the body of the child at the inquest, five months later. It wm roduced almost to skin and bone. He conoluded thßt death had been caused througn inanition consequent on mal-nutrition. •' was given by Ethel Davis . and Elizabeth Loetham, the mother of ( the child. : George William Davis stated, when crossexamined by Mr. Herdman, that tho child Was kindly treated by accused. •; The.'v food wag changed threa or four times. Two of the other children suffered from a certain ailment, and when accused learned that the cows which supplied the house with milk were being fed on potatoes she reduced the supply. She took the ohild into her own room to care for it specially, and massaged it with a view to remedying a deformity of the spine. . \ . ■ Accused, giving evidence, stated that she had been a nurse for 29 years, and was a registered midwife.' She massaged tho child continually, and its weight increased to 101b. in April. When it.took sick she gave it special care. Wallace.P. James, ohemist, of Lower Butt; Thomas Parker, milkman, of Taita; Mrs. Raohol Turner and Mrs. Annie Callingham, sister-in-law of accused, also gave ovidence for'the'defencc. Counsel addressed the jnry, and his Honour,' in summing up; said that' tho case was not of tho same class as those of baby-farming, which sometimes disclosed wilful murder. In this oase, said his Honour, there oould not bo the sordid interest in neglecting the child, which might exist in casos where guardians weropaid lump stuns to look after infants. ■ The jury retired at 5.15 p.m., and after deliberating for un hour returned with a unanimous verdict of not guilty. Aocused was then discharged.