PRIZE-FIGHTING & THE LAW.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1535, 3 September 1912, Page 4

PRIZE-FIGHTING & THE LAW.

STATEMENT BY JUDGE COOPER.

(By Teloartiph.—Preas Association J Hamilton, September 2. In the course of his address to the Grim j Jury to-day Judge Cooper made an important reference to prize-fighting whenspeaking of the case against.the young man Moore, charged with the innnsiimghtor of a. Maori at, Taupsro as the result of a bnrc-knueklc fight for a wager, and who subsequently died. His Honour said pnao-fights were always unlawful in commoil low, and were rendered unlawful by statute m New Zealand. It was a definite criminal offence for anyone to (nl>e part in a prisw-fight. The law on the matter was definite. He considered it ol such importance that he decided to put his opinions on the matter in writln,R' Jutlgo Cooper then r«ad as follows:— When one person is'indicted for inmeting personal injury upon another the consent of the person who sustained the "fl'T }? "? . <lcf «nc« to the "person who inflicts the injury, if the injury is of such, a nature or ls.inflicted under such circumstances that its infliction is injurious to m P bl n\ B - V*) Rs to the person inmed. But injuries Riven and received in prize-fights are injurious to the public is against the pubfic interests that the hyes nnd health of the combatants should be endangered by blows, and because prize-fights are disorderly exhibitions and mischievous on many obvious grounds. Therefore, tho consent of the parties to blows, which tlw mutually receive, does not nravent thoso blows from being assaults, 'and in my opinion this principle of law is not confined to prize-fights, for'every fight in which the object and interest of each of the combatants is to subdue the other by violent blows, is or has a direct tendency to a breach of the peace, nnd it matters not whether such fight 'iw a. hostile light begun nnd continued in anEcr, or a prize-fight for money or other adraufci age.