CHARGE OF MURDER

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3109, 13 June 1917, Page 6

CHARGE OF MURDER

! KILLED BY BLOW OF LEMONADE BOTTLE VERDICT OP MANSLAUGHTER By Telegraph.—Presa Association. "*• Hamilton, June 12. The trial of David Morgan Leckie, a, one-armed man, on a charge of murder of Albert Eyan, at Hamilton, on April 16 last, was concluded at tho Hamilton Supreme Court this afternoon, before Air. Justice Cooper. Mr. H. T. Gillies, Crown Solicitor, appeared for the prosecution, and Mr. C. L. MacDiarmid represented the prisoner. The evidence was practically the same as that heard in the lower Court, showing that the deceased had kicked the prisoner when on the ground, inflicting eerious injuries, and that some time later the prisoner entered the bar parlour of tho Commercial Hotel and struck the deceased on the head with a full lemonade bottle. Deceased did not appear to be seriously injured, but subsequently he was found in an unconscious condition at the Trankton Junction Hotel, where he and the prisoner had engaged a room, tho prisoner leaving by an. early train. The deceased was removed to the Waikato Hospital, where lie died. Finger-print evidence was adduced showing that the deceased was an Australian, who had been discharged from the Auckland prison in April, and that he had also assumed the name of Bunce, and had been convicted of an offence at Waihi.

Mr. Gillies submitted that there was no doubt that deceased had died from the effects of a blow delivered at- the Commercial Hotel, and that prisoner had struck the Mow. Hβ said tho evidence showed the assault was not committed in the heat of passion, therefore the jury would not be warranted in reducing the charge to one of manslaughter. It was evident by the threats used by the prisoner that it was his intention to kill the deceased, and later on, when realising the nature of the deceased's injuries, ho left hurriedly to catch an early train. Counsel for the defence put it to the jury that a doubt existed whether the blow delrrered by the prisoner had actually caused the death of deceased, and there was u possibility that deceased had stumbled and fallen in the bedroom of the Frankton Hotel, when attempting to place the woshstand against the door, and sustained the injury to his head. Counsel submitted that the evidence did not support the allegations thatprisoner had entered the hotel with the intention of killing the deceased, and that the expressions vised by the prisoner were those of an injured man suffering much pain, and therefore provocation. His Honour snmmed_ up at consider' able length, nnd the jury, after a retirement of 35 minutes, returned a verdict of manslaughter. The passing of sentence was deferred until to-morrow morning.