DOCTOR IN TROUBLE

Dominion, Volume 19, Issue 296, 10 September 1926, Page 10

DOCTOR IN TROUBLE

SOME SERIOUS ALLEGATIONS MAGISTRATE RESERVES DECISION Owing to the unsavoury nature of the case, the Magistrate’s Court was again closed to the pulflic yesterday, when Oscar Jacobsen (aged 61). a well-known Wellington medical practitioner, appeared before Mr. E. Page, S.M., on a serious charge. Accused, who yas represented by Messrs. H. H. Cornish and C. A. L. Treadwell, is alleged to have incited, on June 26, 1926, Rena Brown, an 18-year-old girl, to commit an offence punishable by hard labour for three years and upwards, namely, to permit the unlawful use of an instrument or other means to procure a miscarriage. Mr. P. S. Maeassey, who appeared for the Crown with Chief-Detective Ward, stated that he did not propose to make any comment, but would simply call the witnesses who were to give evidence on behalf of the prosecution. Accused pleaded not guilty to the charge. Frank Alfred Maher, a labourer (aged 23). of Main Road, Ngaio, was the first witness. He stated that he had for some time been keeping company with Rena Brown, and was responsible for her condition. In consequence of what she told him, he went to the house of accused in Sussex Street on .Tune 1, and had a consultation regarding the matter. "I told the doctor,” said witness, "that I had got a girl in a bit of a bother, and asked what he could do to fix the matter up. 'Well,’ he replied; 'it all depends. How far is she gone?’ I told him that she was about four months pregnant. ‘Tt’s rather far then.’ said the doctor, 'to do anything for her/ Accused then sat down at his desk and wrote out a prescription. 'lf that does not do her any. good, come back and bring the lady with you,’ as he handed over the prescription. I told him that I did not have the money, but I gave him my nnme and address, and said T worked at Kaiwarra. ‘Thai stops there, then, until you bring the money/ said the doctor, holding on to the prescription.' As he would not give it to me unless I had the money, T went away, telling him T would return again.” Mr. Maeassey: Did he tell you what the required fee was?

Witness: Yes; one guinea. Witness went on to state that he called again to see .Tncohsen on Saturday night. •Tune 5. "This time I told him I had the money for the prescription, and handed it over to him,” said witness. "He then gave me the recipe. I asked the doctor would the prescription do her any good, and he said. 'lf anything will do her any good, that should/” Witness stated that he tool; the prescription to Farouharson. a chemist in Tinakori Rond, and had it made up. "It was no good, however I went back to Jacobsen on Juno 29. 'That medicine did my girl no good, doctor,’ I said when wo got talking. ‘Well/ replied Jacobsen, ‘Yon had better bring her along, and I will examine her/ ” Mr. Maeassey: Did Dr. Jacobsen nsx you what Miss Brown had been doing for herself? Witness: Yes. nnd T told him she haa been taking medicine from a chemist, but that also had failed in its purpost,. He also said when he gave me the nr<~. scrintion. "If that does not do her any good. come, back, becaause T know the address of a lady who might do her some good.” Mr. Cornish: When was it you tom the doctor that Miss Brown hnd taken medicine that also failed —the first t.inm yon saw Dr. Jacobsen, was it? Witness: Yes.

How do vou account for the prescription being made'up in the name of Miss Maher instead of Miss Brown?—"Dr. Jacobsen must have made a mistake in my name and copied it down.” Were you engaged to the girl ?—' Na ’ Had you promised to marry her?"Yes." When was it—before or after seeing Dr. Jacobsen? —"Before.” Yon were told by the detectives before vou made your statement to them about this affair' that Miss Brown had told them nil about it. Was that so?—"Yes. Did the detectives ask you if you went to Dr. Jacobsen ?—“Yes.” And I suppose they also asked about that part, "If the medicine did no good he knew the address of a lady ?- "Yes.” You have told ns everything regarding the conversation of Dr. Jacobsen and yourself?—"Yes-so far as I remember.” Are you sure? —“Yes. That being so, the doctor did not advise vou at any stage to go to any lady or Lady doctor at anv time if the medicine did not work., did he?—“No.” . And he never advised you to fake Miss Brown to any lady, did he? —"No.” Girl Weeps in Box. Rena Brown, a domestic (aged 18), was the next witness. "On April 9 I noticed I was in a certain condition,” she said. "I told Maher about it. He gave me some tablets and something else. This, however, did no good. In June he gave me some pills, but these were no good either.” Witness said that on June 30 she visited Jacobsen in consequence of something Maher had told her. At this stage witness broke down and began to sob bitterly. A moment or two later, however, she recovered her composure. “He asked me.” she continued, “whether I had a guinea to pay him, after which an examination took place at the end of which he informed me I was four months pregnant. I told him I had been taking the medicine prescribed by him for me. ‘You are too far gone now for the medicine to do .vou any good, he said, Tut if you had come earlier I may have been able to do something for you.'” Witness then asked the doctor if he could not do anything now. "I know of a woman,” he answered, “who might be able to help you.’ He went Io his desk and wrote down on a piece of paper the name of Mrs. Nevill. 150 Queen’s Drive, T.yall. Bav. ‘I naid him a guinea.” said witness, “and as I was going out with the piece of paper 1 asked him how much it would cost. He ’aid about £l5 to £2O/’ On witnesses’s arrival at Airs. Nevill s. the latter took the paper with the address on and told witness that the operation would cost £25. Mr. Treadwell objected to questions relating to Mrs. Nevill being asked, they have nothing to do with this case at all.” he said, “the doctor is charged with inciting because the offence was never committed as. no instrument was ever used on the girl.” . . . The Magistrate; I think the view is admirable and I will adnilt.it. defendant is charged with inciting Henn. Brown, the present witness, to commit a crime. For that reason I think that the subsequent actions of this girl in connection with the inciting should be put into evidence. I will, however, note vour objection. Mr. Treadwell. " Rena Brown went on to state that Mrs Nevill said she would do the operation for £25 as soon as Die money could be found. Mr. Cornish then commenced to crossoxnmine the witness. Before you went out to see Dr. Jacobsen. Miss Brown, you knew that there was some woman who might lie able to do something for you?—‘Yes.’’ You also knew that you were pregnant before you went out to see Dr. Jacobsen 9 —“Yes/* You did not go to the doctor with the object of arrangingfor your confinement later did J’ou ?—"No. Did vou not go to the doctor to see if you could get the address of this lady to do something for you?—“No. 1 went out to sec if he could do anything for me himself. Then, if he could not, I wanted to find out where this woman was.” Did not the doctor say he could not do anything for you himself ?—‘Yes. And you were disappointed at his saying that ?-"Yes. T was.” When you went to Mrs. Nenll s, what did vou go therefor?—"l went with the object of naving something done to me. ’ Witness declared that she had no i«»

what was really going to happen to her. As far as she knew there was nothing nto occur that she could not open.l the whole world about. "I was not told by anybody not to say anything about it,” she said. Counsel: Did you know’ that what vou wore going to do was criminally wrong? —‘‘No, 1 did not.” Do you know that no proceedings are going to be brought against you now?— "No.” Have the detectives told you that if you just tell the truth nothing will happen, and you will be alright?—“No." Here Mr. Cornish asked that if any promise to that effect had been made by tho Crown to its witness, it should be stated now. Mr. Maeassey said that unknown to the witnesses an application had been made to the Justice Department so that no action would be taken against them. So far, however, no reply had been received. Mr. Cornish: Did the doctor tell you to go to Mrs. Nevill? Witness: No, he did not tell me to go at all, but lie gave me the paper and he thought naturally I would go. Mr. Cornish: Now-, tell me, did he tell you to go or not? Bo fair to the doctor. Tiemember that. Mr. Maeassey jumped to his feet with objections. “Sir” he said "I am against this sort of thing. My friend is clearly trying to intimidate our witness, and I will not have it done.” Mr. Cornish: Nothing of the kind, Your Worship. Mr. Page: Yes, Mr. Cornish, I must agree with Mr. Maeassey, I think that both your manner and vour tone of voice in asking the witness that question are unmistakably objectionable. Mr. Cornish: Very well, Sir, I am sorry.“ Witness said that although the doctor did not actually tell hey to go and see Mrs. Nevill all his actions, in her opinion, clearly demonstrated the one and only course to follow. Counsel Seeks Suppression of Evidence. Detective F. Sinclair said on July 20 in company with Detective Murray he interviewed accused and told him that a Mrs. Davis, who was at that moment dying in the Public Hospital as a result of an alleged miscarriage procured upon her by Mrs. Nevill, of 156 Queen’s Drive, Lyall Bay., had Mr. Cornish raised objection to the statement going into evidence. "If it is allowed to go in,” he said, “it will probably damn the doctor in the eyes of the jury, and for that reason I ask that it not be allowed. Mr. Page stated that he would admit it. Mr. Cornish: That being so, sir, I wish to make a very novel application, and that is that the news about the doctor in connection with this evidence be not broadcasted. If it is, sir, it will affect my client very materially. We want this case to go before the Judge and jurors with .no prejudice in their minds at all —that is, if the case goes that far. If, however, this is published connecting the doctor as it does with the deceased woman and Mrs. Nevill. it will be damning him, for everyone who reads the papers will know All about it before it reaches the Upper Court. For that reason I ask that the publication be suppressed. It is far more important for accused to be fairly treated than for the public to know all about the allegations made. I must object strongly to any part of that statement regarding the deceased and the doctor being published. Mr. Page: I shall have to refuse the application. ... I cannot make any exception to the rule in this case. Mr. Treadwell then rose to his feet. "Sir,” he said, "this is most deplorable —men who will be on the jury will read this in the papers and therefore they will be prejudiced against our client from the start. It will be most damning for him, and for that reason I ask that all reference to the matter of the deceased be suppressed.” This objection was also overruled. Detective Sinclair went on to say that he told Jacobsen that in a sworn statement made in the presence of a Magistrate, Mrs. Davis said that she had been attended by accused, and on his recommendation she had gone out to see Mrs. Nevill at 150 Queen’s Drive. Lyall Bay. Again. Mr. Treadwell objected to the evidence being published, but one© more his application for suppression was refused. . Witness detailed a conversation with accused. The doctor told me,” he said, “that he had known Mrs. Nevill for about two years, but said that he did rot know Mrs.'Davis. "I told accused that a piece of paper had beep found in his handwriting in the handbag of Mrs. Davis, with the address 150 Queen s Drive marked upon it. He denied that he had written it or handed it ever to anybody. I then asked him to write down " the address for me to see. At first he refused, but eventually he dad so, writing on one of his own prescription forms. In my opinion the handwriting is the sanie.” Witness said that Detective Murray had asked accused if. Mrs Nevill did operations. He replied that he had heard she did, but he had heard the same about a lot of othfl’S. “On August 4, Murray and I, he continued, “again interviewed accused and told him we had been informed that he had given a prescription to a man named Maher to procure the miscarriage ot a girl named Brown; also that he had later examined Brown and advised her to go to Mrs. Nevill to have an abortion performed upon her. I do not know either of them,’ accused replied. Witness then produced the prescription Jacobsen had given to Maher for Brown, and asked the doctor if lie had written it “Yes. that is mine,” the latter replied. Ho then looked up his book and said a Miss Maher had been to see him on July 5. He explained to witness that the prescription was quite harm ess and quite useless for abortion. ine detectives asked to see lus books, but this be would not allow. Accused then said that he had not sent Miss Brown to Mrs. Nevill whom he knew to be an abortionist. - , . Questioning witness about the prescription Mr. Cornish said: “It was simplv a tonic and really harmless, was it not?” Witness: Yes, that is so. Corroborative evidence was given by Detective W. R. Murray. Dismissal of Charge Sought. At the conclusion of the evidence, Mr. Cornish asked that the charge against his client be dismissed. There is no case at nil to go forward, he said, "and on the law it is quite clear that this matter should not be put before the Upper Court." . Accused had even suggested that the girl should get married. He had given a. prescription which was harmless and did not affect her at all. At no time did he say, “Yon go to see Mrs. Nevill.” He was simply alleged to have passed over a paper with a name on it.. As far as inciting was concerned, it was out of the question. Mr. Trendwell also asked that the case be dismissed. Mr. Maeassey claimed that there was a suffioUnt case to answer. Accused had incited the girl as the charge alleged him to have done. Under the circumstances he should go for trial. Mr. Page stated that he would take time to consider whether accused should be sent for trial or not. He w"uld look up several authorities as to the moaning of the word "inciting” nt law. The case was adjourned until Thursday morning next, accused being again granted bail in the sum of £250, with one surety of a similar amount.