MURDER CHARGE. SHOOTING IN PIPITEA-STREET.

Evening Post, Volume LXXIX, Issue 119, 23 May 1910, Page 8

MURDER CHARGE. SHOOTING IN PIPITEA-STREET.

TRIAL OF ROBERT CORKILL. ACCUSED IN THE WITNESS-BOX. Before his Honour the Chief Justice to-day, Robert Coi-kill, an elderly man, and a bailiff, was charged with killing one Christopher Denis Smith, on 4th March last, at Wellington. Air. M. Myers, Crown Prosecutor, conducted the prosecution, and Mr. T. M. Wntord defended accused, M-ho pleaded not guilty. The personnel of the jury is as follows: — .Messrs. B. T. Gardiner (foreman), Arthur Etchells, Henry Jupp, Hugh Allan, Geo. James Thomson, John Evans, Albert Henry Rushton, Henry Tiffer, Samuel Murray, Joseph Wm. Backhou&e, Walter Scott Bedford, John Percy Coyne. In his address the Crown Prosecutor outlined the case very briefly. It involved (he said) a serious charge. It had a pathetic side, too : that such an elderly, and, previously, well-behaved man should be in the dock on such a charge. It could not be disputed that Smith was shot by accused, but they (the jury) would have to consider whether or not there was provocation, and how much. Counsel quoted the circumstances under which a charge of murder might be reduced to one of manslaughter. The prisoner (he added) was a bailiff. On 4th March he was sent to distrain on certain premises in Pipitea-street, where deceased Smith then Smith, was not in too tractable a mood, and he seemed to have U3ed some violence in removing accused off the premises. They made their way to about the gate, when Smith knocked "accused down. The jury had to consider the position of prisoner at that time. They must consider as to whether accused could have got away then, or could have obtained help. What accused did was this : He drew a revolver, and -while rising upright, he discharged it at Smith, killing nim. They would Jhave to consider inter alia whether the 'facts, if proved, -were sufficient to convict accused of murder. Counsel commented on the carrying of a loaded revolver. The jury would' have to decide whether or not accused was justified under the circumstances in using the revolver with such a result. THE EVIDENCE. Dr. Izard tendered medical evidence as to the finding of Smith's body inside tho gate at No. 60, Pipitea-street. There was a wound in the region of the heart. Aledical evidence was also tendered by Dr. W. Kington Fyffe. He made a post mortem examination of deceased's | body. Two and a-half inches below the j left breast was a round hole |in in circumference. There was some hemorrhage where the bullet had penetrated the lung. The cause of death was hem- I morrhage of the pericardium from a bullet wound in the left ventricle. The height of the bullet wound was four feet from the ground. To Air. Wilford : Death was almost instantaneous. Tho declension might have been caused by deflection from a rib. The entrance of the bullet was a trifle higher than its exit would nave be&n. A hole in the vest corresponded with that in the chest. The track of I the wound was between the fifth and sixth ribs into the left ventricle of the heart, and a wound of exit behind the left ventricle. Hence the wound penetrated the lower lobe of the left lung. The bullet was found 'embedded in 'the muscles of the sixth and seventh ribs behind. The direction was almost horizontal, with perhaps a slight downward declension. Air. Wilford : Can a man with eight toes off run? Witness, no, very likely he would fall if he attempted to do so. (This was in reply to Air. Myers re accused's'getting away when assaulted.) Counsel received permission to bring Corkill out and exhibit his bare feet to the jury. The accused apparently had considerabl* difficulty in walking .at all. Continuing, Dr. Fyffe said ttiat accused would certainly have great difficulty in getting away. It was possible, taking into account accused's age and other circumstances, that he would become dazed from blows on the back and front of the head. Accused was possessed of a strong physique. Thomas Warnock, a former employer of Smith, gave formal evidence. Reginald Walter Clifford, grocer's assistant, 'also deposed to certain details as to the scuffle a"t No. 60. Corkill fell, apparently from Smith's blows. He lay a minute or so, and as he got up, drew a revolver from his right-hand-side trouser pocket, and fired it at Smith. Counsel asked witness to more accurately define accused's attitude. Witness said Corkill was actually rising (not quite erect) and Smith was standing over him j when ht fired. Smith, so far as witness | could see, was not hitting accused while the latter was on the ground. The men were then talking at each other, but the words were not audible to witness. I To his Honour : He was ten or twelve yards asvay at the time, and he did not hear accused call out for assistance. He did not notice anyone eke about at this time. To Mr. Myers : The muzzle of the- rej' volver appeared to bfc directly against Smith. More words passed, and Smith turned and walked up the pas&nge-Way. Later witness, saw him apparently dead. Accused stood at the gate and refused at first to allow witness in, but subsequently left the gate and walked up and down Liie street. Then witness entered. To his Honour : Accused was on the ground a very short time. To Mr. Wilford : He did not notice a i large lump or abrasions on accused's face. i He did not notice Smith kick accused while the latter \\as> on the ground. CorI kill came out of die gate fiist with Smith assaulting him. After tho shotwas fired deceased walked back into the premises a distance of about four yards. Accused, after the shooting, barred an entvancb to the- passageway, on the ground that he was in charge. Walter Reginald Styles, bootmakeiv after various details, deposed to accused saying to himself : "He's lying there. If he gets up I'll give him another ; I've got it here." To Mr. Wilford : Corkill looked as though he had been badly handled. He had a large lump on the left side of the face, and several abrasions, and his clothes "were smothered in dust." He was mumbling to himself, and appeared very excited. Leo Cleary, a small boy, also gave corroborative evidence as to the scuffle at the gate. When the old man (accused) was on the ground the younger man (Smith)' stood over him. Then the old man fired. Smith called out : "Oh. you brute," and ran inside and dropped at the front door. To Mr. Wilford : He heard Smith, say that he would Kill the old man. To Mr. Myers : This was said when the old man was on the ground. Th"? kicking and punching (by Smith) took plnce before accused fell. William Edward Alexander, commercial traveller, and Constable M'Kelvie gave evidence. Constable Callery stated that accused's l-evolver. immediately after his arrest, contained five chambers — four loaded and one recently discharged. Oliver Mewhinney, Civil servant, said that when asked what had happened, accused said : "The deceased put me out wiion I tried to get in. Then Smith hit me on the jaw." When witness ask cd what happened next, accused said nothing more than : "I don't intend to £0 away."

The lunch adjournment was taken afc this stage. On resuming, Inspector Ellison also gave evidence. THE ACCUSED'S STATEMENT. Robert Corkill said he was 68 on the 18th Juue. Priof to acting as bailiff he was chef at various hotels. About3s years ago he was chef to Sir Julius Vogel. In 1869 he joined the New Zealand forces, and saw active service bewas chef at various hotels. About 35 1867 he had been in New Zealand. In his duties as bailiff — they were only casual duties — at different times he had had his life threatened. One-man was brought up at the court for assaulting witness, and there was another case in Ellice-street, when a man took a poker and threatened to knock his brains out. Witness told him ihat he (witness) -was not unprotected. He showed the revolver to the belligerent one. Turning to the Pipitea-street case, accused .said he went to the premises at 1.30 on 4th March. He was to distrain for rent. When witness went up Lo Smith's room (he was a lodger, and the tenants had left the premises), Smith waj in bed with his boots on, asleep. He spoke to him, but, got no answer. Later on he went up again to the room, and said : "Will you kindly wake up, Mr. Smith, and get your things together, for the things are going out to-morrow morning." He made no answer. _On the night of the event witness ' said he first saw Smith downstairs, just before the tragedy, and in reply to witness's request that he should leave the premises, deceased used bad language, and struck witness. More assaults followed in the passage and at the gate, Smith usiDg both hands and feet on witness. When he was on the ground, Smith said, kicking him : "You , I'll kill you." Unable to get away, and fearing for his life, witness said that he fired, not intending to hit Smith. He had absolutely no intention of hitting Smith, nor of firing ay him. He had had no experience whatever in the use of a revolver. He would swear that he meant no harm (with the revolver) to Smith. To Mr. Myers : He was not sura whether he halloed! out for help or not. Whei. ht> fired ht, thought ht was on his elbow. He drew his revolver intending merely to show it to Smith. He was afraid for his life, and fired &t random. Counsel : Why didn't you say to him, "Look out, I've got a revolver?" Witness : I don't know. In reply to counsel, accused said he did hot remember saying what one witness made him say : "He's lying there. . . . I've got another, etc." Further questioned, Corkill said he had carried the revolver for some two years (Proceeding.)