GIVEN A CHANCE.

Evening Post, Volume CXVIII, Issue 102, 27 October 1934, Page 11

GIVEN A CHANCE.

ONE OF THE CUDBYS

MOVING PLEA FROM DOCK

imOTHEttS". SENTENCED

A brief but moving plea from the dock after counsel had spoken on his behalf and when Mr. Justice Ostler was about to pass sentence upon him saved Mervyn John Cudby,' aged 32, from being declared an habitual criminal in the Supreme Court today. With his brother, Arthur Cudby, aged 3(5, he appeared for sentence on five- charges of housebrcaking, to which Arthur Cudby, near the end of their trial, had dramatically pleaded guilty on Thursday afternoon and on which Mcrvyii Cudby had been found guilty by tho jury. This morning each pleaded guilty to four other charges of housebreaking and to a charge of having been" found unlawfully by night in possession of housebreaking instruments. Mr. Justice Ostler, although having just previously expressed the intention of doing so, rofrained from declaring Mervyn Cudby an habitual criminal. Ho was ordered to bo detained for reformative purposes for a period not exceeding four years, and Arthur Cudby for a period not exceeding three years. Mr. T. P. McCarthy appeared for Arthur Cudby and Mr. K. H. Boys for Mervyn Cudby. Mr. Boys said that since his withdrawal from the case on Thursday afternoon Mervyn. Cudby ,had requested him do novo to appear for him on-sentence. A BEOTHEE'S INFLUENCE. Addressing tho Court, Mr. McCarthy said he had been requested to appear at a very late hour. He appreciated that there was nothing ho could say that would in any way influence the very grave view tho Court would take of < tho offences. That had been adequately explained to those who would have him appear. Counsel said he wished to point out, however, that Arthur Cudby was still a young man, with a wife and two young children. His wife was a woman of delicate health upon whom the punishment. inflicted upon Cudby must inevitably recoil. Counsel said ho thought there could be no doubt that, Arthur Cudby was in a somewhat different class from his. brother, and that ho must havo fallen in some way under the evil influence of his brother. For some 20-odd years Arthur Cudby apparently had kept out of trouble and had ,lcd an honest life. Mr. McCarthy asked tho Court to consider the prisoner more in tho nature of a first offender and to extend to him such leniency as' the Court could see its way clear to do. Tho prisoner had been in custody since August 22. Mr. Boys said that Mervyn Cudby desired him to make certain representations on his behalf to tho Court, directed solely to one aspect of his history. He wished to have put boforo the Court, that the. circumstances of his life had been such as to harden him in many respects, because from a very early ago when ho offended against the laws of the country ho had felt that if ho had been treated with lcniency_ it might havo altered tho course of his life. TEIED TO START AFRESH. Counsel then, referred to- the prisoner's record, enumerating a number of convictions dating from 1915, when tho prisoner was aged 13. When Cudby came out of gaol in. September, 1933, he decided ho would endeavour to make a fresh start in life' and go to Canada with his wife: Unfortunately, however, ho found it impossible to get the necessary permission to land iv Canada. He then endeavoured to go to Australia, and counsel said Cudby had informed him that on tho day ho was arrested ho went Sown to the shipping office to make arrangements for passages for his wife and himself, that he might get out of New Zealand, where- ho had done himself and nobody else any particular good. Cudby was married in October last year, and he said that during tho two months in which he was in custody awaiting trial ho realised us ho had not realised before, duo to the fact that ho was now married and had duties to people otner than himself, that the course of the life ho hail been leading was one that could do him no good. Ho desired to.bring it to an end, and, counsel added, Cudby. said ho realised that his life must bo different in the future. • T , Tho Crown Prosecutor (Mr. P. S. J.v. Macassey) said ho understood from tho polico that Mervyn Cudby had been deported from Canada. He had a_ total of 24 convictions Ugainst him in 19 years. . HOUSEBEEAKIN& EPIDEMIC. Apart from the charges on which tho prisoners had pleaded guilty or had been found guilty, said his Honour, ho had the facts before him that within a period of some two months there was something like over 100 cases of housebreaking, similar in type to those in respect to which the prisoners were before tho Court. In 50 of those cases tho police had prepared, evidence against them of the same sort as had been heard at their trial, namely, evidence of marks made by tools such as were found in their possession, footprints, and such like —evidence which' tho jury in tho five charges submitted to them had thought conclusive. In addition, there was tho fact that immediately after their arrest this type of housebreaking ceased, it seemed to him. that the conclusion was irresistible that the two pri. soners were the persons responsible.

According to the calendar, continued his Honour, Morvyn Cudby ■ was first convicted as a boy in. 1915, and since then he had some 18 or 20 convictions for crimes involving dishonesty, including a number for breaking and entering, and two for having been found in possession of detonators or explosives., with intent to commit a crime. Coming to more recent times in 1925 ho had received a sentence of three years' hard labour on two charges of breaking, entering, and theft; in 1932 ho was again convicted and received six months' hard '. labour, and in 1933 he received a similar sentence. Evidently the prisoner had '. made up hig mind to live by-proving on ■ society instead of working. For that purpose recently he had apparently purchased a car and had used that tool in 1 his trade of houaebreaking. His Honour ;said ho did not liko declaring a man 'an habitual criminal and always hesitated to do so. In the ten years lie had been a J.udgo ho had done it on '. only two occasions, but it seemed to him that he would bo failing in his duty to ' tho public if ho failed to declare the prisoner an habitual criminal. PRISONER'S PLEA. It was at this stage that Mervyn Cuclby mado his plea. In a few moving words ho Legged his Honour to overtook doclaring him a habitual criminal and to givo him this last chance. His Honour paused, and it was some seconds before ho spoke again. Ho then asked Cudby whether, if ho refrained from declaring him a habitual crim- ■ inal, ho would make up his mind_ when ■he came out of gaol to give up crime. *<Yes, your Honour," readily replied , Mervyn Oudby. i His Honour said he would give the , prisoner the chance, but he would have ■to inipbso a pretty sevore sentence, bocause ho regarded him as tho leader. , His Honour then passed sentence of , four-oars' reformative detention. He ■ told Cuclby that he had intended mak- ■ ing his sentence ono of hard labour. His own conduct and behaviour would help .the prisoner, io. shorten, Jhe sen-

tence of reformative detention, lie had been given a chance. Addressing Arthur Cudby,. his Honour said to him. that apart from this bad break in crime there were only two previous convictions against him. Both were a. long time ago and nothing would havo been hoard about them if ho had not made such a. fool of himself in giving evidence, and if lie had not made false charges against the police. His Honour regarded him as the weaken of the two, a man, however, with some good in him and whom he thought had been persuaded into this course of crime by his brother, who was obviously tho stronger character. The false charges against the police, ho thought, were rather actuated by fear than malice or any inherent wickedness. Certainly in the" end the prisoner had made some amends by pleading guilty and withdrawing the charges against the police, in an attempt obviously to take all the blame and save his brother. It showed that he had some sense of loyalty, whiah, though mistaken, indicated that'ho had some good in him still. His Honour said he had had. no intention in any case of declaring the prisoner a habitual criminal, but of course he must be punished for the crimes to which he had pleaded guilty. He would bo sentenced to three years' reformative detention. MERVYN CUDBY'S CHANCE. Mr. Boys said that.'. representations would be made to Mervyn Cudby that it would be -up to hini ( to honour the chance he had boon given. :

His Honour said he was not sure, that he had not failed in his duty to the public, but anyhow he had given Cudby a chance. ■