A SAD CASE

Evening Star, Issue 23015, 21 July 1938, Page 16

A SAD CASE

MURDER CHARGE AGAINST YOUNG MOTHER ALLEGED TO HAVE DROWNED CHILD [Per United Press Association.] AUCKLAND, July 21. Tho murder of her five-months-old female child by drowning in Northern Wairoa River in April was charged against Hazel Frances Evans, of Aratapu, aged 21, in the Supreme Court to-day, before Mr Justice Fair and a jury. Mr V. R. Meredith prosecuted for the Crown, and Mr R. A. Singer appeared for accused. Outlining tho evidence for the prosecution, Mr Meredith said the accused girl lived with her parents. On October 27 she gave birth to an illegitimate child, and when she and tho child returned to her homo from the nursing home, she made several unsuccessful attempts to have the child placed in an orphanage. There was some unpleasantness in tho home over the child, which culminated in a quarrel between tho girl and her father on April 2. She told her father to “Go to hell.” He replied that if that was the way she felt she had better get out of the home with the baby. Accused went to a neighbour’s place and said she was going to send the baby away that night. She was going to Tekopuru to meet a lady who was going to adopt the baby, and she asked that a girl of the neighbour’s should help her to carry the baby. That night accused and Miss Alves walked to Tekopuru with the baby. Accused said she was to meet a lady at the Tekopuru Post Qffice at 8 p.m. When they arrived there was no lady there. Miss Alves went on to the Old Men’s Home, where she worked, and went to bed. About an hour later accused came to her room and said the lady had come and taken the child. As accused was very wet, she stopped there that night and returned home next morning. She arranged to stop at Mrs Alves’s home, but in the meantime answered by telephone an advertisement and got a housekeeper’s position. She told her mother the baby had been taken to Auckland and • adopted. That was on Ap>ril 4. Ten days later a man named Keith Warmington was working on the river bank at Tekopuru when he noticed the body of a baby on the grass near the water’s edge. It was decomposed, but was identified as tho accused’s child. “I am satisfied,’’ said counsel, “ that the evidence will force you to the conclusion that the accused, upset and desperate with shame and her position in her home, took the baby to Tekopuru that night with the intention of putting it in the river. If it had not been for the high spring tide, possibly nothing more would have been seen of it.'’ , . .

Counsel added that an admission made to Detectives Findlay and Miller •would no doubt satisfy the jury of what had happened. Molly Richards, Plunket district nurse, gave evidence that accused appeared to be rather a dull girl. Witness knew she had tried to get the baby into a home. Verna Margaret Alves said that when accused told her she had given the baby to a lady, witness reminded her that she still had the suit case containing the baby’s clothes. Accused replied that she had to send the suit case to the lady next day by service car. Marion Isobel Alves, mother of the previous witness, identified a petticoat found on the drowned baby as one she had given the accused for the baby. To Mr Singer, witness said the accused was a bit childish since the birth of the child, and had complained of being nervous and not getting enough sleep.