POLICE COURT

Evening Star, Issue 23408, 27 October 1939, Page 5

POLICE COURT

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27. (Before Mr H. W. Bundle, S.M.) DRUNKENNESS. A first offender for drunkenness was fined 20.5. the amount of his bail. A YOUTH’S LAPSE. A youth, whose name was suppressed, admitted the theft of a pound note. He was represented by Mr C. J. L. White. Chief-detective Holmes said that the youth, who was not yet 19 years of age, was apprenticed to a firm of electricians, and was employed in the workshop. During the temporary absence of the bookkeeper he opened ner handbag and extracted £l. The handbag contained £6- 10s. Detective M’Dongall interviewed the lad. who frankly admitted the theft, giving as his reason the fact that he owed 19s for repairs to his bicycle and was anxious to meet this bill, of which his parents had no knowledge. After hearing several people who testified to the youth’s excellent behaviour before this offence, the Magistrate admonished him for what he described as a despicable theft, and adjourned the case for two years. ' LAUNDRESS’S THEFTS. Jane Spinks was charged with the theft on or about July 18 and on divers dates between July 18 and October 18 of a quantity of cutlery, serviettes, towels, and pillow slips of a total value of £2 13s. The accused, who was not represented by counsel, pleaded guilty. Chief-detective Holmes, who prosecuted, said that the accused was -61 years of age, she was a married woman, and was living apart from her husband. For some time she had been a laundress at the Chalet Hospital. For about three months, table silver and linen had been disappearing from the hospital. The accused was sleeping out and living in a house at South Dunedin. At about 6 p.m. on October 17,. the accused was stopped near her home by Detective Gibson. She was then carrying a shopping bag. The detective questioned her about the thefts from the hospital, and she denied all knowledge of them. The shopping bag was examined, and. rolled in an apron at the bottom the detective found two table knives, a spoon, and a pair of scissors. She' said she did not know how the articles got into the bag, and that she did not know they were there. When her place was searched a quantity of linen bearing the mark of the hospital was found in her room, and the accused then admitted stealing the linen and the articles found in her shopping bag. She had not previously come under the notice of the police, hut her methods of stealing and her httitude when spoken to about it suggested that she was of the sneak-thief type. She had since been dismissed from her employment. The accused was remanded in custody until Monday, the probation officer to furnish a report. UNLAWFULLY ON LICENSED PREMISES. For being found unlawfully on licensed premises, Harold Gray and Albert Hastie were each fined 10s and C ° StS ’ UNLIGHTED BICYCLE. Ivan Allison, who rode an nnlighted bicycle, was fined 5s and costs. WATER IN MILK. Garlics Geddes, a dairy farmer at Green Island, who was represented by Mr E. J. Anderson, pleaded guilty to selling milk with addedl water, the amount contained in it being 16.6 per cent;. . Mr Anderson, who said the farm itself was commended by the Health Department as being clean and well conducted. added that Geddes could give no explanation how the water came to be in the milk, except that some must have been in the bottom of a can. Geddes was fined £4 10s and costs, and ordered to pay the analyst’s fee (10s). The magistrate took into consideration the record of this dairy farm when fining the defendant. ; Three charges of selling milk with added water were preferred against Donald Allen Cameron, who was represented by Mr J. G, Warrington, and who pleaded guilty. Senior-sergeant Claasen said that the inspector had taken three samples from defendant’s cans at different times. One sample showed an adulteration by added water of 9.1 per cent v a further sample showed an adulteration of 14.4 per cent., and another of 10.9 per cent. The Senior Sergeant said he believed the samples were taken from two cans, and two which were taken from one can varied in a remarkable way. Mr Warrington said that it could not be suggested that the defendant had added the water to his milk. He was a farmer, and during the snow period a number of defendant’s ' own _ cows went dry and he had to buy milk to keep up his run. Since the snow period defendant had had! to buy one-third of the milk he delivered and had mixed it with what he got from his own herd. He had! been operating this run for 19 years. The only explanation was that water had been added to the milk ho had purchased. On the charge of selling milk with the adulteration of 14.5 per cent, by added water, the defendant was fined £5 and costs 10s, and he was ordered to pay analyst’s fee (13s 3d) L On each of the other charges he was convicted and fined the amount of the analyst’s fee (10s fid) and costs (10s). MOTORING CASES. Rex George Smith, who admitted a charge of dangerous driving, was fined £2 10s and costs. His license was cancelled until June 30, leave being reserved to have it restored at a time when he produced a medical certificate showing that he was in a fit state of health to drive. For parking a motor vehicle for longer than permitted, Claude Robert Dickson was fined os and costs. BUILDING BY-LAW. A breach of the City Council’s bylaws involving building construction was admitted by George William Davies, who was represented by Mr P. S. Anderson. He was charged with permitting a building to be used and occupied as a tenement building. _ A further charge of converting a building into a tenement building was withdrawn. Mr J. C Robertson, who prosecuted for the City Corporation, said that Davies was the owner of a two-sto>v building at 79 Maclaggnn street. He decided to convert the building into two fiats, and though for certain reasons they were not suitable for this purpose, he contravened the council’s bylaws and allowed some persons to live on the ground floor. Davies was fined £2, solicitor’s fee (£1 Is) and costs (10s). When James Earl Gibson was proceeded against on two charges of building without a permit, Air .). C. Robertson, who prosecuted, described him as a flagrant offender, and said that the department took a serious view of these offences. Mr Robertson asked that the court should impose sueh a fine as m future would compel him to make applications for his permits.

The Magistrate remarked tliat tlio defendant had been before the eonrt previously, and fined him £2 on each charge and ordered him to pnv solicitor’s fee (£1 Is) and costs (10s) in each case. UNREGISTERED DOGS. For being in possession of an unregistered dog, John Mitchell Davis tv as fined 11s and costs (2s), and he was ordered to pay witness’s expenses (os'). , George Spiers was charged with being in possession of an unregistered dog. the case being adjourned until November 24 on the undertaking that defendant pay 9s Od, part fee for two dogs, and mileage fee (2s).