MAGISTRATE’S COURT

Greymouth Evening Star, 12 April 1943, Page 2

MAGISTRATE’S COURT

TO-DAY’S greymouth cases. Mr. G. G. Chisholm, S.M., presided ' at a sitting of the Magistrate’s Court, at Greymouth, this morning. SeniorSergeant G. F. Bonisch represented the police. A statutory first offender for drunkenness, found in Whall Street, on April .10, was convicted and fined 10/-, the amount of his bail. John Henry Bromley was convicted and fined 10/-, with 3/- costs, for riding a cycle without a light after dark on April 8. Robert Mountford was convicted and fined 15/-, with 10/- costs and 3/9 witness’s expenses, for allowing two cows to wander in Main Road, Blackball, on March 30. William Austin Woodson was convicted and fined 5/-, with 10/- costs, for being in possession of an unlicensed radio set. Defendant admit- ■ red that he had no license for die set ' when interviewed by the Radio In- ' spec-tor, but said that he took over iiie sei from the previous owner and i thought that the license was transfor- ■ able. He had since found that that ' was not the case. The Radio Inspector (Mr. A. Sumner) stated that he warned defendant that he would i'have to take out a license, and when jno action was taken after a week the ■I proceedings were instituted. INTOXICATED IN CHARGE.

Frederick William Fletcher pleaded guilty to a charge that on April ■ 10 he was intoxicated in charge of a motor-car. He was represented by Mr. W. D. Taylor. : The Senior-Sergeant stated that : bout 5 D.m. on Saturday last Constable Walden, of Blackball, found a

motor-car capsized on the Brunner 'frack. He- round that the driver was Dill in the car. When he got the driver out it appeared that he was drunk. Defendant was taken to the police station at Blackball for medical. examination, but it was found

that Dr. Aylward was at Wallsend. Constable Walden took defendant to Wallsend, where he was examined by Dr. Aylward about 6 p.m. Dr. Aylward certified that defendant was intoxicated and not in a fit state to drive a car. He was brought to Greymouth and was later bailed out in the sum of £25. The fact that he had a bad arm might be raised in his defence, said the Senior-Sergeant, but Dr. Aylward had examined the arm and had said that it was not sufficient to affect his driving. Defendant was convicted and fined £l5 for a similar offence in 1941, when his license was cancelled for 12 months.

Mr. Taylor said defendant was married, with four children, and had been off work for about a week on account of an injury to an arm. He was working on contract getting mining timber. On Saturday ho had gone to Blackball to get some money and had several drinks there. _ The accident took place at a railway crossing, at a difficult corner, and this, with the injury to the arm, contributed in at least some degree _to the accident. Since defendant’s driving license had been restored there had been no cause for complaint about his conduct.

'fhe Magistrate said that defendant was fortunate that such cases had not been very frequent lately, otherwise imprisonment would have had to be considered instead of a line. Defendant would be convicted and fined £25, with medical expenses £l/1/-, and witness’s expenses 3/9. His driving license would be cancelled and he would be disqualified from holding another license for two years.

NEGLIGENT DRIVING CHARGES

David Gordon Green, of Greymouth, was charged with negligent driving of a motor car causing bodily injury and negligent driving causing death, the charges being a sequel to a car driven by accused crashing over a bank near Dobson on March 7, 1943, a passenger in the car, Edward Mansell Tarling, 32, miner, receiving a fracture of the spine, and the latter’s death in the Grey Hospital on April 7. Inquest proceedings were conducted in conjunction with the hearing of the evidence. Senior Sergeant G. F. Bonisch conducted the case for the police and Mr. J. W. Hannan represented accused. At the conclusion of the evidence the Magistrate dismissed the charges and returned a verdict that deceased died from pulmonary embolism following injury received in a motor accident. A detailed report of the proceedings will be published to-morrow, shortage of space preventing publication to-day.