ISSUES FOR APPEAL

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20483, 18 February 1941, Page 9

ISSUES FOR APPEAL

REFERRED TO FULL COURT ACCUSED’S SUBMISSIONS (Per Proas Association.) CHRISTCHURCH, this day. Three question raised at the start of the trial by the accused would be referred to the Court of Appeal, said Mr. Justice Northcroft, in the Supreme Court this morning, after hearing the points formulated by Harold Alexander Ostler, as grounds for appeal on behalf of himself and Travers Burnell Christopher Christie. Both prisoners were found guilty last week of attempting to publish a subversive statement and the case was adjourned to this morning to allow Ostler time to formulate his objections to the judge’s summing up. His Honour added that he did not propose to refer the points on which misdirection was alleged to the Court of Appeal, although it was open for Ostler to ask that court to consider the questions he had raised. Before adjourning. His Honour informed the prisoners that he would sentence them to-morrow. Bail could not be allowed.

The three points raised by Ostler at the start of the trial were as to whether the consent of the AttorneyGeneral, which appeared on the information, justified the second, third and fourth counts on the indictment, a submission that the date of consent of the Attorney-General preceded the date of the information and therefore was not consent to the information because at the date of consent the information was not in being and a further submission that no passage from any of the documents was quoted as being subversive.