DEFENCE OPENS

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 20862, 14 August 1942, Page 5

DEFENCE OPENS

SHOOTING CHARGE 3 TRIAL OF COWBOY 12 CROWN WITNESSES The case for the Crown against' Thomas_Patrick Bell, cowboy, 16 years of age,‘ in . regard to "the Wharigara .shootings; was concluded shortly after lunch; in Siipreme Court in Gisborne before Mr. Justice Johnston and jury to-day, and Mr. L. ,T. Burnard, counsel for the accused, addressed the court.. .Th'e.accused was charged with the attempted murder of lari arid Margaret • Frances Fraser, brother ' and sister, -and also with’shooting at them with a shotgun with intent td do grievous bodily harm. J Twelve’ witnesses were called for, tthe - Crown. 1 Thomas Fraser, father of the two victims of 41u>-«hobtirigs, .saiddhat the [accused had been- a satisfactory [employee,. maintaining satisfactory [relations- with .the household .and happy in Jiis surroundings. ; ! Dr. E. JChhlenborg. described the. [gunshot wounds -fin . Jan Fraser’s deg. jand .Margaret. .Fraserls- arm. M.iss Fraser could not use her arm much yet. i . .. : . ! Geoffrey . Greenstree.t, a neighbour, spoke: ;of the ; accused’s brief but friendly argument with, lan; Fraser on the; afternoon of the-shooting.

Mrs.. Dorothy --Stella Newman, a neighbour, described how she received a telephone call for help from Margaret: Fraser. . j i Derek Bruce Newman, husband of (he previous s witness, ; said he -went (vith:his .wife to trie Fraser homestead, in response to the. call for help, to. find the accused, standing, close beside ,tho injured people,vthe accused assisting to get themrinto .the car; , Evidence by. Victiriis of Shooting

lan Fraser [’said’ the appeared to-enjoy seeing the witness breaking in a horse, an hour or. so before -the shooting, and the accused appeared sorry after the shooting ,|or whgt he had done. . I Margaret 'Frances Fraser said she had spoken to the accused only a few minutqgJpgfqre ,she.;heqi;d.the report if a gun, arid aI&P said that during a struggle between the witness and the accused in the kitche.n after the .shootings'the’ accused'*"appetfred suddenly to come to," and expressed his regrets for what had occyf jed:' Detective-Sergeant R. H. Waterson stated that the accused said “I did it •when he answered the ’phone in reply to the 'witness’ .ring shortly after trie •shootings. , U ‘ " • ; , 1 Detective -T. Sneddon said that on the arrival of the police, party the accused said Jae ithad shot and Fraser, and he;did not know riphy he did it. . ' J l '! . ' I Senior-Sergeant G. G. Kelly, advisory -officer -to - the Commissioner 1 of. Police, .Wellington, .said that' the trigger pulls -of; the double vbarrellep gun--submitted, io him.-were light, being; oplyc2yb. each instead of .the normaL4lb. for;.the right apd 4ilb. forthe left. . .1.1 '■:{■■ »'■ V ■ 'V' No .evidence was called for the defence and the'CrowQiprQseputor,. Mr. F. W. iNolari; did not address trie Mr. Burnard, in his address, saL? that 'to prove attempted'murder it was necessary to show lhteht to kill or to : cause- injury ( that qg&e death. Althoughtfrh raw afTn’ot Thdilire the prosecution to find-a-motive, in actual practice all would want to .know what prompted-* a liaan -tb-icoiYinut the- met. No motive appeared jn the evidence, the picture the evidence eonjureq jip being a"’ hh’ppy' ’ brip, 'arid the jury would have UJ consider Whether accused had ahy intention' to cause harm. ' vJ The accused’s statement was carefully taken, and ’the detectives who handled the matter had done so with great fairness, Mr. Burnard added. The statement referred to the struggle with The girl, Who had takeri plucky action hfter the 1 shooting,' and that'the accused, said he suddenly came to his senses. '* - . * After acting wildly, counsel added,, the ’ accused immediately “did his' bPst. to relieve the pain and distress he had caused. Seldom was there so sudden-’a-tehange. 1 certain -irresponsibility appeared to be exhibited and an absence of a state of mind that could no.fcuform .-a dear -intention; oi the acts he intended to commit. The accused’s statemeriFadded,that he .had no .interitiojiAblkilUeitherilari onMai> garet Fraser, and indicated that the accused knew ,he had been shooting at the brbther-arid sister;‘■but could give' no reason for his-actions. The taking of the gun some hours before did not link up with any friotive: -The accused' was rnuch ’attracted •by firearms.- The accused’s other actions ■ before The shootings did-not suggest that he harboured a grudge -against anyone or was’morose-ot brooding. On the other pair of-charges, those of shooting With iritent to do grievous bodily harm,‘Mr.--Burnard said-that these, while serious charges, were pot quite so serioutras thhrpf attempt--ed murder; and here, again, intent was necessary. (Broceeding.)