GIRL VICTIM

Grey River Argus, 20 August 1930, Page 5

GIRL VICTIM

Parents’ Fault

A REMARKABLE CASE. (Per Press Association.) GISBORNE. August 19. An unusual case came before th? Supreme Court to-day before Mr Justice Reed, when a youth named Leslie Clyde Munro.; alias Roy Williams, aged 22 year, pleaded not guilty to a charge .of unlawful carnal knowle Jgo of a Maori gii|l aged 15 years. T-.ie girl in the course of her evidence, .aid the accused asked her to marry him .and she agreed. Her parents .al o .agreed and the accused came to stay at her home, and the accused ah ’• witness slept together;. The accused left after remaining three weeks at witness’s homg, and he did not rq- 1 turn. |

After tha parents hah given eorro , borativc evidence, the accused’s Coun-| sei withdrew 4he plead of “not guilty”, and pleaded guilty. The Jv’igc said that he regarded this offence as an extremely venial one. The most venial he had ever come across. The accused, continued; His Honour, had had sexual relations with the girl by invitation of her own, parents. “I don’t propos o to do anything with you,” said His Honour, “other; than to order you to reimburse the country for the expense to which it has been put for your trial.” I His Honour remanded the accused unt’l the afternoon to enable the, amount of the cost - to be fixe bia i when the Court resumed His Honour I said he had ascertained that the ac ; cased was serving a term of two years reformativ e detention, and it would l»c useless to order him to pay costs. His < Honour proposed, therefore*. to impose ] a nonfinal penalty to be concurrent | with the term now being served. Mumlo was sentenced to one month s imprisonment witth hard, labour. NOT GUILTY. (Per Press Association.) NEW PLYMOUTH, August 19. | Not guilty on all counts was the verdict of the Supreme Court upon three charges of indecent assault, or, alternatively, indecent acts with young girls, at Tangarakau, preferred against Percy Collings, a Public Works employee and caretaker of the hall in which the offences were alleged to hav£ occurred.