LIFE SENTENCE APPEAL

Grey River Argus, 27 November 1943, Page 3

LIFE SENTENCE APPEAL

Oriental Bay Tragedy INTERESTING DEVELOPMENT P.A. WELLINGTON. Nov. 26. There was an interesting development to-day in the case of Leonard Neiling. He was found on May 15, 1941, after a four-day trial, not guilty of the murder of Mrs Horton, at Oriental Bay, Wellington, but guilty of manslaughter, and was sentenced forthwith, by the Chief Justice to life imprisonment. The prisoner, without reference to counsel, tiled notice of leave to appeal against the sentence*- but this was dismissed by the Court of Appeal in June. 1941. Last June, counsel sought to have the case re-opened, and to appeal, on the ground that the prisoner had not been heard personally, or by counsel, in June, 1941, and that the appeal had not been determined on these points. In September, the Chief Justice sat, with four other J'udges, on the preliminary question as to whether the prisoner had the right. to fresh leave to appeal. He then retired, and counsel. Mr Cornish, K.C., for the Crown, and Mr W. E. Leicester, for the prisoner, argued the merits of appeal without prejudice to the preliminary question. It was contended that the cause of Mrs Horton’s death was a stroke, that might have been brought on by falling on rocks, or by some slight blow 1 during a drunken quarrel, and that the Chief Justice should not have imposed imprisonment equivalent to the maximum now receivable for murder. At a sitting of the Second Division of the Court of Appeal to-day, the Chief Justice stated that as the decision on prisoner’s right of appeal might affect the practice of twenty years’ standing, it had been decided to request counsel to re-argue the matter in March next, before all of the Judges constituting both Divisions of the Court of Appeal. He said that whether the case had also to be re-heard on its merits, would be decided then.