MAGISTRATE’S COURT.

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 25 June 1925, Page 10

MAGISTRATE’S COURT.

FORTNIGHTLY SITTING

POLICE CASES DEALT WITH

The Magistrate’s Court was held at Hawera to-day, Mr. ,1. S. Barton, S.M. presiding. ON LICENSED PREMISES

Charged with being on licensed premises, nanrelv the "White Hart, William M. Angus and David Campbell submitted a plea of guilty. Mr. P. O’Dea appearing for both defendants. Sergeant Henry said that at 9 p.m. on the I.3th of th e present month, Angus and Campbell were in High Street. Angus made a move to go into the front entrance of the White Hart, but apparently the two saw the Sergeant who was standing on the corner, and consequently went round to the hack of the premises. The Sergeant entered the hotel bv the front entrance, giving the defendants time to get round to the back entrance. The licensee was just going to answer a knock at the back door when the Sergeant entered. 'The door was opened, and the two men could not explain the reason for their presence. Mr. G’Dea said that Campbell did not actually enter the hotel, but the Sergeant said that both men stepped inside and the door was closed. Mr. O’Dea said that both defendants were respected citizens. A fine of £1 and 7s court costs were imposed in each case. YOUTHS AND A RIFLE.

Richard William Frost, who, with several other youths was before the court about 12 months ago as a result of a firearm, wherewith one of the boys was wounded, came up for sentence. Sergeant Henry stated that the detendant had settled down and had been of good behaviour. Defendant was convicted and discharged. ASSAULT PROVED.

On the complaint of George William E. Leach, ,James Sole (Mr. D. Smart) was charged with assault. A plea of not guilty was entered. Complainant, giving evidence, said that Sole was his employer and the incident took place on the farm at Fraser Road. Defendant had been delayed in getting the cows in, he having carried a newly born calf up to the shed. Sole hit him on the jaw with his closed fist and upon complainant saying it was not late, there came the reply: “Not late be d —Thereupon Sole got home three or four more blows. Later. Sole said “Where is that missus of mine. She will wake up too.” Mary Leach, the mother of the complainant, said that her son got nome at about S p.m., with his face covered with blood. Her son told her that Sole had hit him. She had accused Sole of heincr drunk when he hit her Ixjv. but Sole had made no answer. The defence ■ was a denial of any. assault.

Sole in his evidence said that he had been stripping out the cows about 10 a.in. when Leaclf arrived. Witness told Leach that his arriving so late was no good to him. When Sole arrived home at 6 o’clock that night he found that Leach had not cut any wood. He asked Leach what he meant by it, and Leach told him that he had had trouble in getting a heifer into the hail. The animal, he said, had kicked him and had made his nose bleed..

The Magistrate said, he had to choose between conflicting evidence, but on complainant’s side there was some eorohoration. The tact however, that defendant’s wife had not Iveen called inclined him to believe Leach’s story. Defendant would tie convicted and ftned £2 and 12s costs.' CIVIL DEFAULT CASES. Judgment for the plaintiff, with costs against the defendant was given in each of the following undefended civil cases: E. C. Carder v. E. J. Carom, £39 3s 7d : H. B. Burdehin. receiver for debenture bo tiers of General Transport Co.. v. A. ilea. £3 15s. J LIDGME-NT SUMMONSES. Orders were made as follow in judgment that after awhile would make receiver for debenture holders or the General Transport .Company, v. 11. Murray, £4 14s 9d, jn default five days’ imprisonment; Blair and Sellar v. *jp. C. Magnusson, £4 4s Bd, in default live da v s’ .mprisonment. A WIFE DESERTER. With arrears amounting to over £2BJ, a maintenance defaulter named Thomas Kendall came up for sentence. Mr Houston’ who appeared for the Hawera Hospital Hoard, said that defendant had'been convicted, but with the idea of giving him an opportunity of carrying out a promise to provide a home for his wife and family sentence had been deferred. Kendall, however, had not done so. For the prat 18 months the Hospital Board had been maintaining his wife and family, paying 25s per week rent and £0 per week living allowance. Altogether the board had paid £125. ” The magistrate agreed that it. was a bad case, pointing out that defendant had only paid £ls under the

order, although he had been getting £4 10s per week. Mr Barton said that m lus opinion the law was quite defective in the providing of remittances for the keep of families in such cases as' the present one. It was all in favour of the man who did not want to pay. The defaulter could leave his wife and children, and could hold as a kind of threat against the community, “You won’t see them starve.” Such a man was quite content with such a position. Mr Barton said he proposed to give defendant a term of imprisonment that after a while would make him contribute towards the maintenance of his wife and children. The sentence would be six months’ with hard 1 about - .