ATTEMPTED MURDER.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume VI, Issue 355, 15 February 1917, Page 6

ATTEMPTED MURDER.

RESULT OF SUNSTROKE

Auckland, Feb. 14

At the Supreme Court to-day, Thomas Edward Watt Skelton was charged with the attempted muidei of his wife, Alice Mary;, iskelton, and of causing bodily harm, at Pain, North Auckland, on January’ 14th. The evidence for the Crown was on the lines of that in the Lower Court. For the defence evidence was given that on a fishing trip accuse i lay down and slept in the sun. Me complained of not feeling well and said he had suffered from insomnia. He also complained of pains in the head. He had one glass of brewerybeer with his lunch and later had two glasses of lemonade and beer. Evidence by- four doctors was that in their opinion Skelton was in an abnormal mental condition when he attacked him wife. Accused, in a written statement, attributed the attack, of which he had no actual knowledge, to the fact of sleeping in the sun, to violence due solely to sunstroke. He objected vehemently to the suggestion that he was a mental defective f long standing.

Dr. Palist, recalled by- his Honour, stated that the symptoms described by accused in his statement were identical with those of sunstroke, and the condition of frenzy in which accused was said to have been when the attack was made would not occur again except under similar circumstances.

Dr. King confirmed this opinion

After a retirement of fifteen minutes the jury returned a verdict of not guilty on the grounds that accused was temporarily insane at the time of the attack, the mental disorder being the result of sunstroke.

His Honour said he proposed to order the accused to remain in custody of the goal atfthorities and not send him to the asylum. He would remain in custody until the Governor’s pleasure was ascertained.