CRIMINAL APPEAL

Marlborough Express, Volume LIV, Issue 165, 15 July 1920, Page 4

CRIMINAL APPEAL

NEW ZEALAND ADO PIS THE

SYSTEM

[prom our correspondent.]

WELLINGTON, July T4. The only nevy phase about the familiar discussion in the. House of the case of Alice Parkinson, who is serving a life sentence for murder at Napier, was the announcement of the Hon. Mr Lea, Minister for Justice; that New Zealand would follow the English example in establishing a Court of Criminal Appeal. ° As to the Parkinson case, he stated that the petition of jurymen in favor of her release had been considered in common with other applications for her release. The decision arrived at by the Government was that amending legislation should be introduced placing this- arid other similar cases i-nder the jurisdiction of the Prisons Board, so that the question of releasing sr.eh prisoner--) upon' probation might be considered by that body. The Board would thus be empowered to--make such recommendation to the Governor-General regarding all suah. cases as it deemed fit. The Minister for Justice mentioned, in reply tfo -further comment by Mr Holland, that Parkinson had not served sufficient of ber sentence. It could not be reviewed by the Prisons Board. The Chief Justice, who sentenced the prisoner, was a humane Jiian, who held that the murder chars©-had been fully proved. "We are introducing a system of criminal appeal," continued the-Min-ister, "by which anyone tentenc^d can appeal from conviction or the sentence. Thi> is the. .law which exists m England."