Admissibility of Statements To Police

Manawatu Times, Volume 62, Issue 67, 20 March 1937, Page 4

Admissibility of Statements To Police

REFUSAL TO PRODUCE THEM IN . COURT. Per Press Association. DUNEDIN, Last Night. The question was decided by Mr. H. .W. Bundle, 8.M., in the Police Court today of the admissibility as evidence ul statements given to the police by defendants. The mutter arose first on December 18, when two men, who were represent ed by Mr. A. G. Neill, pleuded uot guilty to being unlawfully after hours on licensed premises, and the licensee of the hotel, for whom Mr. Neill also appeared, entered a similar plea on charges of selling liquor after hours, exposing liquor for sale after hours and keeping his premises open after hours lor the sale of liquor. Tho refusal of Senior-Sergeant Packer during the original hearing ol the case to allow statements given by defendants to be produced as evidence, and the insistence of the Magistrate that, if counsel for defendants were not allowed to examine them, the case would not be proceeded with, brought about an unusual situation, the hearing being eventually adjourned to enable the senior-sergeant to place the matter before the superintendent. When the cases were called this morning, Mr. G. B. Adams appeared for the prosecution and outlined the reasons why tho # police were unwilling to produce statements in such cases, the Magi strate finally deciding that the papers should be produced when the question came up of how they were obtained.