TRAFFIC AND OTHER OFFENCES

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXII, 27 January 1939, Page 6

TRAFFIC AND OTHER OFFENCES

CASES BEFORE MAGISTRATE

FINES AND ORDERS TO PAY COSTS! The following traffic and other j offences were dealt with in the Magis- j trate’s Court this morning by Mr T. E. Maunsell S.M., the prosecutions being brought by the police. For driving a car without a warrant of fitness Robert Ivan McKenzie was; fined 10s and 10s costs. Ronald McKenzie McKegg was charged with assisting in the commission of i an offence by allowing a car to be taken out without a warrant of fit- j Senior-Sergeant C. Petersen said that! the defendant, who was the manager i of a firm, allowed the car to be taken out without a warrant of fitness. The case was brought with a view to bring- i ing to the notice of the garages that they were responsible for seeing that! warrants were current on cars for sale. Defendant was ordered to pay costs 10s. William James Henry Stanbury (Mr J. R. Kerr) pleaded guilty to failing to give way to traffic on the right at an intersection. The Senior-Sergeant said that the defendant came into collision with another car when coming out. of a byroad. Mr Kerr said that the accident was due if anything to over-caution. Defendant was driving at 5 m.p.h. He said that the other car was travelling too fast and he could not get across the road in time.

A fine of 10s and 12s costs was imposed.

Erroll Thomas Taylor was charged with being in possession of a rifle without a permit, and with procuring possession without a permit. The Senior-Sergeant said that the numbers on the rifle had been deliberately ground off which suggested that in its history it had been stolen. He was not suggesting that the defendant had done it.

Taylor was ordered to pay costs 10s, and an order was made for confiscation of the rifle.

David Owen Ollson pleaded not guilty to charges of failing to produce a driver's license when requested, and failing to stop at the command of a constable.

Evidence was given by Constable A. G. Hogg that he was on duty in Trafalgar street on Christmas Eve. He was signalling traffic not to turn into central Trafalgar street. Defendant passed round to the west of him from Bridge street east into Trafalgar street central. The constable yelled out and defendant stopped. The constable asked him why he didn't obey the signal, and asked him to back out. Defendant said he wanted to go to the front of his shop and witness said he should have come and seen him about it. Defendant told him to get out of the way and started the car, knocking the constable back, and going to his shop. Witness asked him to produce his license but defendant said it was in his shop and the constable could come and get it to-morrow. He said his wife was ill and he wanted to get her home. The constable told him he should have approached him (the constable) previously if it was a case of emergency and he would have allowed him past. At about 10.30 o'clock the defendant approached the constable and apologised. He was again asked for his license but said it it was in the shop and he would not go for it.

Constable A. J. Austin said he saw the incident. He later interviewed defendant who made a statement in which he said that he had his left indicator up j and he thought the constable beckoned I him to proceed. He thought the streets | were closed only till 11 o’clock. In evidence defendant said that he saw other cars parked in Bridge and Trafalgar streets. He thought the constable signalled him on. He went on between the constable and the Trafalgar Hotel and the constable shouted at him, “Don’t you understand plain English?” He told the constable that he wanted to call for his wife but the constable said he could not, so he ‘replied, “I’m sorry” and drove on. When asked for his license he said that it was in the shop and he would fetch it. The constable said he would not wait and told him to take it to the station next morning. He went next morning and explained to the senior-sergeant that there had been some misunderstanding. He did not produce his license though he had it with him but he thought the senior-sergeant was satisfied. The case was really brought in spite more than anything. The constable stood there like a Hitler or a Mussolini, and he was more to blame than anyone. The Magistrate said that on the first charge it was clear that a breach had been committed, but there appeared to have been some heat engendered on both sides and a certain amount of contradiction. He convicted and ordered defendant to pay costs 10s on each charge. The following cases were brought by Traffic-Inspector C. E. Parkinson:— Steve Elliott, fer driving a motor lorry, which was licensed to carry 10 to 15 tons, with 17 tons scwt in it, was fined £1 and costs 10s.

For a similar offence M. Kenyon was fined £1 and 10s costs.

For parking a car on the wrong side of the road Leslie John Schroder was fined 5s and 12s costs.