SUPREME COURT.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 16159, 22 February 1916, Page 5

SUPREME COURT.

SENTENCING OF PRISONERS.

PUNISHMENT FOR PERJURY.

WOULD-BE SOLDIER'S CASE.

The criminal sessions of the Supreme Court were continued yesterday before Mr. Justice Hosking. William Henry Copestoke, represented by .Mr. W. E. Hackett, appeared'for sentence on a charge of perjury. Mr. Hackett said that prisoner was an uneducated man. and seemed stupid. When he was arrested the prisoner was serving as a military recruit, having enlisted before he knew that any charge would bo preferred against him. . In .sentencing the prisoner to a term of imprisonment for reformative purposes for a term not exceeding two years, the Judge said that the question as to whether prisoner was going to serve his country or not was not a matter for him to consider. Sentences must take their course eo far as he was concerned. The prisoner s first business should have been to try to serve his country by keeping its laws. he class of perjury with which the prisoner was charged was extremely common in affiliation cases. It was within the power ot the Prisons Board to release the prisoner if it saw fit. The Governor also if he saw fit, could exercise his clemency

PRISONER'S BAD RECORD. Stating that he was in a muddled condition when he gave evidence in the -Magistrate s Court, which led to a charge of perjury, Joseph Holt appeared for sentence According to the evidence of Constable Lambert the prisoner was arrested on a charge of vagrancy in the evening, and was in custody until the following afternoon, when, he was charged bo far as witness knew the prisoner was not tinder the influence of drink when examined by the magistrate. No doubt however he had been on a drinking , bout. He falsely stated in evidence that! he had been in work. j

In passing a sentence of six months' imprisonment with hard labour, the Judge said that Holt's record was a very bad one. Ho had been convicted for obscene language, drunkenness, failure to maintain nis who, and twice for assault.

BAY OF PLENTY ASSAULT CASE.

~ An ' unnaturalized German, named Gottlieb Feierabond, appeared for sentence on a charge of indecent assault upon a married woman at Taneatua. Bay of Plenty. Mr. J. R. Lundon appeared "for the prisoner.

In passing sentence, the Judge said that the prisoner's nationality did not affect the charge. The prisoner had admitted that he was guilty of the indecent assault, but had later asked to be allowed to withdraw the plea, to which permission could not be given. He would not be sentenced on the charge of indecent assault, but for assault. A sentence of six months' imprisonment with hard labour was passed.

BREAKING AND ENTERING. Albert Edward Wright, aged 28, and Edward James McLelland, aged 18, appeared for sentence on charges of breaking and entering, and receiving, respectively. The younger prisoner was represented bv Mr. J. R. Lundon.

The Judge said that he had a strong appeal on behalf of Wright, who had good references, from the Salvation Army. Mr. Tole mentioned that Wright had been charged with assaulting a railway official, who prevented him from brnt'nll assaulting his wife. With regard to McLelland. he stated that though only 13 years of age, he was greatly addicted to drink, and the police reported that he was one of the worst characters in the town.

McLelland denied that he had ever taken any drink at all, but three detectives stated that they had seen him under the influence of liquor as recently as Saturday night, during the period when he was out on bail. This was strenuously denied by the accused and his father and a companion. The passing of sentence was deferred until to-day.

"HARD UP." A young man, aged 20 year?, named Vernon Alan Burnside, was brought up for sentence on five charges of breaking and entering and theft. Asked by the Judge why he had set out on a rather determined bout of breaking and entering, he said he was "hard up." Previous convictions for theft were mentioned against the prisoner, whose character was referred to in unfavourable terms by the probation officer. A sentence of three years' reformative treatment was passed. The Judge intimated that he would suggest to the Prisons Board that BurnFide should be sent to the Invercargill institution.