CRIMINAL SESSIONS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18702, 7 May 1924, Page 7

CRIMINAL SESSIONS.

t. OPENING AT AUCKLAND, I 1 '.: V' • v " ■•:-•' - ■ . ' > ' - 1 •: ■.':*• • ' •■ •- •■ ■ ■-• .• ■•:■'/: ->/;;. I * ' ' *" " •. i ; > ' • • CHARGE TO G&AND - JURY. 1 / ; '•' ■ j TRUE BILLS IN ALL CASES. The quarterly criminal sessions of the ' Supreme Court were opened yesterday, fore Mr. Justice Springer. The Crown 1 was represented by Mr. V. R. Meredith, Cro\vn Prosecutor, and Mi'. S. L. Paterson, assistant Crown Prosecutor. i The following grand jury was em- . panelled: Messrs. George Baildon. (foreman), Richard House _ Milburn, Isidor I Meltzer, Arthur Bedford Hammond, James Prentice McPhail, Charles Henry Court, 1 Alfred Samuel Fearnley, John William i Nicol, Charles Edward Grevatt, Edward 1 Grim-wade, John Edward Hammond, i Charles Frederick Bennett, Frederick Chambers. William . John Holsworth, Patrick Darby, Charles Bernard Plummer, William Alexander, Frederick Augustus Thompson, Henry Montague Didsbury, William Hope De Ren;:y, Lance Vivian Moses, and James Thornycroft Fearnley. In his charge to , the grand jury, "His Honor said the calender consisted of IS cases, and then reviewed the salient features of each. Referring to the case in which Walter Robert McMahon * was 'charged with sheep-stealing, His Honor said: "You are perhaps not aware of the difficulty of detecting thefts of this description and the evidence often presents difficulties, but'l do not think there will be any difficulty in this case in returning it-true bill." In regard to the case ; against Milton McMillan, also charged with sheep-stealing, His Honor said that ! before returning a true bill the jury would have to satisfy itself that certain sheep found in the'possession of accused had been acquired by him with the full knowledge that they belonged to another man. Tha circumstances of the alleged theft of £5 10s, with which Albert James Tiorr;ey was charged, were that he was handed the money by another man who was under the impression that Tiexney had not been paid his wages. r The grand jury had to decide whether ,the acceptance of money in the circumstances constituted theft. . Dealing with the case of Alexander Linton, charged with having forged a withdrawal slip for £190 upon the Post Office Savings Bank, His Honor said the jury would be asked to make its decision upon circumstantial evidence. Experts would declare that certain specimens of handwriting were similar, to that of accused. "It is deplorable that we have such frequent examples of dishonesty upon the part of young men employed in public offices, said His Honor in reviewing the case in which 18 charges of theft were preferred against Harold George Allen, a clerk previously employed at the Waiuku post office. : Accused. had admitted his responsibility for the receipt of the' money, and this might justify the returning of a true bill. . < With reference to the case of John Andrew Fox, charged with manslaughter, in the negligent driving of a motor-car. through which the ■ death of - Constable • Todd was brought about by. collision with a Chinaman's cart, His . Honor said ' that the party of which both accused and. deceased were members seemed, more or less, to have made beasts of themselves in their Midnight visit to a country hotel, and from the depositions a prima facie case of negligent driving was made out. . The grand jury occupied over four hours in disposing of the list of the cases. True bills were returned in every instance. GUILTY OF FALSE PRETENCE. RECEIVED WAGES V WRONGFULLY. The first case called was that of Albert James Tiernoy (Mr. Sullivan) against whom the alternative charges were preferred of the theft of £6 10s from John Trowhella, and the obtaining of. £5 10s from Charles Stokes, by false pretences. The allegation of the Crown was that accused was employed by Trewhella as a motor-lorry . driver; that -Trewhella, having occasion to 4 leave the city, paid' accused £3 ' 10s due to him as wages; and that accused, nevertheless, accepted £5 10s which had! been left with Stokes as the » wages of another employee, representing to ; Stokes' that nothing ; had been paid to him that, week. The defence was that accused was assured. by Stokes that tho money was his. It was contended that accused had assumed the money was a payment for,; overtime he _ had worked, and for which he had received no additional pay mentis, His Honor advised Mr. Paterson, who appeared for the Crown, to confine the charge to one of false pretences, -< . This was agreed to by' both counsel. Mr. Sullivan submitted that Stokes' . evidence was unreliable, as .he had taken the money from Trewhella, and had forgotten to whom he bad to pay it; It was denied that Stokes had asked: Tierney if he had been paid when he tendered the money. Counsel submitted that: the exchange of -the money was a mistake upon the part of Stokes. It • was not; reasonable to suppose tht\t accused! would have taken the money if he had thought he was not entitled to/receive' it as detection was inevitable. After a retirement lasting 20 minutes, the jury brought in a verdict of guilty. Sentence was deferred until. Friday.,

RECEIVING STOLEN GOODS. ENTRY AND THEFT CASE FAILS. Charles Matthew O'Malley ; (Mr. , Sulli-' van) was charged with . having broken and entered the premises of : the ' Dalton Manufacturing . Company, in Lome Street, on March 14, and having stolen clothing valued at £7 14s, of, alternatively, 7 'with having received : the clothing, knowing it to have been dishonestly obtained. Mr. Paterson said a constable i saw accused stooping over a bundle ;in < the middle, of the road outside the premises of the Dalton Manufacturing Company. When accused saw he , was noticed, :he threw too bundle over a fence and ran away. Ho was overtaken, and while he ' was < being escorted ; to • the: ; police statioif two pairs -of - scissors, and a comb fell at h's feet. These articles, with the clothing found in the bundle 1 , were identified as property taken from the company's premises. ' ."si,. .. The defence was an absolute denial of any knowledge of the theft, and a' plea of mistaken identity. . O'Malley stated frpm the witness ; bos that he was walking along the street, - when the constable ran'up and placed hira under arrest. Accused, allosced 1 that a man had hurried past him in the darkness aa^jfchough' he : was being pursued. He denied dropping the scissors. v.. ';T; • , Counsel admitted jhat/ accused was addicted to drink, arid ' that he had consumed a quantity of liquor on the day in question. After a retirement of 15 minutes the jury found _ accused guilty of receiving and not guilty upon the major charge Sentence was 'deferred pending a report by the probation '• officer. „';;; I SENTENCE SUSPENDED. . I;, V*• ;[.. ■ t »*• £. V •'i".'?V'\ ; WINDOW SMASHING CASK. - " [by TELEGRAPH.-—PHESS association.] WELLINGTON. Tuesday. The criminal sessions of the Supreme Court opened this morning before Mr. Justice Chapman. . • v A plea of guilty was made by Reginald Nelson" White Kto a charge of wilfully destroying or damaging eight plate-glass windows of the value of £500. Counsel said accused was labouring under considerable stress at the time, and had re--1 ceived three or four drinks of whisky from; a friend. He did; remember doing any damage, / His Honor; said <ho could not decide what to do with prisoner at the . moment,' and would consider the sentence., ' * '<