ANSLAUGHTEB CHARGE

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18709, 15 May 1924, Page 9

ANSLAUGHTEB CHARGE

TAXI-DRIVER FOUND GUILTY.

RECOMMENDATION TO MERCY

NATALITY I ON JOY-RIDE.

A verdict of manslaughter with a recommendation to mercy, was 'returned by the jury in the; case in which Andrew John Fox, a taxi-driver, was charged at the Supreme, Court with having caused the death of a policeman named Ronald Park Todd. ,; Mr. Justice Stringer > presided. Constable Todd -met his death through collision with '■"' a Chinese vegetable cart, at daylight on November 14, • when returning with others from a joy-ride to Papakura, in a motor-car driven by accused. ;,, ..'■;■-:■. :'.•;. , --[ ■' '-\: ■■'■■ " '•--..■ ■'■

Mr. .Ostler, in his address to the jury on behalf oi the accused, submitted that according to the evidence his client was not under the influence of liquor, and the fact that he pulled up his car within 60ftj of the scene of the collision proved he was not driving recklessly. Counsel emphasised a point stated by the Chinese driver—that just before the collision he turned his cart slightly toward the footpathand suggested that this might have occurred after : accused, having a sufficient margin of room for a safe passage, had set his course for the passing of the cart, and might have turned outward the tail of the cart sufficiently to cause the catastrophe. <If this theory was reasonably Eossible, accused should be given the enefit of the doubt and acquitted. ' Mr. sV. R. Meredith, Crown Prcteetcutor, put it to the jury that accused; had no right to try to pa3S the cart by inches when he had 45ft. of a good concrete road to choose from. Could it ; be asked,. he suggested,; that accused was driving skilfully and carefully, when he was incapable of passing safely a cart driving on the extreme left-hand side of the road ? The very fact, sworn to by the witnesses i for the defence, that Todd was hanging | in a drunken condition over the left-hand side of the car, made it the more incumbent upon accused to show care in his driving. It was through accused's neglect of duty to show care, and his carelessness in driving, that the accident had occurred. Mr. Justice Stringer, in the course of an exhaustive summing-up,: observed that there was a strong body of • evidence to justify the supposition that accused ■ was driving at ;an undue speed. . The whole question for the jury was whether accused had driven with reasonable care and taken ; reasonable care to avoid • the collision. -. ' - / After an hour's deliberation, the juryfound the prisoner guilty, but strongly recommended him to mercy on the ground that he had been led into the escapade by the deceased man, Todd. ■ "' -. His Honor deferred sentence until Saturday.

.-; DARK FOUND GUILTY".' '■ , DEATH OF MISS GUSTOFSON. fSX TELEGRAPH.— -PRESS ASSOCIATION. J ■-•■-- NEW PLYMOUTH. Wednesday. A' verdict of guilty, with a strong recommendation to mercy, was returned by the jury in the Supreme Court' ; to-day against David William Daniel Darraffh licensee of a ; hotel at Stratford, who pleaded not guilty to a charge of manslaughter arising out iof i the : motor collision involving the death of ?" Miss Gustofson. i-.-. : r : " :■:':::'■":'■-::.: ' .:-'{:.-; . Sentence was deferred pending consideration of, ap oint raised by counsel for prisoner; that, there had been a misdirection of the jury. Counsel asked Mr. Justice MacGregor to reserve for argument the question as to whether His Honor v had r hot misdirected the jury when he had said in his : charge: "You may place yourself in the I position of the relatives—. a father, or brother of the deceasedand * decide whether you;would consider that KDarragh L was responsible V for '■'. the : death ■S of this, unfortunate woman."