PUNISHED FOR CRIME.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 19209, 24 December 1925, Page 14

PUNISHED FOR CRIME.

YOUNG MAN'S OFFENCES. THE SENTENCE ON DOUBLE. COMMENT BY THE JUDGE. " You seem to have made up your mind to live by crime. It is, therefore, my duty to protect tho public against you," said Mr. Justico Reed in the Supreme Court yesterday, when imposing sentence on Clifford Nelson Double, who had pleaded guilty in the Police Court to theft, forgery and arson. Some time ago prisoner, on his own admission, unlawfully removed a quantity of furniture from tho residence of Mr. H. P. Kissling, in St. Stephen's Avenue, Parnell, to an auction room, broke into and set fire to the house of Miss Beatrice G. L. Smith, Burwood Crescent, set firo to a shed, the property of Mr. A. M. Mcintosh, Brighton Road, forged and uttered cheques to the value of £ll9, and committed theft.

His Honor recited to the prisoner a largo list of convictions for theft, false pretences, breaking and entering, and forgery, dating from 1916. " And now," proceeded the Judge, "you havo pleaded guilty to two charges of arson, a charge of theft, two charges of breaking and entering and seven charges of forgery."

Double was sentenced to three years' hard labour on each charge, the terms to be concurrent, and was declared an habitual criminal. MAN'S LONG RECORD. OFFENCES OVER 43 YEARS. Although only 54 years of age, William Knox, who also appeared before Mr. Justice Reed for sentence on a charge of breaking and entering at Auckland, had against, him a record of <ls previous convictions, dating back to 1882. Prisoner said for the last four years he had been carrying on the business of a fish-hawker. lie had been "going straight" for that period. llis Honor: Why you, with your record, were ever allowed to corno out and prey upon the public after having been declared an habitual criminal I am unable to understand; and ever since you have been stealing and committing various other offences.

To support his claim that he had been

"going straight" prisoner asked that Detective O'Sullivan should be examined. The detective could only say that he had occasionally seen prisoner hawking fish in the city. His Honor: He does not seem to have had much time in which to hawk fish. I find that he has had no fewer than 13 convictions in the last four years. Prisoner at first said there must be something wrong with the record, but when His Honor read the particulars of various recent offences, Knox ceased to challenge the correctness of the list, and merely asked the Court to be as lenient with him as possible. Prisoner was sentenced to 12 months' hard labour and once more declared an habitual criminal