ACQUITTED OF MURDER.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19255, 18 February 1926, Page 12

ACQUITTED OF MURDER.

FATHER WHO KILLED SON. ACCUSED FOUND INSANE. RECENT ELTHAM TRAGEDY. BOY SLAIN IN A WASH-HOUSE. [I!Y XEXiEGHAPH. —OWN COHEESPONDENT. ] NEW PLYMOUTH, Wednesday. In the Supreme Court this morning, before Mr. Justice Reed, the trial was held of Archibald Gray, of Eltham, an inspector of the Public Health Department, charged with the murder of his son, William Gray, aged 16 years, at Eltham on November 26 last. Mr. C. H. V» eston appealed for the Crown, and Mr. L. M. Moss, with him Mr. A. A.. Stewart, of Eltham, represented ihe accused, who pleaded not'guilty. In outlining the case, Mr. Weston said the accused belong to a religious sect known as the "Plymouth Bretnren, and he thought from his nature he was attracted by the more gloomy side of that sect's beliefs rather than by its brighter side. From papers m the possession of the Crown it was evident tnero was a gloomy sido to that religion. At the time of the offence the accused was under notice by l;is department to transfer to Dannevirke, and in consequence had sold his house. A plan of the house was placed, before the jury.

On the morning of the crime a neighbour of accused,, a Mr. Carter, was attracted by'cries from Gray':? place, and 011 f;oing into tho wash-house, he found Gray standing over the boy, who was lying on the floor of the building with his throat cut. There were also wounds on his head and Gray had a razor in his hand. His wife was also there, and there were marks on her throat. Admission by Accuiied. Tho police were sent for and Constable Towns en d took Gray to the station, where he made a statement which was written down and signed by him. In this statement he admitted having been restless end nervous and sleepless of late. He said it had been his intention to kill his family and take his own life. In view of this counsel said the only possible defence could be that of insanity. To establish that, however, he- said it had to be shown that tie accused did not know at the time that what he was doing was wrong and that he did not understand tho nature and quality of tho act committed. In this case it could not be said that Gray did not know what he was doing or whalJ he intended to do. His admission to the police showed that he was capable of forming the intention to do away with his family and himself. Counsel dealt with the legal aspect of insanity, and invited the jury to take a broad view of the definition . given in the Act. He urged the jury to be satisfied before bringing in a verdict of acquittal that the. plea of ineanity was completely proved, A Neighbour's Evidence. George Henry .Carter, neighbour of the accused,, said when, he went into Gray's place on tho morning of November 26 on account ol hearing cries and a great commotion, he saw Mrs. Gray and the little girl ooming out of the wash-house. They were :in their night attire. Mrs. Gray was covered in blood. The boy was lying on the iloor in a pool of blood, and Gray was leaning over him. Witness pulled him out of tho shed and asked him if he knew: what he was, doing, and he replied, "No." He asked him if he knew he had killed his little boy, and ho again said "No." Witness at that time did not see anything of an axe or a hammer.. He saw that. Gray had a razor in his hand and witness took it and threw it over the fence.: Tho razor produced was the one he took frora Gray. As to his habits of life the -witness said Giay was industrious and conscientious). He belonged to the Plymouth Brethren ar.J took his religion seriously • tjGnstable Townsend said "flen he saw Gray he asked him if he knew what he had done and accused answered "Yes" iu a quiet tone. He said he had been nervy and sleepless lately. He had intended to kill the whole family and then take his own life. At the police station Gray sat down and said: "It is .an awful thing I've done. I don't know why I did it." His admission was reduced to writing (produced), and Gray signed it. The Case tox the Defence.

In opening for the defence Mr. MOS3 said they worald definitely submit ;that there was in Gray's case a form of mental disease. He pointed out that c.yen the case for the Crown showed thnfc on the day of the crime Gray was very far from being a normal man. He detailed Gray's fnovements for several days prior to this time of the offence and said that his y/hole behaviour could not suggest anything but the* belief in a continuance of fee happy domestic relations which had (ireviousljr existed' in the family. Ho con. trasted this with the brutality of the crime and said it could only be attributed to a man who was suddenly switched off the rails of sanity and did something for Which he could not be held responsible. £le had 110 doubt that this wa3 a proper fcase in which the defence of insanity Ihould be raised and he was sure from: the evidence that, that defence -would be fcompletely established. Dr. Bkiir. acting superintendent of the Porirua Mental Hospital, said that while be had Gray under observation since the Mine /thci accused had told him that periodically he had fits of depression and sleeplessness in which the idea of suicide tame into his mind. Previously he had been able to withstand the suggestion, but tins time the impulse to commit suicide tame upon him overwhelmingly. But ha felt he could not do it and leave his family and so he must kill them first. His tnind seemed to tell him it was the right thing to do. He could not say whether Ins account of what took place was what [ifi actually remembered or what he had tieen told. " Sasmed to be a Sreara." At other times, said witness, Grav said f - ,r \ f h °>* seemed to be a dream, |E,d he thought 011 one occasion he might bake up to find the thing had never hastened. lie used to weep for the loss ot his son, but he Said he had no feeling of" f uilt. He believed it was an affliction Jent by God to try him. Eternity woidd t.'.plaia why it had been permitted. From what the witness had heard and. from his' own observations he was coniinced that accused was suffering from lento melancholia and was not responsible [or his actions at the time. After hearing fa'-ther medical evidence irought to-establish the plea of inanity the jury acquitted accused on this 'round a of insanity and accused was combitted to a mental hospital