ASSAULT AT REMUERA.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20324, 3 August 1929, Page 16

ASSAULT AT REMUERA.

INCIDENT AFTER DANCE.

DEFENCE DENIES IDENTITY.

GUILTY ON SECOND COUNT.

The trial in tho Auckland Supreme Court yesterday of Arthur Collins (Mr. Singer), charged with assaulting a young woman at Rcmuera on March 9, turned largely on the question of identification. There were three counts, of indecent assault, assault so as to cause hodily harm and assault. The case was commenced before Mr. Justice Ilerdman on Thursday.

After a short retirement the jury brought in a verdict of guilty on the second count of causing actual bodily harm and His Honor deferred sentence until next Wednesday.

Laurence Shaw, cook at the Auckland Hospital, said that he knew the complainant and her sister. Ho attended the Newmarket dances and on the night of March 9 he saw the complainant having the last dance with accused before she left.

The complainant's mistress said that on the morning of March 10 she noticed that tho girl's face was very severely injured. She was much shaken and was unable to do her work. The girl com plained that an assault bad taken place, the night before at the Rennuera Library. Witness called in a doctor and it was a fortnight before tho girl was able to go about again. Identification by Photograph. A younger sister of complainant said that on the Saturday before March 9 .she saw accused at tho Newmarket dance. On March 9 she saw her sister dancing with him two or three times. In company with her sister she picked out a photograph of accused from a number of ol hers.

Detective Allen described the finding of tho complainant's broken spectacles in the grounds of the Rcmtiera Library about 30ft. from the footpath. On Juno 11 he placed 22 photographs on tho table in the detective office. The complainant immediately picked out the photograph of the accused as that of her assailant and her sistor confirmed that that was the man with whom complainant had been dancing. When interviewed accused admitted having been at the Newmarket dances and having danced with tho complainant, but denied having escorted her home.

Mr. Singer said that he thought ho would be ablo to satisfy tho jury that whoever had assaulted the girl it could not have been the accused. The only evidence of identification, that of the complainant, was totally uncorroborated. Tho jury had to consider whether it might not bo possible that the girl was mistaken. Accused in Witness Box. Accused, in evidence, said that he was married, with a child aged years. He had been employed as a sleeping-car attendant until March 9. That night he went to the Newmarket dance with his wife and had several dances with the comolainant. On March 11 ho went to Wellington to work in the Royal Hotel. He did not know anything about the charge until three months later. In cross-examination, accused said that ho did not write to Wellington first, but went down on the off chance of getting a job. On March 9he went home about midnight after the last dance. Ho had been put off his work in Wellington owing to inquiries over this affair. Mr. Meredith: Are you sure it was not over something else ?

Accused: Quite sure. His Honor retired to discuss with counsel whether certain questions were permissible. Accused said that he had been out of work about two days in Wellington before ho returned to Auckland. His wife had been living with him in Wellington. Tho complainant had no reason to have any grudge against him, so far as he knew. The Judge's Summing Up.

Gladys Collins, wife of the accused, corroborated her husband's evidence, saying that he had never gone to the Newmarket dances without her. Ho escorted her home on tho night of March 9, after dancing the last dance with her. In addressing tho jury, Mr. Meredith pointed out that a girl had ample opportunity of knowing her dancing partner, especially when she went home with him in a lighted tramcar. It woi>ld have been quite possible for the incident to have happened as described by tho complainant, and still for accused to have been back in time for the last dance at Newmarket with his wife. * His Honor said that tho question for the jury was whether tho evidence for the Crown led them as reasonable men to a conviction that the accused was guilty. He suggested that tho jury should confine its attention to the second count of assault so as to cause actual bodily harm. There was no question that some man brutally assaulted tho girl that nicht. The only .question was, who did : t ? Accused admitted that the girl had been a congenial dancing companion that night. If the girl was not tolling the truth she must have deliberately invented a wicked untruth Sh" must have known whether this young man saw her home or not. There was no reason why she should bear him any animosity.