SUPREME COURT.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXIX, Issue 3675, 27 February 1899, Page 6

SUPREME COURT.

CRIMINAL SESSIONS. Saturday, February 25. ' . (Before His Honor the Chief Justice.) ' theft of building material. William Ham, convicted on Wednesday, the 22nd inst., of stealing a quantity of building material from houses in course of erection, on dates ranging from May 15 to November 8, and remanded pending probation officers report, was placed in the dock to receive 86 Detective Broborg deposed as to the quantity of building material lodged in accused’s .premises, mentioning, inter alia, that there were nearly 100 drain P 1?n S reply to the usual question, accused made a . statement in which he confessed the badness of his case, put urged that he had done everything m his power to make reparation. He called. His Honor’s attention to the jury s recommendation to probation. T _ Before passing sentence, His Honor made a few remarks on the heinous nature of accused’s offence. < From .the testimonials as to character and previous reputation the probation officer, had put in he supposed accused was justified in claiming he had borne a good character. Nevertheless the facts of the case ,as disclosed by the evidence were that ; he occupied a house with his wife and children, and went out night after night and stole property. No sane ; person could suppose that he had gone out at all hours of the night, as it was shown he was in the habit of doing, for an honest purpose. He had been ,'fsuspected, yet persisted, despite remom stration, in Ins nefarious expeditions.* As one witness declared, he would have .been ruined if these pilfcrmgs had not been stopped. He had. lost son* £6O worth of building material. As foi the testimonials as to character, they AJ®™ evidently given by persons with little sense of the responsibility of what ; they were doing. They were calculated to mislead people. The,; accused was then sentenced to two years ■ imprisonment in the Terrace Gaol, with hard laboui.