MAGISTRATE'S COURT.
THIS DAY. [Before T. A. Clowes, Esq., J.P., and Geo. Sumpter, Esq., J.P.J BTITJNKENNESS. James Adams plead.d guilty to this offence in Thames-street yesterday. Accused did not apperr to have recovered from the eftacts of his " spree," and was ordered to be kept in custody for 48 hours. LARCENY. Andrew Black was charged with having on the 19th instant, stolen from John O'Connor a pursj containing money in notes and silver to the amount of £4. Prisoner pleaded "Not guilty." Sergeant O'Neill conducted the case for the prosecution. John O'Connor, hibourer, deposed that he was in the Commercial Hotel on Monday night. He had a purse, but prisoner, who was wit'i him in the hotel at tiie time, gave me another to keep my money safe. He put his money into the purse he received from the accused. The money consisted of not'js and silver, and amounted to about £4. Prisoner asked ir'm for the loan of some money. Prisoner told me lie had no money, and asked witness for five shilling?. Witness gave him half-a-crown. We were drinking together afterwards. He asked me to "shout" for his sweetheart, which witness did, and went into a room at the hack of tiie bar. Witness did not remember leaving the room. When he awoke next morning, he found himself in the same room as the prison r. He missed his money, and he asked accused if he had seen his mon ;y. Prisoner replied that lie knew nothing about it, and said he woul 1 get witness some money during the d*ty. Saw accused next day in the Queen's Hot ;], and asked him to come along with him (witness), and make it all right Prisoner's mate 10l l him not to be such a fool as to lo with witness into " chokey," but to remain where he was. Witness" l.al not given h's money to anyone, nor authorised anyone to take it, and it had not yet been returned. Charles Johnston, a labourer, remembered being at the Commercial on Monday nighi hist. Saw the prosecutor and prisoner there. They were in the kitchen. It was about half-past eleven. O'Connor was drunk, and sitting on a seat, with his face on the table. Witness saw the prisoner take a pocket-book out of jsi"osecntor's pocket, and afterwards he went into the bar and "shouted" for witness. Told prisoner that he had better leave the man's pooket-book alone. Could not say how much money there was in the pocketbook. Prisoner knew what lie was doing. James Carroll, Sergeant of Police, stated that yesterday morning prosecutor reported the loss of some money. He gave the name of the man he suspected as White, and the description of the man he gave corresponded with that of the prisoner. Witness searched the pr : .soner about five o'clock yesterday, and found a half sovereign and Is. 6d. in silver. Prisoner was identified by the prosecutor as the man he suspected ; but not having found the purse with the money, witness did not then detain prisoner. In consequence of statements to him this morning by the witness Johnston lie again arrested prisoner. Mr. Balmer stated that he had just received instructions to appear for the accused, and applied for an adjournment, saying that he was prepared to offer substantial bail. After discussion, the Bench agreed to adjourn the case until 2 o'clock. On the Court reassembling at 3 o'clock, Mr. Balmer cross-examined the witnesses who had been previously examined. John 0(Co:mor, cross-examined, said he was not sure how many drinks prisoner and he had had together at Maitland's, nor what liquor he had drunk. Charles Johnston, cross-examined, deposed that lie was not drunk when he went into Maitland's that night, although he had been drinking. He could say what time it was when he went into Maitland's. He was sober when he went in, but had a number of drinks there. He remained there until the evening. He could not say how many drinks he had in IVXaitland's, but he had spent 18s. there for drink. He had had no' drmk frqm the time of leaving Maitland's until returning. The witness had frequently refused to answer questions during the cross-exa-mination. By the Bench : How many drinks have you had since you left the Court this morning 1 Witness : I have liad a good many. The Court: Sow many have you had ? Witness : I slioi.Ll say about live. Cross-examination continued : He had some diink after returning to Maitland's. but could not say how mudi, It was abont half-past eleven when he saw prisoner take the pocket-book out of the
pi'osecutor's pocket. Prisoner shouted for him (witness) out of the money taken out of the prosecutor's pocket. He told prisoner to put the pocket-book back. Prisoner did not say the pocket-book was hi-?. Witness saw prisoner take £2 out of the pocket-book. By the Bench : The pocket-book was a smnil black one, with elastic band. Mr. Balmer said that there was really no evidence against the prisoner. The purse had not been recovered, and the only real evidence against the accused was that given by an accomplice in the crime, if crime there was. He called the Bench's attention to the very uns itisfactory nature of the evidence given by the man Johnston. He submitted that there was really nothing to warrant them in finding the accused guilty. The following evidence"was then taken for the defence : Daniel Sinclair, barman at the Commercial Hotel, deposed that he remembered O'Connor being at the hotel. O'Connor " shouted " for nine persons, .and had ! afterwards " shouted " five small bottles of champagne, for which witness charged 7s. 6d. each, and which O'Connor had paid for. O'Connor had also a number of ot'-er drinks. Witness knew Johnston, who had been in and out of the hotel dnring the day, and " shouted " for a number of friends. Johnston left about 1 o'clock, and came back about half-past 10 o'clock, and witness refused to give him any more drink, as he was drunk. Johnston slept in tfie same room as witness, having been put to bed there by Mr. Maitland, as he was too drunk to turn him out of the house. Did not think that O'Connor slert in the house. In cross-examination, witness said that O'Connor had shouted for a large number of people, but did not see the pi'isoner shout for any one. Janiei Donaldson, labo-er, stated that he was in the Com mere'al Hotel on Monday, aud saw the prosecutor there. He was as "tgit as a bottle." Saw O'Connor drinkin ; he had several drinks. Did not see Johnston there. Cross-examined by Sergeant O'Neill: He saw both O'Connor and the prisoner in the kitcnen together. He could not say whether the prosecutor and prisoner were alone in the kitchen when he left. William M iitland, landlord of the Commercial Hotel, said that the prisoner and O'Connor were at his hotel on Monday evening, and both were the worse for liquor. The witness Johnston was a'so at the hotel that evening, an 1 was ".pretty we 1 on." Witness did not thii;k Johnston was in a fit state to remember what was transpiring, and had given him (witness) £l6 to mind for him. Tne first lie'had heard of the money being stolen was to-day. Connor had never compl t ne 1 of los'nj- any money. T .e Bench said that, considering the xinsatisfactory manner in which the witness .Jo mston had given this evidence, they felt compelled to dismiss the casa--
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Bibliographic details
Oamaru Mail, Volume I, Issue 284, 21 March 1877, Page 2
Word Count
1,255MAGISTRATE'S COURT. Oamaru Mail, Volume I, Issue 284, 21 March 1877, Page 2
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