CITY POLICE COURT.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19270, 6 September 1924, Page 19

CITY POLICE COURT.

FRIDAY. SEPTEMBER 5. (Before Mr 11. W. Bundle, S.M.). An Old Offender.—Leonard Cecil M’Kinnon pleaded guilty to a charge of on or about July 4, at Dunedin, with intent to defraud, obtaining the sum of £2O from James Henry Looker by falsely representing that the said £2O was to be invested with Harold Benjamin Timmons—Chiefdetective Lewis said accused had been in the employ of a local land agent. He had known Looker for many years, and he called on him and asked him for £2O to invest in a concern which would double the amount in 10 days. Looker trusted accused, and gave him the money. Later accused secured another £2O from Looker under the same pretence. The address accused gave was fictitious*. He had Just concluded a sentence of one month at Timaru on a* charge of vagrancy, while he had served several other sentences for theft and false pretences. —Accused said he would endeavour to arrange restitution.— The Magistrate sentenced accused to be detained for reformative purposes for a period of 12 months. By-law Breaches.—Malcolm Gray was fined 5s (costs 7s) for riding a bicycle without lights.- Rex Griffiths pleaded guilty to a charge of driving a motor truck without registered numbers. He was fined 10s (costs 7s). For leaving a horse and dray unlighted after dark, and further with leaving a horse and dray unattended in Moray place, Walter Fraser Sherriff llarneiss was fined 10s (costs 7s). —- —Victor Robinson was charged with falling to, proceed in a south-westerly direction along the Esplanade at St. Clair. —The defendant pleaded guilty, saying that he was ignorant of the by-law. He was travelling for an Auckland firm, and had been here only two days.—He was convicted and discharged On Licensed Premises. —Duncan Cameron and Harold Mills pleaded guilty to a charge of having been found on the licensed premises of Tattersall’s Hotel after hours—Mr G. Lousley appeared for Mills.—Senior-sergeant Mathieson said that at 0.25 p.m. on the night in question Sergeants Turner and M'Carthy found the defendants on the hotel premises. They gave the excuse that they had come to use the telephone. They were both under the influence of liquor.—Mr Lousley said Mills had been waiting for his friend Cameron, who was using the telephone. He was of an excitable nature, and that was probably why the police thought he was drunk.-—Sergeant Turner said he found the men in the hotel, and later ascertained that neither defendant was known to the other. They did not ask for liquor.—The Rev. G. E. Morcton (acting probation officer) stated that Cameron was on probation, and the report of Mr Gumming was quite satisfactory.—The Magistrate imposed a fine of 20s (costs 7s) in each case. Harry Nikel and Ernest Hoggitt pleaded not guilty to charges of having been found on the licensed premises of the Gladstone Hotel.— Senior-sergeant Mathicson said that at 9 o’clock on the night in question Sergeant M’Entce visited the Gladstone Hotel and found the defendants there. They were both under the influence of liquor—After hearing further evidence. the Magistrate said there was some doubt about the matter, and the charges would be dismissed.

Maintenance Cases. —Arthur Gordon Scott appeared on remand charged with the disobedience of a maintenance order in respect of his wife. The Rev. R. E. Moreton (acting probation officer) said he had made inquiries, and had ascertained that drink; was the cause of defendant’s downfall. He did not realise his responsibilities.—The Magistrate sentenced defendant to six months’ imprisonment. Theft. —Herbert Lindsay Walker pleaded guilty to the theft on "August 2, at East Taieri, of two postal notes, one of 10s and the other of 3s, and 2s worth of postage stamps, the property of Walter Samuel Walker.—Chief-detective Lewis said that the accused was living with his parents at East Taieri and had been in the habit of going to the Post Office for the mail, collecting his father’s correspondence as well as his own. The money was in a letter addressed to the accused’ father, and this Walker appropriated. In consequence of an inquiry by Mr Walker, prior to which the accused had denied knowledge of the disappearance, the accused was interviewed by Detective Lean. Nothing previous was known against him. —Mr Allen said that Walker had been working away from home for some time, but had had to return on account of illhealth and was on a special diet. He had known him personally for a good many years, and could say that the accused had been a particularly quiet boy, and had never been in any previous trouble. There had been absolute confidence between the boy and his father, and the money could have been bad for the asking.—The Magistrate (addressing the accused): This seems a mean theft. The worst feature is that possibly some innocent person would have been blamed and probably you would not have been manly enough to shoulder it Continuing, Mr Bundle said that he would take into consideration the character given by Mr Allen. The accused would be convicted and ordered to, come up for sentence if called- upon within 12 months. A request for suppression of the name was refused, the magistrate pointing out that publication constituted the chief punishment, and that the accused was of a mature age.

Broach of Probation.—James Thomas Craig, aged 20 years, was charged with the terms of his release on probation at Blenheim.—Chief-detective Lewis said that the information came from Blenheim, and the accused was arrested on Thursday night by Detective Beer. Craig desired to .bo dealt with in Dunedin. Ho had been here for six weeks.—The Magistrate said that this was not a matter in which the State should bo put to the expense of sending the accused up to Blenheim. —The Rev.G. E. Moreton said that he had boon in communication with the probation officer at Blenheim and expected a report shortly. —The case was remanded till Monday. The accused asked that his name bo suppressed for family reasons. His family had been troubled enough already, he said.—The Magistrate: It’s too late to think of that naw. You have had your chance and your family must suffer as well as you. Unregistered Firearms.—James Aubrey Pledger, aged 20 years, pleaded not guilty to being in possession of an unregistered rifle.—lt was stated by the police that the defendant had neglected to notify his change of address.—A fine of 5s and costs was imposed.-——William Joseph Rainbow was charged with being in possession of a .16-bore shot gun without having a permit from the Superintendent of Police, and also with being in possession of an unregistered shot gun for more than seven days A further charge of allowing the chimney of his house in Albany street to catch fire was preferred. Defendant pleaded guilty under ignorance to the first and second charges, and guilty to the third, saying that ho had been in the house only a "fortnight and did not know that (ho chimney was foul.—The Senior-sergeant said that tho man arrived from Homo on August 9 and had made no attempt to register till August 25. These facts were brought to light hy a memorandum from Wellington .'.caving that the defendant had landed there bv the Ruahino, and had a shot gun in his possession.—Dio Magistrate; What sort of gun is it? —The Senior-sergeant: It is a useless old muzzle loader kept ns a souvenir.— The defendant was convicted and discharged cn the two charges relative to tho gun.— Tho Senior-scrgea.nt said that lie was not much to blame for the chimney fire, and a conviction only was recorded in this case.

No Taxi License.—Wilfred Waldron (Mr Irwin) was charged on remand with having driven a motor car for hire without having a license immediately at hand.— Olive Mary Dunne said that on August iO> she was seen hv Plain-clothes Constable Pnrkhill at the Shamrock Hotel, and had told him that she had hired a taxi to take her there, paying the sum of 7s 6d. —Mr Irwin said that the defendant was a returned soldier, and his father and his brother were both ta.xi drivers. He was employed in working about the cars at home. On this occasion ho had gone to South Dunedin to bring in a girl from South Dunedin. Ho had boon deprived of his right to drivo a car at nil.—Tho Magistrate said that it was most important that in cases whore tho City Council prohibited a man from driving a taxi ho must abide by tho order. A fine of 20s and oasts was imposed. ,