CONFLICT OF EVIDENCE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20388, 20 April 1928, Page 4

CONFLICT OF EVIDENCE.

INSPECTOR v. CONSTABLE. MAGISTRATE UPHOLDS CONSTABLE. (Special to Dailx Times.) AUCKLAND, April 18. A feature of a case heard m the Motrintville MaS'trate'a Court, to-day was that"a police inspector, and a.Hamilton traffic inspector gave evidence *";»»£* fence against that given by stable and a local traffic inspector for the prosecution. . A Hamilton taxr driver Alec Hutcheson, was charged With driving! ft a dangerous speed through Mornnsvjlle Bo Sence waa given W> Mr Branch traffic inspector, and Constable Heepes that a trap was set m Mornnsville on the morning of the Te Aroha races. A distance of 547 yards was paced ott. me inspector stood with a stopwatch, at one end while Constable Heepea had a wateM at the other end, and took a note ot the times and the number pi the cars. It was stated Hutcheson drove through the trap at a speed which the witnesses described as dangerous. Inspector Eccles,.officer in charge of the Hamilton police district, who passenger in Hutcheson's car, sar that at no time did the defendant exceed the speed limit, and Le had driven most carefully. Witness considered that the • tests were wrong. . ' , Patrick Courtney, traffic inspector at Hamilton, described the method employed by Branch and Constable Heepes js crude and stupid and said it was impossible, to pruge accurately the speed of cars passing through the trap. • The Magistrate (Mr R. L. Patterson) held that Hutcheson had travelled at a dangerous speed, and imposed a fine of £1 10s. His Worship admitted that the trap was a crude one, but said that the test was sufficiently accurate for all practical | purposes. He gave the defendant the i benefit of five miles an hour. , Thirtv-one other defendants, who were | caught in the trap, and who did not appear, were fined varying amounts.