SUPREME COURT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22546, 13 April 1935, Page 22

SUPREME COURT

Friday, April 12. (Before his Honor Mr Justice Kennedy.) REFORMATIVE DETENTION. Andrew Gordon Campbell appeared for sentence on charges of breaking, entering, and theft. The Crown Prosecutor (Mr F. B. Adams) produced a police report with respect to the prisoner and said he had nothing to add to what had already been placed before the court. Prisoner was not represented by counsel, but he was given an opportunity of perusing the police report. His Honor said the prisoner had a somewhat lengthv record of crime. He had been committed to Borstal in 1933 after convictions on nine charges of dis-j honesty. He was actually on probationary, license when, this and other for which he was now serving a Ben's, tence of imprisonment were committed? He appeared to be quite irresponsible, having embarked on a career of crime despite a good home and regular employment. He would be sentenced to 15 months' reformative detention, the sentence to be cumulative upon that which he was already serving, but concurrent with any other. ADMITTED TO PROBATION.

Percy Staples, who was not represented by counsel, appeared for sentence on charges of breaking, entering, and theft.

The Crown Prosecutor submitted a police report, and said he had nothing to say in connection with the charges. His Honor said it appeared that the crime with which the prisoner was charged had been committed while he was acting in association with the previous prisoner. He was already serving a term of imprisonment for another offence committed in association with Campbell. It was to be hoped that his present sentence would be a lesson to him. The probation officer had recommended him for probation and had reported that the prisoner's conduct prior to his association with Campbell had been good. He would, therefore, be placed on probation for three years, the period to commence at the expiration of the sentence he was now serving. Special conditions, however, would be attached to his probationary license. He would be required to make restitution of half the value of the goods stolen by means ot such monthly instalments as the probation officer might direct. He was also ordered to pay the costs of the prosecution (fl Is). Further, he must not ride a motor cycle or drive a motor, nor must he leave his father's employ for the first two years of the period of probation. DIVORCE. Decrees absolute were granted in the following cases: —William James Peterson (Mr C. J. L. White) v. Christina Robinson Peterson and Maurice Kitto; Selina Lily Corcoran (Mr J. S. Sinclair) v. Patrick Vincent Corcoran. Petitioner was granted custody of the three children of the marriage; .Joseph Augustine Murray (Mr A. G. Neil!) y. Florence Gertrude Murray (Mr C. J. L. White). —Custody of the. three children of the marriage was granted to petitioner, respondent to have access to them at all reasonable times. ORDER REFUSED. James Lawson moved fo.r a writ of certiorari with respect to the judgment of the Arbitration Court in the case Samuel Kennedy v. James Lawson. x«e applicant conducted his own case, and Mr E. J. Anderson appeared for Kennedy aud for the Court of Arbitration. The plaintiff based his application on the submission tiiat the Court of Arbitration acted in excess of it s jurisdiction, and alleged irregularities of procedure with respect to the service of originating proceedings, the joining of two co-defendants without the consent of the applicant and the amendment of a judgment already given. His Honor, after traversing the facts of the case, refused to make an order and dismissed the application for the reason that he found that the Court ot Arbitration acted completely within its jurisdiction, and that the alleged irregularities were in point of fact not irregularities at all. Lawson was ordered to pay Kennedy's costs (£l2 12s, with disbursements). REDUCTION OF CAPITAL. George Clark, Ltd., for whom Mr J. S. Sinclair appeared, applied for an order for the reduction of capital from £SOOO to £750, made up of 5000 fully-paid shares of 3s each. The reduction was confirmed and an order made. The world's smallest daily newspaper is published on Thursday Island, which lies between the Far North of Australia and New Guinea. It is called the Torres Strait Daily Pilot. It is a single sheet, 12in by 9in, printed on one side, but it keeps the inhabitants of this tiny speck of Empire abreast of worlJ doings till the ocean-going steamers (with gaps of weeks) bring city papers to the island. The subscription rate is Is a week, but to non-snlisc I '' irs the cost is Is (Jd a copy. The Pilot < isists of three columns. One is devoted to shipping news, another to Australian and cable news, and the third to advertisements.