SUPREME COURT.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXVII, Issue 12698, 16 March 1910, Page 5

SUPREME COURT.

(Before His Honor Mr- Justice Cooper.) TO-DAY'S PROCEEDINGS.. The Court resumed at 10 a.m. SENTENCES. Joseph Henry NorcrosSy who had pleaded guilty to two breaches of the Bankruptcy Act m respec#;of failure to keep proper books and contracting debts vyithout reasonable prospect of paying *ame, appeared for sentence. : '" .Mr Stock, who .appeared for prisoner, called Dr Porter, who considered confinement beyond a. week or two would, affect the prisoner's health. ;Hi» Honor said he considered \ this a case m which the provisions of the First 'Offenders' -..Probation Act could not properly be applied. The prisoner was not j* suffering from any illness at present ot,her than . his deformity. Prisoner had nd,t only failed to keep • proper books- of account, but had defrauded, his creditors by obtaining credit when he knew he could; not pay his debts. - It wos hardly a. (case m which he could extend the pro-visions'-of the First Offenders' Act. He would not, however; ''-send prisoner to gaol on any lengthy sentence. He Would take into consideration prisoner's deformity, although the doctor stated he was otherwise m an ordinary state ot" health. , 'lt r was impossible, his Honor added, to pass- over, a. serious offence like this without- 'imprisonment^ and he tybuld imposes sentence of one month's imprisonment" without hard labor. He had made the sentence lenient because of the state of health of prisoner's wife, and because , the 'prisoners own health' | was not" normal. . He could not pass; over, such a. serious offence by applying probation. Prisoner had committed a serious offence, which Justified punishment, although: jiisv Honor. , made the punishment exceedingly lightPatrick John Ho fen, who pleaded guilty on .Monday to, attempted fraud m respect- of .certain chattel. 1 ? held under a, bill of sale was brought up for sentence. Mr Coleman said he had no evidence to. ca11. ...-,,.

His Honor said prisoner had committed a breach of the ; Chattels Transfer Act by t . selljng goods' mortgaged- to another person. The prim's . previous character Avds such as to preclude his Honor from the possibility of treating him as a first- offender under the Probar tion Act. - 'Prisoner .woiild be' sentenced to. six months' imprisonment m Auckland gaol wtyh hard labor. • Thq. Grown . Prosecutor stated that various demands had been made on the police respecting tlie property, and .he asked that his Honor should make' some qrdfer iri respect of ; tlie same. It was no doubt a question' between the purchasers and the bill of sale holder, arid' he did not know his HonOr would' make ahjr order m the matter. . .His Honor said he . Avould hardly give any directions until the parties were before him. Mr, Nolan went, on tp ..say tliat one of the articles in -question Avas a sewing machine, and, the question had arisen as: .to whether, tnis was the .same as referred to m the bill of sale. . After further discussion his "Honor said he would make no; definite order m the meantime, and the- application cduld be, renewed later, and the parties inter-ested-notified .accordingly. .'."". •V^b'sequenWy the CrbWri Prosecutor announced that he had been advised by Miv Coleihairi, . acting on* behalf of the purchaser of the sewjrig r iriachiri!2, that he, did not press .his- claim. There was no,w no question between; the- parties. His Honor thereupon made an order that, all property- identified, included ih. the hill of sale be returned to Mr. Piesse, the holder of the bill of sale.

ALLEGED ASSAULT AND ROBBERY

-The hearing of the four counts m respect. of a charge of assault arid robbery, ' preferred against Cha-rles Bpggard, Clifford, alias Mote, -Was continued,] before a jury of which Mr E7 H. Arri; j bridge was foreman. The case' for the j defence was .proceeded with. W.- -Harry; Pool, formerly hair-dresser m Gisborne, gave evidence that accused ealjed on him, and stated he had just been discharged from gaol and asked for tlie loan of some money. Witness lent him £1 Ss. Accused said he was going rtp the line, and was to some money and would repay the loan -on his return to town. ■■•■'■•

'E. Dolley was also called upon accused's behalf, but failed to appear. Frances Hoggard, wifeof accused, gave evidence that accused arrived home ber tween 11 and. vlSi.g'clock at 'night 7on Monday, Aprils. There was nothing unusual about him. He did not look as if he Avas drunk or had been fighting. He ; left" ; next "morning ; , about 6 o'clock,, taking £5 or £6, part of his' (accused's) \ earnings from the Public Works; ' Her husband's monthly wage averaged beWfofe $9 ; afissW' When her husband was 9 fined tot , JtresriaSs • she; sent T. Parker down to pay '• the firie, and Avhen Parker returned he said her husband had stated he would rather .do'^the /four'! days. 7 " ; By the, Crown Prosecutor : Accused at this time hod been about a fortnight out of work. Her husband had commenced woi'fc 'm January!, iihd worked continuously except for a month's imprisonment on from Triihape. During: the period tlie men on the Avorks raised' a subscription for her; she could have done .Without it. She had been married to apcused for four years. '.7-7 His yHonor, . at th is stage, ruled that examination' of the 'witness as to accm>ed!s character was not adrhissable. ..-Witness Halgood, recalled, stated that he rode down from Gold Creek at about 8,30, Ayhen lie saw two meijon the road. Returning With, accusfed later they saw tho two men again. Accused then proceeded to address the jury, stating that he submitted his defence to theni with every degree of confidence, as the Crown, he asserted, had failed: to prove their case, And there was absolutely no corroboration of Mullins' story. Accused went on at length to point put the discrepancies m the evidtenoe, submitting thht the evidence of for, the Crown only proved that the two men were drunk. . Concluding an able appeal to the jury, accused 'said ho awaited Avith every confidence, the only verdict that could be returned, one of ]"nojt guilty." i The C">Wh' Prosecutor .pointed to the fact that on^rrayal at Waikohu accused ' - aa no>th6iUjyVarid was given a phl, » n &'t° fM "is tea, yet at 9 o'clock at niernt he paid an account for 19s 6d Where had), ho got that money from? Had lie had it m his possessiori before he must have been lying previously When he said he had' no money. At all events MulUn's had< the mon^v m his possession, and accused was the onjy one except Dick who was m his company. Wftat r&aspri,. R.he asked, should prompt Mrillfns to atteiript" to sAyefv the freedom of Recused away if his complaint A^as not true?;..'.. .•"*■ , .i His Horiorjsnid it Avas a singular case Th^re ,\yas no doubt that IVfullins had the money on liim when he left the Post. Offioe that afternoon. Up to the arrival rijt Waikohui th c evidence was clear. The dase almost entirely depended upon Mullins' story, 7E*dded his Honor, as he proe'eeded^ to Tevimv the evidence. Indicatwns %>inted to the fact that the tAvo bottles of whisky Ayere consumed by the tAyo, men rather than that a spoonful of Ayhisky taken, upon half a dozen shandy j^affs should knock one of the men doAvn like a log. _ The prisoner avos right Avhen _he said the Crown must establish its case, and they must, satisfy them (the jii^y) beyond all doubt. ' : Th'e first rather singular point was that although Mullins hifjd ,«. mark on his- faco lie did not shoAA r any very great evidence of an- assault. This,. hoAvever. T^id riot altogether destroy Mullins' evidence, a» he might have been m a staf.n of fVertU-lntoxicatlon, which ha denied. They had also to consider Avhy Mullins. if he was sober, did not go back and give the alarm. This indicated tho Avitness was more under the influence of .liquor than he had made out. > It avis hard to reconcile Mullins' and Dick's evidence respecting their condition when one considered that they- remained on tlie roadway,; m an apparently drunken condition, ia great portion of next day, perhaps consuming the balance of tho liquor. His Honor went on to' refer to the aspect of accusedYs possession of money had to the case, stating that it was not necessary to believe "that the money paid to Mrs O'Oonnell next day was portion of that stolen. His Honor pointed out ihat accused Avas under no : - i ' '

obligation to give evidence, but had made a statement that he did not rob Mullins of th© money. His Honor commended the careful consideration of the iase to the jury, which retired at 11.3 Q. After half all hour's retirement' the jury returned with a verdict of not guilty, and accused was discharged. SHEEPSTEALING. William John Knight was charged with having, on or about December 13, last at Whaeo, Te Karaka., stolen 21 ewes 'and 18 lambs, the property of Margaret Ellen MacLeanand others, and also,, upon a second count, with having received the Animals' knowing' same to have, been dishonestly obtained.

Accused pleaded guilty. "' • ' Accused was further charged with having : .stolen one ewe and one lamb, the property °f Frank Patullo, and upon I a secon'ra>jjknint similar to tliat m the previous,- charge. Accused : 1 am not sure. I don't know until I see the earmarks. It may have been done at the same time. His Honor: Do you plead guilty or not? Accused: Yes, I may' as well. Mr L. T. Barnard,- who appeared, for the accused, said the case was a singular one, as the man was of 1 ah unusually peculiar- character, and there' was a history of insanity attached, one of his relations being an inmate' of a lunatic

asylum. His Honor : Do you suggest that prisoner is unable to differentiate between right and wrong? Mr Burnard: No, yoiir Honor. 1 have looked into that' phase" of the subject, and I have had the man medically examined.

His Honor : Then it is a moral insanity?

Mr Bernard : Yes, that is what makes the case difficult to deal with.

His Honor : A learned judge, once said that with regard to a. ftiiin r who- bad^ari irresistible desire to appropriate Other persons' property it was his irresistible duty to punish him. Mr Burnhrd : Yes, that is so; but it is the question of what punishment should be meted out to him.

Counsel went on to vsuggest that the evidence ofthe. medical man might assist his Honor iri. fixing the penalty. , His Honor agreed, and remanded prisoner till 2 p.m. ;to enable evidence to be called.

.When the Court resumed at 2 p.m., Mr Burnard called. Dr Collins, who deposed that he had an opportunity of examining the prisoner without the latterY) khowleVlg^ that he was being examined. - ! The man's mental bala rice was now strong,. and he appeared to have an exaggerated opinion of his own poAvers. From his. knowledge of the man he..considered he was suffering from delusions. He understood' tliat the history of the family Avas not (i good one as, far as sanity was concerried. One delusion Avas thftt, he could run backwards" faster than most 'men' could run forwards.

His Honor: Wpuld you certify 1 him as insane? — No> I would not.

Counsel added -'that the man was apparently-' not ip .possession of normal knowledge.

His Honor : He is sane. He knows the difference between right and wrong.

..Proceeding, his Honor said that it would, be quite .impossible for him to say the prisoner was hqt responsible for his actions. Tlie case was one m which imprisonment should clearly, be imposed. 'It was said he. had not a -proper mpral sense of the right of his neighbor's propert)', but that "was the fault of all per. sons convicted of 'appropriating the property of other people. Had' they their full moral sense they Would not comhiit crime.' The present v system provided that a person who illegally commits .crime with dishonest intention ; niirst be :prevented from committing • other . crimes, and the only way to deal with snch persons was the imposition of a term of imprisonment. Later on, his Honor added, some other more scientific method might be devised., jSheepstealing was a very, . serious crime \ and except m peculiar. ca T ses ought to be severely .punished. In a country like this, where farmers were dependant upon the honesty of their neighbors, it .was' essential that persons convicted of this offence' .should be punished. - Accum*' had. pleaded guilty to .stealing 39 sheep, and again £ sheep. He not only' knew the sheep were on his property, but had taken "steps to remove their earmarks arid destroy their identity. A sentence of two years'- imprisonmnent was imposed -uivejtch j case,' the sentences, to be concurrent*}^ CLAIM FOR DAMAGES. ..£-..'

Mabel Field, of (gisborne, an infant by her : ' guardian ad liteh, Maurice Field,, of Gisborne, tailor, and Elizabeth Field, of Gisborne, married vvoinan, jdjiintiFf (Mr L. T. Burnard), and ',Aiex;andSr Thomson, of Gisborne, florist, * defendant (Mr W. L. Rees, instructed by Mr A. Rees).> His' Honor; remarked that' the case had been brought on by 'confeeiXt- before a jury of four. , ',"./ Tho following r Avere empanelled : — J. Grant, J. Steel, B, T. Higgins, and E. S. Kimpton (foreman). Plaintiff claim set forth that the plaintiff, Mabel ' Field, suffered -Uamage from personal injuries caused to' her''' by a dog kept and owned by defendant which attacked arid bit her on January .3- last at the residence of plaintiff. „- It was further asserted' that the dog "liad, previously bitten persons and that plaintiff had frequently requested defendant to remove the dog. The injuries > sustained consisted of the laceration of' the throat and thigh and UieV consequent formation Qf several pernianCrit. scars upon the throat. Great pdijV> and shock were suffered and injury to the child's general health sustained. Plaintiffs claimed £175.dariiages. The case for the defence, is a denial that the child suffered damage and injury, and that if she did so it was brought upon herself by the acts of herself and that of the other plaintiffs ih irritating and ill-treating the dog. Defendant also denied that the animal ' was of a mischievous nature or had to > his knowledge previously, attacked persons ; on the contrary the dog was docile, harmless and accustomed to romp with children. On no occasion did he permit his dog £> .^Wil^oi^.the premises of plaintiffs. Prior to the date m question, however, the dog was induced to visit plaintiffs' premises and AVaS fed and encouraged by plaintiffs' and other children, contrary to his wishes. While deriving all liability,defendant* paid into. Court £29 7s which he considers is sufficient to satisfy plaintiuV claipi. ,-•-•;■ -■'.-.•.

(Per Press Association.) WANGANUI,. last night. . Arthur Campbell, Avho pleaded guilty of theft of sheepskins, was sentenced to eighteen months' imprisonment. Harry Wildman Avas admitted to probatiori for twelvie months for stealing a cheque. Leonard Lotcjr was 'sentenced to two years for forging and,- uttering, and Robt. Harris to two i for criminal assault. '7 ''•;''.

WELLINGTON, fast night. \ In the case, Lockie A ; ..Rawson, claim £786 damages for injuries received on the golf links, f thc jury Avent out to inspect the links, nineteen miles from town, and on return judgment Avas given for defendant.