INTOXICATED TAXI-DRIVER

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 16491, 8 November 1927, Page 2

INTOXICATED TAXI-DRIVER

30 DAYS "HARD" AND LICENSE CANCELLED (Special to the Herald.) TOLAGA BAY, this day.. Five charges arising out of an accident which occurred in Tolaga Bay on June»ll were preferred against a taxi-driver, Gilbert Schultz, before Mr. E. C, Lcvvey, S.M., at the sitting of the Police Court here* yesterday. Schultz did hot nppear, 'and on the major ceunt he was sentenced to 30 days' imprisonment, With hard labor, his license was cancelled, and he was declared unfit to hold a license for two years. Sergeant Carroll stated that the accused drove out of Tolaga Bay without lights, and struck a horse, the rider of which was thrown off and injured. Schultz failed to pull up, but at the time of the impact the spare wheel on his car fell off on to the road, and the next day he came, to the police station to make enquiries about it. He failed to notify the mishap, denying that he had had an accident. •Tames B. Sweeney stated that he was riding home on the correct side of the road when a car, which was without lights, ran into his horse, and he was thrown to the ground. The car was right off the road, and was on the wrong" side. Witness saw the wheel fall off the car, and he took it to the police station. John Lockwood stated that he had ongaged Schultz to drive him from the hotel to his home. When they were in front, of Reynolds Hall the

car struck something, but Schultz drove on. Witness told him to go back, as they might have struck someone, and eventually he did so. The car had no lights, and Schultz had had a few drinks, all the passengers in the car being "a bit merry." Patrick Sherry and Alexander Agnew, two otlier passengers in the car, gave corroborative evidence. Constable Neale stated in evidence that a match between Ruatoria and I'olaga Bay had been played at Tolaga Bay on that day, and the accused had brought some of the players down from Ruatoria. Witness saw Schultz at the hotel at about 6750 drunk, in fact, that if ; he ,had been in the street he would have been arrested. Witness asked him whether he intended to drive home, and was told that he did not, but that he was going to have a bath and th6n go straight to bed. The following morning Schultz came to the station, and said that, someone had taken his car and damaged it. He told witness that he had gone straight, to bed the previous evening. Sergeant Carroll stated that Schultz had been before the court on March 15 for being intoxicated while (jii charge of a car, but the information had been dismissed, while on a charge of negligent driving he had been ordered to pay costs. A few weeks ago at Ruatoria he had been cautioned for being under the influence of liquor, lie submitted that Schultz had had ample warning, but had failed to take the advice given him. On the charge of being intoxicated while in charge of a car the magistrate sentenced the accused* to 30 days' imprisonment with hard labor, and cancelled his license, declaring him unfit to hold a license for two years. On each of the other charges ho was ordered to pay costs, in default two days' imprisonment. '