KILLED WITH AN AXE.

Taranaki Daily News, 26 August 1921, Page 5

KILLED WITH AN AXE.

THE BACK-BLOOKS TRAGEDY.

GUILTY OF MANSLAUGHTER. By Telegraph.—Press Association. Wanganui, Last Night. A case for which there is no precedent during the past century occupied the Supreme Court to-day, when John Kinsella was charged with the murder of George Gordon at Mangamahu. The evidence was much on the lines of that heard already published. Gordon and Kinsella and a mailman named Gibson got very drunk in a whare, something like five bottles of whisky being drunk in less than two days, in addition to drinks at an hotel. On the second afternoon Gordon lay on the floor, bared his neck and asked Kinsella to cut his head off. Kinsella went to a wood pile and returned with an axe and did as Gordon asked, the head being practically severed from the body. Gibson was too drunk to know what was taking place. Kinsella asked a farmer to bring the police, saying: “He asked,me to chop his head off and I done it.” He repeated this over and over again, being in a very drunken state. When the police arrived he still seemed unaware of the seriousness of his act, reiterating that he had only done what he was asked to do. Kinsella and Gordon were good friends. Gordon was a confirmed drunkard, but in the language of a witness was “a decent sort of a chap.” Kinsella was addicted to drinking bouts, as was also Gibson, who was very drunk on the day of the tragedy, being unaware of the beheading, though he was in the roort at the time. Counsel for Kinsella (Mr. O’Leary, of Wellington) argued that prisoner was so hopelessly drunk that he was beyond the capacity of forming an intention and therefore could not be convicted of murder, but of manslaughter. None of the three men in the whare appreciated what they were doing, owing to tne effect of whisky and beer. The jury, after 40 minutes’ retirement, brought in a verdict of guilty of manslaughter. Prisoner was remanded for sentence.