SUPREME COURT.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16424, 12 May 1921, Page 2

SUPREME COURT.

CRIMINAL SESSIONS- j The criminal sessions of the Supreme Court were continued yesterday before his Honor Air Justice Herdroan. STAY OFPTtCXEEDTXCiS. ! An order for a stay of proceedings was 1 granted in the case against James W a~- . son. who had been brought up with \ Harold George on a charge of theft from i the person at Ricopirtou, on November 3- j Watson is now. serving a senteiico on [ another chargeACOUHTED WITHOUT A BLEMISH j George Roland .Stratford pleaded not j guilt'- to a charge, ot having committed ; ra] hi "on .March Ilk at Obrivtcliurrh. _ j Prisoner was represented hy Mr F- j D- Sargent, nith him Mr TY J. (..ra- [ croft Wilson. Mr A. T. Donnelly a-p- j pe-*-—r] for the fr own. j Tho hearing of the case was continued j yesterday afternoon after the “ Star ’ j went to pressMrs Kerr, living at Mclrone Street, sai<i that tin girl comoined was her daughter. She denied, when questioned hv Mr Sargent, that any -MggeMicm had been made that Stratford shenM r>r*v irionoA - . : Mr Dormollv : Iko Shepherd been ihc : moving spirit in this transaction? Has he <rioi'l to get money out of StrutI foixl? —lf he ha? I know nothing about it.. This is the first. I have hou.rd of the suggestion. In reply to Mr Sargent, his Honor said that, at the present juncture be thought, tlmro Mas a case to go to the* jury/ The firnt Mutncs.-* for the defence was KH2abei.ll Tsabolh-i. Strafford* wife of the arrive d. She said that on the night of Saturday', March 10. wliih* at hor mother's place, she spoke to her husband on iho telephone at minutes to eight. At a quarter-past eight her husband arrived in his cor. and they stayed until about-eleven o’clock. Wiiei they returned home, witness went into ihc spare room Nothing had keen disturbed. Next morning the girl worked as 'usual, and made tio comolaint about anything. On Monday moniing her husband fold hfr of the accusation mode against him- On the Tuesday and Friday cf the. week ending March J>l, the girl man allowed off in the evenings to attend music. To Mr Donnelly : Shepherd had made suggestions to witness that the matter could he settled for a sum of rnoyey. Ou the Monday tuorning he said that, he knew a man who had paid G-“ 00 i n a similar case, and that To' thought* the same thing might, apply in the present case. Again Shepherd said : “ How ■would it be if 1 went to the girl and got j her to take £IOO to bush matters up!’’ Witness said that her husband was innooent, and that they u’ould not dream of doing such a thing. Margaret Ann Gourlov. employed hy Mrs Stratford as a washerwoman, gave evidence that the girl, when asked by Mrs Stratford if her accusations were true* did not reply. Ada Matilda Willis, single woman, said tfiat. during the hearing of the case in the lower (“curt, sho tq>ok© t.o Mrs Kerr and Shepherd in the witnesses’ room. Shepherd said that he w;« • going to giro evidence- for the girl. Hefurther sm) : Stratford is a. wealthy man. He should hare paid tho girl siome money and settled the matter as I told him to do.” Mr Don nelly : Did you say in th« waiting-room of the lower Court that it was a Socialist plot against Mr StrutI ford?—T did not. Didn't you say it to Detective Le Seur? Have a good look at him?—l have never seen him before. Never.

Isabella Creig. mother-in-law of tlio piispucr, said tha.t, on Saturday. Marcia 19. Stratford arrived at her house at 8.1-j p.m.. and spent the evening. ! Edgar Howard Smith. Joseph Daniel Fronting, and George Thorn sir Sutton, .Justices of the Peace. Marlborough ; J Mines Young Forties. Nelson : Margaret Stewart Cuttle, and Frank O’Brien Lough nan, late Stipendiary Magist rate, gave evidence that Stratford was 10 honeeL dean-living; man. a good husband and a kind fatherHonry Stratford, brother of the prisoner. said that Shepherd bad suggested that £IOO should be paid to settle tbi Accused, giving, evidence, said that on Saturday. March 19. he bathed the two children in the early part of the evoking waited until the children went to sleep, and thou left for his niotbor-HP hnvks place, arriving there about 8.17 p.m. In the following work, Shepherd suggested that m itness should ;i square ' the case. Witness denial the whole of tho accusations made by the girl. To his Honor: Shepherd led witness to believe that the whole, prosecution could he stifled for £IOO. Yv it.ucss gaio that ho denied the whole thing, and that he would pay nothing. To Mr Donnelly: Witness did not suggest that Shepherd had attemped to blackmail him. l£t.hel Gill, music teacher, said thnt ' on the evenings of March lo and 18 the girl did not. come to her lor lessous. After a retirement of five minutes the jury returned a. verdict of not guilty. The jury added a rider that Stratford left the Court without a blemish ou his character.

j SEXUAL OFFENDERS PUNISHED. [Per Press Association.l AUCKLAND, May 11. Strong condemnation of two prisoners Mho appeared before him for senten v e Mas made, by Mr Justice Adams, at tho Supreme Court. Addressing William Albert Henry Love, who had on the previous day pleaded guilty to incest, tho Judge said : ‘‘You have nothing to say why sentence should not be passed upon you. I am not‘surprised. 1 have hud some experience in these -eases, and 1 liuvo never heard a. worse one*. You arc tho father of the unfortunate child on whom you gratified your criminal, animal lust. The child was living in your home, and Mas entitled to your protection againal the whole ■tvorld. You betrayed that trust. You arc sentenced

to two years’ imprisonment with hard labour. I further order you to be delayed for a term not exceeding cigtit years, for reformative treatment.” To Robert William Dcgle.y, a circus labourer, mT»o had indecently assaulted a girl only ten years of age. his Honor said: “ You have been convicted on your own confession of a crime that sham manhood. You have nrowled about tho pleasant places of this city, and in one of the parks provided by the. generosity of Auckland’s citizens, yon found three little children sent out hy tfteir mother*, who had the right to believe they Mould he perfectly safe. You bribed the two youngest to leave, a little girl of ten years of age in your company. There is no crime calling for condemnation in stronger language than yours Little children must be protected from such men as you. so that places provided for their innocent- pleasure, where they can enjoy the good things God has provided for them, can lx> safe. I am comer to sentence you to the maximum terra of imprisonment- I Mill go further m yovir case. This is one. of the lew; offences for which the law* has retained the right to inflict corporal punishment, f shoiild feel that no adequate punishment. had been meted out to vou unless it included something of that nature, not chiefly by way of punishment to yOu, but as a deterrent to you and others from a crime of such a. beastly character. You are sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment-, with hard labour, and to b© flogged once with ten strokes.”