DEFAULTER WHO ESCAPED

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 89, Issue 264, 8 November 1945, Page 5

DEFAULTER WHO ESCAPED

IMPORTANT LEGAL ISSUE RULING OF COURT OF APPEAL AND ITS EFFECT I (P.A.) Hamilton, Nov. 7. | At the direction of the Solicitorl General, Wellington, the Crown Prose- [ cutor, Mr. H. T. Gillies, made an application to Mr. Justice Fair, in the Supreme Court at Hamilton to-day, for permission to refer to a Court of Appeal point of law, which arose m proceedings against John Eurns Crichton, 39, barrister and solicitor, formerly of , Christchurch, who, earlier in the sesl sion, pleaded not guilty to a cna.’ge of ■ being an incorrigible rogue, in that he I escaped from lawful custody m the • prison camp at Waikeria while un.ieri going a period of detention as a mili--1 tary defaulter. Crichton was found i not guilty of the charge, as he nad left I the institution two days before tne i Gazette notification of the amending regulations, His Honour holding that at the time of his escape the law did : not authorise his further detention, so ; that he could not be penalised for I leaving. His Honour made no order * then for Crichton’s release and he was j laken back to Waikeria. i Mr. Gillies this morning said his ap- , plication was virtually to secure a rul- ■ in.g whether the Statute could be made retrospective. He quoted authorities in support of the application and then minted a letter from the Minister of ' 'Alernal Affairs, Mr. Fraser, on the

subject of the duration of the war against Germany and Italy, indicating that peace had not formally been declared. His Honour said that the letter was not before the Court at the hearing last week, and he could not admit it now. The trial had concluded. Mr. Gillies submit led that the matter was of great public importance, as it affected the control of conscientious objectors. His Honour said it did not affect them unless they had escaped from custody before July 26, 1945. He did not understand the action ol the Solicitor-General. Any evidence available to the Crown should have been submitted at the trial, i’o allow it to be admitted now would be contrary to one of the first principles ol British justice, which provided that a man should not be pul in peril twice for the consequence of one act.

Mr Gillies again refererd to the possible serious effects, and His Honour asked why it was regarded as so serious. “Have others escaped?” he asked. “If they did not do so before July 26, it does not affect them. The present ruling affects only the period from May, when Germany capitulated, until July 26.”

His Honour said he had little doubt about the point. Section 76 of the Finance Act, 1943, was not retrospective in tis application to offences committed before its passing. That would be so contrary to natural justice that only the plainest language would justify such a construction, and that was not the case in the Finance Act, 1943. However, there might be some

ground for argument and he would take time to consider whether he would approve of a statement being referred to the Court of Appeal. His Honour said that perhaps some misunderstanding had occurred over his earlier remarks as to the holding of conscientious objectors sentenced 1o detention. Were they legally held? 'That aspect was not actually before the Court in the present case, so he had refrained from giving an opinion. The section of the Act operated to authorise the detention of all military defaulters who wore committed under • the regulations, until a date to bo fixed | by proclamation as to the termination (dale of the term "the duration of the {present war," as defined by Section 16. under which they were committed. I A fldressing Crichton, His Honour • said it seemed to follow that the term i of detention was not fixed by sentence I of the present Court, but by the regulations themselves. The term quot- | ed was operative on all mep in dotonjlion camps under those regulations. A .general ruling has been given, but it. was not to be taken as a decisive ruling, for he did not have all Ihe facts necessary to reach a decision. He would reserve his decision on the point askerl for bv Mr C’llies.