The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 1887. MISTAKEN LENIENCY.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1718, 24 November 1887, Page 2

The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 1887. MISTAKEN LENIENCY.

We recen«ly took occasion to refer to a case which had been heard m the Auckland Police Court m, which a youth was charged with laying stones on the metals of a railway m that district. Fortunately the stones were observt d and removed before the train approached, thereby preventing a disastrous and probably a fatal accident. The charge was proved, but the young culprit was let off with a paltry fine. We drew attention to this, what we deemed, mischievous leinency on the part of the presiding Magistrate, and pointed out how lamentably incommensurate this punishment was with the gravity of the offence, and that such light sentences would tail to deter other from similar wrong- doing. We regret to notice antther insmace of the kind reported m a recent issue of the "Southland Times." In this case, heard m the District Court before his Honor judge Broad, a youth of larger growth, who had been convicted oi maliciously wounding a foreigner, came up for sentence. The learned Judge m meeting out his punishment addressed the prisoner m severe terms pointing out the enormity of his crime and woiad up b> giving him, ac we think, an absurdly light sentence. His Honor said : Prisoner, at the bar you have been convicted by the jury of the very grave offence of maliciously wounding i the prosecutor by stabbing him on the arm with a knife. The offence seems j to have been entirely unprovoked, and to have been committed on an unoffending and peaceable individual. You and your companions began by annoying the prosecutor at tbe door of the butcher's shop, preventing him from entering, and then you followed him down the s'reet. One of your number then, without any provocation whatever, struck him on the face, and when be raised his arm to defend himself ycu were coward enough to stab him on the arm with a knife, I have had grave doubts as to the propriety oi releasing you on probation, and I certainly would not do so were it not for the report sent mby the Probation Officer. From that report you appear to bear a good character, and it seems that this was a single outbreak of what I can only call disgraceful larrikinism. I will not release you merely under the terms of the Act, but will also impose other conditions. You will be released on probation for twelve months en condition that you pay £5 towards the cost of the prosecution m monthly install ments of 10s and find two sureties of £$0 each for your good behaviour during your period of probation!

Now, while duly appreciating the tender- heartedoesy of both Magistrate and Judge, we cannot help feeling that such light sentences— so disproportionate to the gravity of the offences —rnuyt altogether fail io the cfeief

object of all punishment, sanctioned by law— that of deterring others from the commission of similar crimes. Larrikinism is rapidly becoming the curse of the colony, yet, when a case of what his Honour mildly terms " disgraceful larrikinisra " has to be dealt with by him, he passes a sentence that cannot possibly have any deterrent effect. If this horrible pest continues to be dealt with m this mild manner, the colony will soon become a most uninviting place for civilised human beings to settle m.