DEATH OF INFANT

Chronicle (Levin), 19 September 1946, Page 4

DEATH OF INFANT

Car Driver Sent For Triai NEGLIGENT DRIVING CHARGE 1 The. death of an infant. child in a car accident near the Whirokino ' Rridge on August 22 resulted in tjhe appearance of Patrick Henry Gold>ing, 41, chemist, of Wellington, in the Levin Coiirt yesterday. He was charged with. negligently driving a motor vehicle at Whirokino on Augusfc 22, thus causing the death of Jill Parnell Downes. Messrs. G. Sweetman and D. J. Gardiner, J.'s.P., heard the case. ,'Mr. J. F. Stewart, of Wellington, appeared for accused, and Mr. N. M. Thomson watched proceedings lon behalf of the Na.tional Dairy jAssociation, owners of the car. . An application for the suppres;sion of the names of a female and male witness, who were passengers in the car, was granted. Sergeant W. Grainger said the accident had occurred while Golding was driving from Foxton to Levin. When negotiating a corner the car left the road and overturned. The child was killed. Dr. Ludwig Bieder gave medical evidence. He said that he was called to the scene of the accident. On his arrival he f.ound th.e car overturned in a paddock, and the child dead from a fracture of the skull and other injuries. It would appear that the injuries were received as a result of the child being thrown. about the inside of the car. The male witness, whose place of 'residence was given as Palmerston North, said in evidence that on the day of the accident he met the. lady passenger at Foxton. They met Golding in the Foxton Hotel and had drinks with him in the lounge. He told Golding that he wished to go to Levin to catch a train, and Golding offered- to take him. He and the lady passenger accepted the offer and, after put'ting their baggage in the back, sat !in the car and waited for Golding, 5 who came out of the hotel "aftor a quarter of an hour had passed and jnvited him in for a drink. He had ■one drink and came out again, but Golding did not come out. for another quarter of an hour, and drove away on the main road, with the lady passenger nursing the baby In the middle of the front seat. He 'was on the left-hand side, with the window almost fully open. After this he thought that Golding was :driving too fast, and told him that they would rather walk than drive Tast. The speedometer in the car iwas not working. I After passing over the Whirokino Bridge, the witness continued, IGolding turned off it normally and >the speed was alright until su few seconds before. the accident, when they approached a bend in the ifoad. He told Golding that they t"had no show," meaning that they jcould not get around the bend. As he said it the accident occurred. The car went off the roa.d, through !a wire fence, turned over on to its left side and- came to rest in the paddock, seven or eight yards from the fence. . Witness said that he saw the lady passenger was alright and climbea out of the car. The baby was lying near the bank by the road, and was dead. He saw Golding get ;out of the car. Golding went over rfco the baby, to see what he could do, but remarked that there seemed -to be nothing he could. Mr. Stewart: Was the car off the road at the time you spoke to Golding? It would be already off the road. . The lady passenger, of Foxton, gave si^iilar evidence. She said Golding's driving was quite steady, but he had increased his speed after leaving Foxton. After -the male passenger had spoken to him he slowed down quite ■a vlot.:,- *He -slovzed . right down ' oh ; vtfee. cofher " ,aftqr '; th.e ,bridgfe| /Howevbrjv.by fjq. tlffie--.tb|: ^car ireached^ tlie^ scbhe/ of ^thel aocV .dent it was going too fast. It went off the road, hit1 a post, swerved and turned over, after going through a fence. • Frederick William Driscoll said in evidence that on the day of the accident he was driving from Foxton to Levin. Mr. Stewart maintained that the Witness should first answer the question as to whether or not he .had seen the accident, otherwise his evidence had no bearing on the case. The" Bench said it considered the evidence to be important and directed that it be heard. Continuing, Driscoll said that just before he reached a small bridge, known as the Canal Bridge, a large car passed him, missing him by inches. It was travelling in the same direction, and came so close to him that he gpt a start. He saw the car go over the main Whirokino Bridge, travelling at a fairly excessive speed. He did not .see it ~ again -until he turned the bend where the accident occurred. He saw a man on the road, who told him his niece was in the car. Mr. Stewart: Did you witness the accident? No. Constable A. Kelk described the scene of the accident when he reached it at 5.30 p.m., the same day. Golding told him that as he rounded the b vnd he saw another vehicle approach.ng from the south. He had swerved to the left, as did the ofcller vehicle. Accused had been unable to hold hjs car on tfee road, and had run- off it through the fence on the left. His breath smelt as though he had been consumihg liqupr some time before. ' Constable W. R. Gillespie gave similaf evidence, and also describ.cd the tyre marks lef-t on- the road jand grass siding by Golding's car, ;as shown in photographs taken by the police, The njarks, pn the grass

revealed to him that the car-bai travelled straight*. off ; the . road, Wit-hout v the brdke^: being { appli.ed. 0$ sm4t> .liqtior;; on .accus^d's ijijeath;- he .eo^sidetfjed abcused s~ob^,|he" asked Drt B|e^ to examine 1 hiikl^.*Dr.- Bieder kkfd that Golding was sober and fit to drive a car. , Witness read a statement. by accused, in which he said that . his speed on the bend was 25 miles per hour. As he did so a truck appeared, coming the other way.- He swerved to the left and ran off the road. His opinion was that the accident was caused by his swetving suddenly to the left and appiying the foot brake at the same time. Continuing his evidence, Constable Gillespie stated that tests by the police in a similar type of ear on the bend showed that it could be negotiated comfortably at 50 miles per hour. Cross-examined by Mr. Stewart, he said that with the two left wheels on the grass slope by the road, it would be difficult to bring the car back to the road. Counsel for Golding submitted that there had been n.Q evidence of negligence. The only aiiegation was that of excessive speed, and the only people who could give evidence on that point were rhe two passengers. Their evidence was doubtful. He contended tjiat « the charge should be dismissed'. \ Golding pleaded not guilty amd^ was CQmmitted for tri.aj at the next session. of. the Supreme Court in Palmerston North. Bail was allowed at £200, with one security of £200.