Disturbance At Shannon Over House Tenancy

Chronicle (Levin), 2 December 1948, Page 3

Disturbance At Shannon Over House Tenancy

APegations that, when' .he returned to the house- at Shannon iri which he occupied a room after ' aai 'absence of five weeks, the owner bf the house refusefi to- let him' ;come in, and ,that the owner had •3 "saiUted him, were made by Mr. G. M. Park, aged 62 years, a "Settler, in the Magistrate's Court lat Palmerston North yesterday, j When he claimed damages amounting to- £200 from L. G. 'Sayer. a buiMer, of Shannon. 1 Park e1 aimeel.fi 150 on the ground that, on August 25, 1948, Sayer had Wrongfully and forcibly evicted him from the house, of a portioni bf which he was the tenant, an'd a further £50 on the ground of hssault on the same date. After 'evidence had been heard, Mi\ J. R. j-Herd, S.M., entere'd judgment for j';the plaint'ff and awarded him the j'sum of £30, with £6 9s costs, on ■the first seetion of the claim, and j'dbmisse'd the assault question i'because of insufflcient evidence. j Mr. G. Crosstoy appeared for the ! plamtiff , and Mr. J. A. Ongley for Ifthe defpndant. 1 Mr. Crossley said that in July, '1947, plainfjff took action for damages against the defendant, because of certain alleged actions I'bv the defendant, and was award'ed iudgment in the sum of £22. P'aintfff said in evidence that 'tmtil 1945 he was the tenant from the State Advances Corporation of •the house in question. In that year defendant came to him' ask'ing for accommodation for him'self, his' w'fe, five or six children, hnd some boarders. Defendant and jhis family came to-' live in the I house, and since then had made i things unpleasant for him. On July 20, 1948, he paid his rent and Went away for a few days, but While away he contracted influtenza and was confineed to bed for ifive weeks. When he returned he found that another man named 'Sayer, a cousin of the defendant, Was in his room. and refused to let •him in. Plaintiff then left and Went to the police, but he returned to the house. He was gargling in the bathroom when defendant bame up from behind, grabbed his vright thumh and twisted it behind his back. As a result plaintiff left Ihe house and had not returned. Sayer had injured plaintiff 's 'thumb, and had not been able to •use it for working. To Mr. Ongley plaintiff said he [would have liked to buy the house Ihimself, and he did not like it When defendant bought the house from the- State Advances Corporaition. On one occasion. he said, bthe Sayers loosened the screws on Ihe wheels of his truck, and one wheel came off while he was driving a^ng the Shannon Road at 30 m.p.h. Defendant, in evidence. denied' •having taken steps to put plaintiff out of the house, apart from trying to find alternative accommodation for him. Plaintiff had a

• 'flafing t&mper, and atuuck -his children and. threaened. to strike his wife. Plaintiff 's statement -that defendant tipped over a table ona which plaintiff was having breakfast. was. ridicuTous-.. TO' Mr,., Crossley defendant said that when the plaintiff went away In- July he assumed- that he had gone away for good. , When he returned, defendant did not let him have. the room back because the' Sayer family needed it, and because plaintiff had not paid any rent for five weeks. • ' The only evidence \ supporting the allegation of assault was that given by the plaintiff himself. said :Mr. Herd, and he was not convincbd that on that question plaintiff was entitled to damages. However, he. believed tnat the defendant, in :evicting the. plaintiff from the 'premises, had commit-ted a breach bf the agreement in force for the tenancy" of the house, made as a fesult of the previous Court pr'oceedings. In view of that he Would award exemplary damages amounting to £30 against the defendant.