THE PIPITEA STREET TRAGEDY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 779, 31 March 1910, Page 6

THE PIPITEA STREET TRAGEDY.

PROSECUTING EVIDENCE TAKEN. ACCUSED COMMITTED FOR TRIM. With a somewhat haggard look, Eobert Corkill walked into the dock at ■■■ the Magistrate's. Court,yesterday,..before Mr. .'W.-VR. Haselden, S.M., charged on remand with.the alleged murder-on March i last of Christopher Dennis Smith. -~ Mr. Myers conducted the .case for the Crown, and Mr. Jackson, on behalf of Mr. Wilford, appeared for the accused. Evidence for-the prosecution was taken, but there was no cross-examination. by accused's: counsel. '.-■■■' . :' Dr. Izard - deposed^that, on the evening of March i he was in Pipitea Street. His attention was called to the body of a man lying in a ■ passage-way inside the gate at 60 Kpitea Street. It was 6.15 p.m., when he arrived there by-telephone instruction. The, body ~was {that of Christopher Dennis ..Smith, There was some blood on , the '; front. of deceased's shirt, and a wound in the ■ region of the heart, which; had been caused by a buUet. ' : : ; ' '•.•',■•"'. -; : . ■' '"' " ' ; Thomas Warnock,- draper, said he knew the .deceased, and identified;, the .body, at themorgue as ; that of Unrisfopher Dennis Smith. Deceased had. been in witness's employment tor several' years, and had been employed by': him up to a few days 1 prior to the murder. Deceased 1 had, up to .-the?time of Ms death,, been pretty liar'd'i.up.■ -.■,';.- :, ' ■ ; : - '■•■■•'• -'• ■.'. '--.' Dr. Kington Fyffe said that on the morning, of 'March.'s :he made- ..a : post-, mortem examination ! , pf ; : Smith's body ■at the morgue.' ! There" was • a wound slightly under - the left breast with' an.'.', entry , into' the left' ventricle.' .The: bullet was discovered embedded in the muscle between ;he" sixth and seventh ribs behind, close to' the spine.. The ' direction .was almost

?■ horizontal,, with', perhaps, .a' , slight". de- .; clension'downwards. 'The'cause of death r was haemorrhago into _ho pericardium 3] from a- bullet : wound; which i penetrated the- left ventricle of the. heart. ■■•■■•■• ;;'Constable E. ir.'.M'Kelvie said he-was '; present; when Dr.' Fyffo made : the "post--1 mortem examination, and saw the doctor s. extract a: bullet : from the body, .which 5: was handed'to'him (witness).' .- ■ : - ■: -~ [ •:--Keginald Walter Clifford, grocer's ■ assistant, residing at 23 Thorndon Quay, .. said he remembered, wallring down Pipi- ; tea;. Street on the' evening of March i • in' the' direction of Thprndon Quay. ; It ■• was then about .6.5; p.rm,. and as he api' proached, he:.- : sa.w accused .and a man '. whom 'he since'discovered. to' be the,, de- ., ceased,; Smith. :Both. accused;- and de-. ceased came out of No. 60 on to.'the foot . path in Pipitea Street. .-Smith appeared to be hitting the 'accused,, who .fell :down. As accused got up he drew a , revolver froni his trousers Pocket and fired- at '-. Smith at very close'.,range...; When accused was on : ground Smith ; was :■ istanding up, and looting'" down'. at ac- ; cused. Accused fired'the revolver as' he (accused)-,- was getting . up. ■' Both apto be talking all ~the .time, but : ; witness did .not .hear wtot was said. , After the shot wasfired Smith seemed to 1 stand for. a second or two .and speak to 1 accused,. and-than . turned, up the pas- ■■: sage-way, at No.', 60. :: Deceased, walked ' about four yards, : but-witness did not see ' :hiin fall.. Witness went into No. 64, and - did: not know'that.Smith -was then dead. "A. few ..minutes after .'.witness. came' out, : . and went into No. GOi and saw Smith Iy- .. ..ing.apparently.dead.- .Accused was then ;', r standing: by .the gate.:, When-witness and others . wanted ',£, go through the' gate toi.see.'SmithVaccused'saidi'-rNo.:' I am in.'charge here." Accused stood there' ■ for 'a,fewminutes,.'and'then, turned and : .walked; up and-dowri.,th"o .middle.of the . road.-. accused, left .the : gate, and was. walking up arid, "down the. street, witness and others went up the passage, ; 'and found. Smith;.'dead, with blood on his shirt, and a bullet hole through-the , vest..''Before the • police arrived witness ■ sawr. some men. capture the accused. and ' take ;charge : of the~revolver:.;-WlJen the shot was tired by accused.witness had a dear and uninterrupted'view, and was ; only twelve yards away.'- >, '-. - : , ~ -, ': Leo Cleary,-'a! lad eleven -years of age, ; said he lived at 7 Murphy Street He.knew the aM; remembered, 'seeing him ' on the\'eveningj of /March,. ■'I'vin^'Pipjltea : Street, ,by the, gate at .No'. 60. ,-Accused ' .'and; a; young man ;were standing, at thegate, and the latteri'was" pushing accused out; of ;the gate;:''; Then 'the'; young man ; 'knocked the : .old<min over, and. the latter. got up, pulled-.a revolver out, ; and'.shot .the young;man. After.the old-man fired, thexevolver was placed in a.back trouser I pocket.-: When, the young : mah 'was shpt witness" heard • him exclaim:. "Oh,, you brute." ,!.,The young., .man then ran.in the.passage, and fell. at.the j door. ■ The. : old -man; then' walked'up- arid' down the road rubbing his ;chin,'; and seemed to , : ~be 'grumbling. 'After a number'of people'' came up, 'accused" said., he would go for ai doctor,: but did not do so. Accused went into Molesworth Street, • and was ; grabbed , by a man, and. held till the police came. , Witness did not see "the i revolver againr. ' '~''.'"'-'.-' •': .-• ; ' 1 ..Walter-Reginald ''Styles, 'bootmaker, of Molesworth Street said that, shortly after •as o'cloofc.'o'ii .the evening,of the.tragedy !'• he was standing; on. the corner ofPipitea : Street. He heard a shot, .arid thought it. ..was,some boy firing a-cracker, and took , 'no notice. After that he saw,a few,people gathering round' No. 60, and, witness went 1 down also,, and found', deceased Smith ■ lying in _the' passage.: Accused was' stand-' ■ ing outside, walking up, and down, .and was talking to someone.:: -Witness heard ~. accused-say ::.':bjb is 'lying there. If he gets up I. will give him' another." I have got it here." Witness ..was' not absolutely ■sure whether accused said "give him an- ' other," or, "another, one.",, Did not hear accused say any more.- Accused appeared ~ to be knocked.about, and had a big lump on-the left side of the head, near, the eye.. "Edward Alexander, commercial traveller, residing at the' Metropolitan Hotel,'■ said he did not see any actual shooting, but saw. the of the 'dead man lying at No., 60 PipitejjtrStreet.:, Saw the. accused standing witElis hand on the gate outside. ~ Witness endeavoured to get in the . gate, but'accused defied him,' and witness 1 pushed' accused, aside, and went in the gate,.., finding .Smith, .dead. After the doctor : arrived, accused. walked , up the ■ street; towards Holesworth Street. ;Witness. i followed; tripped, and threw accused on - the ground.' , A scuffle ensued. Witness had accused in his grip and was taking . him,downfthe' street when Inspector , Ellison-came .along.'.The rcvol-rer was i taken from accused by someone else'when : they were on.>the ground; ■.-'-. ■ . ' Constable; Callery -said that he was' present when -accused was arrested,, and re- ' membered receiving a revolver from a 1 man whom he did not know. He ex- • amined, the. revolver at the. time, and ' found four chambers loaded, and an empty shell in another chamber.' Witness looked at'the :bar'rel arid found it had ■ been quite, recently fired. ' '. . 1 '.: Oliver Jlewhiriny, civil servant,' living . at 45a Pipitea-Street, 1 said he remembered hearing.a shot: fired shortly after ;Six i o'clock on the evening of March i. Wit--1 ness was then in, the Metropolitan' Hotel, ■ and on,.going out immediately saw a number of;people standing;outside No. • 'GO. Accused' Was holding the gate, and on ■ witness asking what ■ had happened, accused replied that "a man had been shot." Witness asked if the man, was dead. . Accused said -I he "did not know." Witness tried to get in the gate,, but , accused said, "I.will ; .not allow, anybody j in until the. doctor, comes,", and added [ that he "was the bailiff,- and was in 1 charge'.there." Witness replied that ho I must go in, as the man . might want 1 assistance. Witness pushed , past accused ; and found that Smith was dead. One or I two otbirs went in with him and, on seeing the dead body; came out on to'the I street, again, and waited the arrival of . the doctor. Witness asked accused'what ■ had happened. Corkill replied that the t 'deceased "has put mo out, and .when I j tried to get in the house he hit me on the jaw, and knocked me down." Corkill . also said to witness, that he did not,intend to go away. . -.• .-.'.. ■ Ernest Ford, pastrycook, at 48 lloles--5 worth Street, saw accused on tho ground r in Molesworth Street and a man named ■ Alexander in'charge of him. Accused had f, his hand in his right-hand trousers pocket, 5 and others were trying to get the revolver. Witness... secured the, revolver ■ from the accused, who did not resist. • Inspector Ellison stated that at 6.15 on ' March 4 he was called to Pipitea Street, J where he saw a group of persons. The JLyitness. Alexander, had hold of accused,

who was handed over to witness. Accused was put in a cab and on the way to the police station made the following statement:—"He, 1 struck me twice and knocked me down, and then I drew it to save myself. I did not intend to kill him. I am a bailiff, and come from Harcourfs. When I spoke to him outside that is the way he treated me. He was in bed with his boots on:when I went in. I'-.told him to get up, and get his things packed, as the furniture was to be moved in the morning. He then threatened my life in thb house, and pushed me out." : At this stage Inspector Ellison said that ho warned accused that, a, note was being taken of the statements given. Accused still kept on protesting that the man had. struck him, and showed witness a lump on the side of the jaw and head, saying, - "That is where ho hit me." Accused repeatedly remarked that he shot deceased in his own defence.. On arrival at the police station, accused asked \vitness if no.know how Smith was,.and witness replied, "I am. told that he is dead." Accused replied: "Oh; my God, I did not intend to kill him. I did it for my own protection. I was on the gTOund when I fired. I just fire.d at random. I do not. know where I shot him.". Accused then showed witness two documents, and said: "This is my authority for going there." The documents referred to the accused being a bailiff. Witness searched accused, and told him that-he was charged with the wilful murder of a man .named Christopher Dennis Smith. 'Accused replied: "Oh no,' Slot wilful. 'I'did , not intend to kill him."", The accused was very agitated at the time, and had, a lump on the side of the jaw ■ about the size of. a walnut, besides, a bruise on the temple. ';■' Accused, on being asked whether ho had anything to say, stood up in the dock with his hand up, to his ear, but made no reply. Mr. Jackson, on" behalf of the accused, said he had nothing to say, and;reserved his, defence/ ■ -.:..' ; Accused was then committed for trial to- appear at the next sittings: of the Supreme Court. : ( ' -.' " '