SUPREME COURT.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 980, 22 November 1910, Page 2

SUPREME COURT.

AN ERRING ENGLISH HUSBAND. BROUGHT TO BOOK. It will be remembered that the chance reading of a newspaper by a fireman on the Tyser steamer-Whakarua some time ago led to certain proceedings bein» "Sa'Dst William Wntkins, who had mauicd. his (lingey's). sislor at Silvertown, London, m ISO 7. The charge as that \vA 9 Court, alleged ' ,^^ tk l l DS £? d smcc committed bigdntn oftl a u b^ 0I n l - at ell ington. The her 11? ia n "R 03 H aln J' was Septembei IJ, 1010, It vras further alleged that, n going • through a form'of marriage befoi.e the registrar at Wellington: Watkins had stated that ho was a bachelor, °! ro s a false declaration wife f Mar Aot - The evidence of tho fireman lingey liad been taken on » ! ns »» Cringsy) was sailing by the Whakarua on that date. lesterday, the case cams on for trial in the Supremo' Court. Mr. T. Keavo prosecuted for the Crown, and Mr. T P. Kelly defended. setHn S out the Crown case, stated that a question which the fi? ti °Yi ■ 0 to ' was whetocr Watkms, when he wont through the torra o£ marriage in Wellington, had 5 ,115 , ,r believing that his wife was w- The prisoner had stated to a detective that ho had heard from a seafaring man in Lytteltou that his wife «as dead, To questions by the defective, prisoner, had replied that he did not know this man and that lie had taken no steps to verify tho reported death of his wife. It wis a significant taci, however, that prisoner had described himself before the registrar as a bachelor and not as a widower. ~1,11 ,'- v suggested that information should have been obtained from the authorities at Homo as to .whether the prisoners first wifo was. alive.- The inemory<gjf tho _ witness Tingoy was not reliable. Questioned by the magistrate m the lofter Court he had failed to remember the name of the minister who officiated when the alleged marriage, at ■silvertown occurred. Neither had' Tingey been able to remember tho. names of three oJier persons who were present- at the wedding according to his own story, ilie 3tiry brought in. a vcrdict of guilty tlt Y ono ' Ul ' 'rcra'anded the prisoner "until Wednesday next for sentence. recent affair at levin. EETEIAL OP ELLIS. • ~ Le | lie Ellis was tried a second time at the Supremo Court yesterday on a charge of committing a burglary at -the Levin li t 0 ! 1 August -1 last. ■In company with John Earnshaw and' Henry Eobert Hunt, Lllis had been tried for this offenco last week. Earnshaw and Hunt Sn 1 - 6 £? nn<l guilty, but in the case of Lllis the jury were unable to come to an agreement. ' As at the original trial, prisoner was represented by Mr. H. F. O'Leary, while Mr. T. Neave prosecuted tor. the Crown. At 5 p.m. the Court adjourned until 10 a.m. to-day. A LENGTHY DELIBERATION. NOT GUILTY. .Francis Joseph Lyons, a man of middlerfP-' c W ? 3 °. liar S e<l before, his Honour the Chief Justice yesterday with committing a serious criminal offence. His Honour ordered the Court to be cleared, and forbade publication of the evidence. Mr. T. M. Wilford defended the prisoner, and' Mr. T. Neave appeared for the Crown. • ■The jury, returned after an absence of an hour and .a: half, and the . foreman stated that the prisoner had been- found, not guilty on the_ first two counts of the indictment. On a third counj, charging the prisoner with criminal assau't, tho jury could-not agree. After a further, retirement of an hour and three-quarters the jury, brought in a verdict of. not .guilty on all.counts of tho indictment..;] To their verdict tho jury added a ridertliat a girl who figured in tho case should be placed under more careful control than had been exercised, over her of late. His Honour - said this recommendation would be passed on to the police, so . that inquiries might be made, but -it seemed perfectly, clear- that her mother had control of tho girl. . - The prisoner was discharged. TWELVE MEN SET FORWARD. THEIR SENTENCES. " No less than twelve--convicted prisoners were sentenced by his Honour the Chief Justice in the Supreme Court yesterday. With the" exception of Frederic Blacklidge and John Charles Seymour, all. tlve prisoners had been tried at the Supremo Court criminal sittings now in progress. Levin Burglary. Among the first prisoners brought up were John Earnshaw and Henry Eobert Hunt, convicted of burglary at Levin. Of the prisoner Earnshaw liis Honour remarked that lie had not had a good chance in life. His father seemed to'liave deserted him, and he was young when his 'mother died. "I am sorry for you," liis Honour concluded, "because I think you nave not had a fair chance in life.' You are, however, sentenced to eighteen, months' imprisonment with hard labour." Hunt was admitted to probation for. eighteen months as a first offender. Midnight Doings. The next'to appear in the dock were Jamfes Vincent Crimmins, Charles Cuii ; ningham, Charles- Boston, and John . Lewis, found guilty of breaking and entering the:boardinghouse of. Mary Spencer , in' Cambridge Terraco at midnight on October 3. - Crimmins asked that. tho case should bo allowed to stand over for appeal, on the ground that he was innocent. , His Honor declined to admit the application, and detailed. a list of previous convictions against the prisoner. "Altogether," said his Honour, "you have been convicted fourteen times. You do not deny that?" Prisoner: "No, your Honour." . Cunningham stated that he had never boan before the,court l'or dishonesty before. His Honour: When a man lives what is called a "rackety" life, drinking and going on. as you have been going on, he is bound to end in gaol. Eeston said: "Though I havo been found guilty on these two charges I still say I am innocent. I have pleaded guilty to tho only offence I committed." Lewis, in reply to a question, said that he had been trying for the last seventeen months to lead an honest life and had worked hard. In the case of this prisoner and ill Rcston's case a list of previous convictions was cited. The three men were each sentenced to two years' imprisonment on each charge, sentences not to be cumulative. In addition, the prisoners were declared habitual criminals. Cunningham was sentenced to two years' imprisonment with hard labour. . "Sins of the Fathers." John Griffiths, convicted of breaking and entering aud theft,. asked for leniency, as he. had been kept in gaol three months awaiting trial. "You aro ' another example, no doubt," said his Honour, "of tho sins of the fathers being visited on the children." The prisoner . was sentenced. to twelve months' imprisonment at Invercargill Gaol. On the High Seas. . Mr. F. P. Kelly asked that Alexander Taylor, found guilty, of receiving on the high seas, should be admitted to probation. His Honour declined to accede, to the application, anil remarked that if this class of offence continued he would deal less leniently with future cases than on the pi'esent occasion. A sentence of six months with hard labour was imposed. Letter to tho Judge. Frederick Blacklidge, who pleaded guilty in the Magistrate's Court to breaking, entering, and theft, asked for leniency on the scoro that he.was a first offender. .' "Tho fact is,'.' said his Honour, "you have given way to drink. That is the origin of your crime. The letter yt-u wrote to mo saying that you wero starving and that was the reason you committed tho crime is plainly absurd. You • found money to get liquor." Sentence was imposed of 12 months' imprisonment iwith hard labour.

John Charles Seymour , was placed in the dock to be sentenced for a theft or jewellerj-, to which ho lately pleaded guilty in the Magistrate's Court at New Plymouth. His Honour imposed sentence of 12 months 1 imprisonment, to be concurrent with a sentence which the prisoner is now serving. ' Serious Cases. John Taylor, found guilty of a criminal offence committed at ALasterton, asked for leniency on the ground of previous good character. In passing sentence, his Honour said: "I do not intend to state publicly the oiienee of which you have been found guilty, further than to say that the child was only eight years old. The maximum penalty" I could inflict'on you is a term of seven years' imprisonment, with three Hoggings. X have never inflicted flogging, aud I don't intend to do so this time. Your offence, however, is a most serious One, and I must pass a severe sentence. You will be imprisoned for live'years." .Sentencing William Lavery, convicted of a criminal offence, his Honour remarked: "I shall take into _ consideration the fact that you have hitherto borne a good character, but I cannot overlook" this olfence. I believe that the girl un-der-rated rather than over-rated the facts. The sentence of the Court is that you be imprisoned and kept to hard labour for four years."