MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 157, 15 October 1912, Page 3

MAGISTRATE'S COURT.

(Before Mr. W. G. Riddell, S.M.)

SERIES OF THEFTS,

MAN'S STRANGE BEHAVIOUR, Albert Edward Gray appeared in the Magistrate s Court yesterday to answer three charges of theft. Moses Davis, who keeps a second-hand shop in \ ivian. Street, stated that an overcoat produced in Court was one which had been stolen from his premises, and another shopkeeper deposed that ho had seen Gray commit the theft. Mary Barry stated that she had seen uray »o. behind the counter of her mothers shop in Taranaki Street and take money from the till. The amount missing from this shop was set down as Bs.

A j Vl i enoe was en B> ven to the effect that Gray had stolen 10s. from the till of James Taylor's, shop in Cuba Street. His Worship said that the case seemed exceedingly strange; Grav was not u young man, and it was difficult to undeistand why he should at his tim<i of lite commence a series of thefts. Gray was fined £2 on each charge, m default 14 days' imprisonment. POLICE CELL EPISODE. Henry Grell was charged with having assaulted James Knight when- the two were in a police cell on Saturday night. Grell said that Knight had leaned over his bed, and that as he could not see what sort of j man Knight was he had hit him and niade him go away. Knight appeared in Court with one ol his eyes bearing evidence it) support oi the allegation -that a blow had teen struck. Grell was fined ,C 2. MAINTENANCE ORDERS. John Gordon was ordered to pay 6s. pci week towards tlm support of eacli of two children. Michael A.vlward was sentenced to one month's imprisonment for his having disobeyed an order for maintenance which the Court had nutde. Tho warrant is to bo suspended' while 15s. per week is paid by Ay 1 ward towards the support of his wife. For having disobeyed a maintenancn order (to help to support his mother), Robert M'C-iuire was fined £\. 'g OTHER CASES. Albert King and Sydney Brooker were each fined dCI on a charge'of tlioir having assaulted Wong ICong, For insobriety, David Co.wan was fined 10s., Lawrence Power ,iZ, James Knight .£l, John Harris 10s„ and John William Watson ,£l. , Arthur Smith was fined ,£4 for his having used certain language and obstructed a police constable who was making un arrest:

William Hart was fined .£1 for having sold, adulterated milt. Defendant admitted that he had sold the milk, but said that lie had not adulterated it. Application_for rehearing was granted in a case in which James Arthur Staples had. been convicted on a charge of his having failed to attend military drill. Lieutenant Richmond explained to the Court that he liad agreed that when the charge was called on he would.withdraw it, as Staples had convinced him that ho hud attended parade. However, he (Richmond) had forgotten to do so. He now asked that the case should be dismissed. Mr. A. H. Hindmarsh appeared for Staples. The case was dismissed, and the Defence Department was ordered to pav solicitor's fee (J!l Is.). William Egan was fined ,£2 for his having broken a prohibition order. Henry Grell was fined .£2 on a charge of the theft of a piece of print, valued at IBs. 6d., from tho shop of H. Kahn.