SHELTERING A RESERVIST

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 140, 2 March 1918, Page 6

SHELTERING A RESERVIST

'misleading information GIVEN. '. . Ernest James Oxenham was charged b,v the police -in the Magistrate's Court yesterday, before Mr. S..E. M'Cafthy, S.M., with giving misleading, information to the police regarding a reservist. Inspector Marsack. stated, that- the police did. not seok for a'heavy pencity, but that the case was brought in order to make it thoroughly known that ic was dangerous to givo shelter to a deporting reservist or to:>j)vemisleading information to the police. ■ Mr. P. J. O'Regaii) who appeared for the defendant, pleaded guilty, and stated that when Oxehliam went out to his but at Paremata. on February 2 he found that a man named Pottinger, a personal friend, had climbed through a. window, aud , had. taken possession of his premises. Oxenham, no doubt, knew that the man had .been drawn in the ballot, but did not;appreciate the serious position in which he was placing himself when he told the constable who called subsequently that Pottinger w,is not in the hut. As a matter of f?ct, Oxenham believed that the'police knew that Pottinger was in the hut, but ho' was annoyed because.the constable refused to show him a warrant, saying that he would deliver it to Pottingerj, whereas defendant thought that he should have produced it as an authority to make inquiries. The man Pottinger was later found in the hut. The Magistrate, after pointing.'out that the offence was a serious one, winch might lead to a great deal of trouble, fined Oxenham £5 andcosts.