AUCKLAND SUPREME COURT

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 114, 7 February 1920, Page 7

AUCKLAND SUPREME COURT

ACQUITTED OF MANSLAUGHTER,

By Telegraph— Afwinibn. Auckland, February 6. ''At the Supremo Court to-day a jury acouitted Harold ; Staple.ton and Alexander Coppell, two young men charged with tho manslaughter of Frank, Brazier,, licensee of the Clarendon Hotel, on December 10 last. Accused gave evidence that Brazier attempted to assault Stapleton indecently and in thi ensuing scuffle, in which Coppell took pait, Jio _received v injuries from which ho died. ' ' , AN INTERESTING VERDICT. . Charles Joseph Stone pleaded not guilty to an indictment containing three taunts—(l) that he 6tole a gold watch from the Thames Hotel .on February 19, 191.9; (2) that he stole a watch'; and (3) Uiat ho received a.watch, well knowing tit the time of receiving it that it was' stolen Tho evidence for tho prosecution was that a watch was missed from the hotel after a fire. there, and 11 months later the police interviewed accused and recovered the watch from a box stored by ■ Klxrae. Accused said that .he purchased, the watch from a stranger nt the fire. The jnry found a verdict of not'guilty on the count of theft, and on the count of receiving found that Stono "did not know at the time he received the .watch that it had been stolen." They were agreed, however, that he knew subsequently that it had bee.n stolen. The'jury to Fis Honour's adding words to the verdict to the effect Mint accused knew before he was interviewed by tho nolice that the watch had been stolen. His Honour saW that, the verdict would have to. go to the Court of Appeal. He agreed with accused's counsel that the finding in law amounted to one> of not guilty. He thought that possibly the Court of Appeal would order that a count be, added to the indictment to fit the finding of the jury.

Judgment was reserved for the Court of Appeal, and in th<» meantime accused was released on. bail.