MAGISTRATE’S RULING IN COURT

Dominion, Volume 32, Issue 146, 16 March 1939, Page 5

MAGISTRATE’S RULING IN COURT

No Power To Deal With Nine-Year-Old Charge

INFORMATION NOT LAID WITHIN TWO YEARS

A ruling that under lite Justices of the Peace Act he bad no power to deal summarily with accused, and that the ease must go before the Supreme Court,

was given in the Magistrates’ Court, Wellington, yesterday, by Mr J. H. Luxford, S.M.. when Leslie Murray, labourer, aged 39, apiteared on two charges of stealing money from the New Zealand Workers' Union. The offences were committed nine years ago at Grassy Camp, Nelson, where accused, who acted as a collector for the union, was employed as a labourer by the Public Works Department. The first charge involved £l3. and the second charge £25. When Murray appeared before the magistrate last week he pleaded guilty to tlie charges and elected to lie dealt with summarily. DetectiveSergeant P. Doyle, who prosecuted, said the first charge, involving the theft of £l3, was in order because Ute information was laid at the time of the offence. Information on lite second charge was not laid till after the lapse of two years, the period within which information must be laid if a charge of tins nature is to be dealt with summarily. At the earlier hearing the magistrate tentatively ruled that he bad jurisdiction. After hearing evidence he remanded accused and intimated lie would give a formal decision after he had looked into the legal position. The magistrate gave his decision in

a written judgment yesterday.< and at his direction depositions were taken of the evidence and accused, who pleaded guilty, was committed to the Supreme Court for sentence.