ACCIDENT CAUSES INSANITY

Evening Star, Issue 20134, 26 March 1929, Page 11

ACCIDENT CAUSES INSANITY

SUICIDE FOLLOWS WIDOW AWARDED £B3O [Per United Press Association.] AUCKLAND, March 26. Finding that John Chandler Hill, of Ngaruawahia, was insane when he committed suicide, and that his i mental condition was directly traceable to an accident ho suffered while in the employ of the Waipa Kailway and Collieries", Limited, Mr Justice Frazer awarded £930 compensation to the widow of the deceased in respect of the accident. The amount payable to the widow will be less sums already paid by deceased’s employers, who were defendants in tho action. The case was beard at Hamilton recently, and was stated to bo unique in the history of New Zealand compensation claims. On November 17 Hill was thrown from a trolly when it got out of control, and sustained injuries. Though a cheerful man previously, he afterwards appeared to be terrified, as if he were haunted, and he committed suicide on June 8, 1928. Mr Justice Frazer said there-was evidently a mental change within a few days' after the accident, but it was not of such a nature as to he considered insanity. There was doubtless an element of neurasthenia in the case, but the subject matter of deceased’s delusions was something quite apart from the fear of unemployment or incurable injury that wn- usually met in ordinary neurasthenia eases. In the case of a man of normal disposition, tho history of the case as given, was evidence of a mental change directly caused by tho accident. Tin court was satisfied that plaintiff had established her claim to compensation.