POLICE COURT

Evening Star, Issue 22145, 27 September 1935, Page 12

POLICE COURT

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 27. (Before Mr H. W,'Bundle, S.M.) SEQUEL TO CITY BURGLARY. David Littlejohn Brunton (32), a native of Scotland, was charged with breaking and entering the warehouse of A. N. Smith and Co. Ltd., a drapery firm in George street/ and‘stealing £4O 0s lOd. Chief-detective Young asked for a remand for a week. % Mr O. G. Stevens, representing the accused, applied for bail. The Chief-detective told the court that on the' evening of September 8 the adjoining premises of A. N. Smith and Co. Ltd., the City Dye Works, and the London Mantle Co., in George street, were broken into, and a number of postal notes and other moneys stolen. The postal notes , v were subsequently traced to the accused. Mr Young said the case was a serious one, and opposed bail. Mr Stevens said that Brunton was a married man with two children, and was on relief work. The'remand was granted. Bail wasrefused. WEDDING AFTERMATH. That he had been to a wedding and later to a dance were statements made to the police by Gordon Osborne Sutherland, who pleaded guilty to being intoxicated in .charge of a motor car, Senior-sergeant Packer, who prosecuted, stating that the accused was very violent when brought in by the police. . The Senior-sergeant said that the accused was found this morning at 1.40 in charge- of a car in Rattray street. He was in a very bad way when the police got him. There were three others in the car with him, two ladies and a man, and they were also under the influence of liquor. The accused was a first offender. . ■ , , , , Th© accused said that when he found he was losing control of himself ho pulled up his car in Rattray street, and intended to call a friend to take charge of the car. As he was going to ring his friend a sergeant and a constable approached him. . , , The accused was remanded in custody until Monday.

COLLIDED WITH CABLE CAR. Claude Andrews, who was involved in a collision with a cable car at Highgate and failed to stop, was fined hi and costs for negligent driving. , Senior-sergeant Packer said that the company had experienced considerable trouble with motorists who tried ■ to beat the cable car over the intersection, and there had been many narrow escapes from accident. CHILD SENT FOR BEER.

James Buchanan was charged with sending a person under 21 years tor liquor, and Joseph O’Brien with supplying it. They were represented by Mr L. R. Simpson, and pleaded guilty. Senior-sergeant Packer said that Buchanan asked a boy of II to 'go to the hotel to fill a “ square rigger. The boy, accompanied by two other children, gave th© receptacle to th© cook or the hotel, who handed it on to the licensee, the latter filling it without knowing any of the circumstances. The licensee then gave it back to O’Brien, who took it to the cook. On her direction he handed it to the child. Apparently Buchanan had previously- been refused liquor at the hotel. Mr Simpson said that Buchanan now realised that he had done an improper thing/in sending a child to an hotel. Counsel suggested that the charge against O’Brien should be dismissed. Buchanan was fined £2 and costs, and O’Brien £1 ax\fl costs. / VALUELESS CHEQUES.

Harry Walter Reid alias Christensen was charged with obtaining £4 18s 6d in money and Is 6d goods from Roland Mansfield, and 17s 6d in money and 2s 6d in goods from Edward Ernest FJiston, by falsely representing, that cheques signed by him were valid. The accused, who was represented by Mr Stevens, pleaded guilty. Chief-detective Young, who prosecuted, said that the accused was discharged from gaol at Invercargill on July 4 last year. He came to Dunedin, and started business as a boot repairer. On April 15 last he opened an account with the Bank of New Zealand at. Dunedin, and deposited amounts of a total value of £24 10s. He issued cheques on that account to an amount of approximately £4O. Aoout five weeks after he opened the account he drew seven cheques to the value of £l6 15s, which had been, dishonoured by the bank. He then went to the Bank of Australasia, and opened an account there, depositing amounts to the value of £7 and £1 10s respectively. Mr Young said, the accused informed the accountant that he had not previously had an account, and asked for instructions how to draw . cheque. He apparently put the knowledge to good use because later he filled in a cheque for £l3O, and went to a furniture firm, informing them it was a cheque he had received for the sale of some shares. The cheque was apparently drawn by the accused to act more or less as a decoy to satisfy these people,' who had been pressing hiin, that he had some means. On that par-

licular account be had drawn cheques to the value of £sl 13s. Concerning the present charges, Mr Young said the accused had gone to the shop of Mr Bennett, butcher, at Anderson s Bay, and purchased Is 6d worth of goods, tendering a cheque for £5 and receiving £4 18s (id in change. Three days later he went to another shop in South Dunedin and purchased 2s Gd worth of goods, tendering a cheque for £1 and receiving 17s 6d"in change. The cheques were dishonoured. The accused evidently opened the account with the Bank of Australasia with the object or systematically defrauding people with these cheques. He had been in trouble a number of. times before. Mr Stevens said that after the accused was discharged from prison he seemed to have attempted to go straight. He married a woman with six children, and set up in business. Counsel was informed that the accused was a good tradesman, but apparently the responsibility of endeavouring to carry on business put him into a position that be was pressed for money right and left. It appeared that as soon as he was pressed, he turned to what he thought was the easiest way out. “ This is a most despicable form of offence,” said His Worship, who sentenced the accused to 12 months’ imprisonment' on one charge and three months on the other, the sentences to be concurrent. DANGEROUS DOG. Noel John Frew admitted charges of being in possession of a dangerous and unregistered dog. The Senior Sergeant said that the dog bit a constable in the calf of the leg and tore holes in his trousers. .It was seven months old and a terriercollie cross, and one of the worst types when it became savage.- It previously attacked 'a woman and bit her. The case was adjourned until Monday, the magistrate directing that the dog should be destroyed in the meantime. CHIMNEY FIRES. Charged with permitting a chimney to catch fire, Elizabeth Mitchell was convicted and discharged, and on a similar charge Thomas Ritchie was fined 5s and costs. MOTORISTS CHARGED. Allan Herbert Dunning, Sim was charged with driving in a manner that might have been dangerous to the public, and was fined £2 10s and costs. A charge of 'passing a stationary tram against Andrew Miller Finnic was dismissed, subject to the payment of costs of 10s. Francis Commetti, who crossed intersections in Crawford street at 40 miles an hour, was fined 30s and costs for dangerous driving. On similar charges Robert L. Corahs, Neville Grounds, John Houston, Stephen M’Connell were fined £1 and costs. Gordon Turner , was fined 10s and costs for using a motor cycle without a silencer. Mathias Duffy was fined os and costs for driving without a license, and ordered to pay court costs of 10s for not having a rear reflector on his vehicle. "Sydney Tasman Smart was convicted without penalty for using a lorry without the assigned number, and fined 5s and costs for not having a rear reflector. William Grant Taylor was fined 5s and costs for leaving a car on the footpath. A charge against Les Murray of driving on Anderson’s Bay road in a manner that might have been dangerous to the public was dismissed. Albert S. B. Smith and John Trengrove also pleaded not guilty to similar charges. Both admitted that they crossed intersections in Cargill road at 30 miles an hour, but claimed that this was not a dangerous procedure under the circumstances. They were fined 10s and costs.

CHARGE DISMISSED

Thomas Evered Steel was charged with working at his calling. as a carrier on a Sunday. He . claimed that, while his lorry was loaded, he merely used it to take a friend home. The Magistrate held that the charge had not been proved. The easel was dismissed.