DUNEDIN SHOOTING SENSATION.

Gisborne Times, Volume XIX, Issue 1545, 29 August 1905, Page 3

DUNEDIN SHOOTING SENSATION.

ADVERSE COMMENT.

/i-Tha finding of the jury in the trial of A, G. Maogregor, on the charge of attempted murder, has excited a great deal of adverse criticism in Dunedin. The Dunedin Evening Star says: -“Seldom In Dunedio have 12 good men and .true gone bo far out of thsir way to give an exhibition of wrong-headed independence and inconsequential unreason. It is not too much to say that every person in Court (including counsel for tbo defence) WM amazed when the foreman announced the finding that' the accused shot Mr Sargoodllfhlle suffering from temporary insanity,’ whioh was tantamount to a technical ▼ordiot of not guilty on the ground of arwaoity. Now, the question of insanity <wo*never at issue during the hearing of ithe esse. The Grown Prosecutor was Dot allowed to discuss the prisoner’s mental ittate in his opening remarks, and no plea of insanity was raised on behalf of the defence. ' Had such 4 plea been advanced, the Crown would have been entitled to oall sebuttiog evidence. As a matter of faot, ttwo medical'men were in Court all day for the very purpose, so that a complete view of the fads and probabilities might he laid fcefore the jury. Counsel for the defence did mol contend that the prisoner was insane, ;yet the jury bad the assurance to take mpon themselves to decile that the ao* oused was insane, thoogh they were pot in (possession of any evidenoo on the point on one Bide or the other. Mr Justice Williams’ last words were plainly significant in summing np. The jury straight way returned the verdict whioh His Honor, to all practical intents, had told them not to roturn. We are of opinion that there, has boon a serious failure of justice, a failure of whioh perhaps the prisoner, in view of possiblo eventualities, has almost as much reason to oomplain ae the Grown.”