LICENCING ACT BREACHES

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 89, 1 May 1937, Page 3

LICENCING ACT BREACHES

Six Men Convicted at Waipukurau ASSAULT CHARGE WAIPUKURAU, April 30. At the Magistrate's Court at Waipukurau to-day, six men were charged with committing breaches of the Licensing Act on Friday, April 23. Mr J. Miller, S,M., presided. Cuthbert Low Crookes, licensee of the Tavistock Hotel, Waipukurau, pleaded guilty to selling liquor to Frank Mullins and others after hours. He was convicted and fined £1 with 10s costs. Charges of exposing liquor for sale and with opening licensed premises after hours were withdrawn. James Gerard O'Halloran, barman at the Tavistock Hotel, was fined £2 and costs 10s for supplying liquor to Frank Mullins after hours. A charge of suppiying Michael Hurley Maloney after hours was withdrawn. Edward Sullivan, night porter at the same hotel was fined £2 with 10s costs on the charge of supplying liquor after hours to Frank Mullins. A similar charge of supplying Phillip Fanning was withdrawn. Michael Hurley Maloney pleaded guilty to being on the premises of the Tavistock Hotel after hours and was fined 30s with costs 13s. Frank Mullins, jockey, Waipukurau, was charged: (1) With being found in the Tavistock Hotel after hours; (2) with being found in the Sandford Arms Hotel, Onga Onga, after hours; (3) with being intoxicated while in charge of a motor-car. Defendant pleaded guilty to the first two charges and not guilty to the third. Louis Phillip Fanning was charged: (1) with being found in the Tavistock Hotel after hours; (2) with assaulting Ronald Strathmore Hunt; (3) with being intoxicated while in charge of a motor-car. Defendant pleaded guilty to the first charge and not guilty to the second and third. The Magistrate said that he would take the charges against Mullins and Fanning separately. Constable D. Sutton, of Waipukurau, conducted the ease for the police, and Mr C. G. Harker appeared for the defence. Constable Sutton said that the evidence would show that the defendants had consumcd a considerable quantity of liquor on the evening of Friday, April 23, and that Mullins had visited the Tavistock Hotel shortly after 6 o'clock. After having a drink he had gone away, to return about 12 o'clock that night, when he had consumed more liquor, in company with Fanning. They had then gone away in Fanning's car to return about 1 a.m., when they were not served with liquor, but went on to the Onga Onga Hotel. There they had attempted to obtain liquor but were refused. They went to Fanning's farm in the car. Fanning remained there while Mullins started, to Waipukurau in the car and ran off the road down a 15-foot bank. He spent the night in the front seat of the car and was found there by a farmer at 6.30. a.m. on Saturday morning. The assault was alleged to have taken place at Fanning's farm on Saturday afternoon. Dr. Norris, of Waipawa, who had examined Mullins at Waipawa on Saturday morning and also examined Hunt, handed in statements of the result of these examinations. The boy's jaw had not been hit very hard. Ronald Strathmore Hunt, in evidence, said that he had been under the Child Welfare Officer since he had been eight years old. He had worked for Fanning since November. Recounting what had occurred last Friday, he said that about 10 a.m. Mr Fanning and his mother went to Waipawa and returned about 4 p.m. Mr Fanning had taken him into Waipawa, where Mr Fanning had gone into both the Empire and Commercial hotels. They then went to Mr Wynn's for supper, where Mr Fanning and Mr Wynn had some more liquor. Mr Fanning then drove the car very badly as far as the bridge over the river on the way to Waipukurau. He had driven into the gutter twice. At the bridge over the river he stopped and asked witness if he could drive. He said that he was drunk. Witness drove the car to the Tavistock Hotel, Waipukurau, where Fanning asked him to go in and ask the night porter the time. Witness did so and Fanning followed him in. Mullins came in. After the porter had served the men with a drink and himself with lemonade, Mullins produccd a bottle of port wine and the two men drank that before going on to Mullins' place. Hunt said he drove the car to Mullins' house, where the men had some more drlnks and then went back to the Tavistock Hotel. Here Mullins got out of the car and Fanning fell on to the ground. The night porter came out and helped to put Fanning back into the car, but refused to serve them with any more drinks. Mullins drove the car from the Tavistock Hotel out past Fanning's place and on to the Onga Onga Hotel. Here Mullins climbed up the fire escape in an effort to wake the proprietor and get a drink. The proprietor woke up and ordered him to go down again. Hunt had followed Mullins at his request. Then they return to Fanning's farm and Hunt went to bed. Next day Fanning went to town again and when he returned and came out to the shed Mrs Fanning, his mother, asked him if he had been drinking more beer. She then told him that the police had been out to question Hunt. When Hunt told Fanning that he had told the police that be (Hunt) had driven the car from Waipawa to Waipukurau, Fanning had said "You're a liar," and Hunt alleged that Fanning had then "smacked him on the jaw." Hunt picked up a broom to defend himself, but Mrs Fanning took it away from him and he ran out into the road. The boy said he then went back to the house, got dressed, and made his way to Constable Moss, at Waipawa, to re-

port the matter. Replying to Mr. Harker, Hunt said he only used the broom in self defence and he did not attempt to strike Fanning with the shovel when the broom was taken from him. Edward Sullivan, night porter at the Tavistock Hotel, corroborated Hunt's evidence regarding the visits to the hotel, and gave it as his opinion that Mullins was quite capable of driving the car when it left the hotel for the last time. Donald-George Rose, a farmer at Ruataniwha gave evidenee as to his noticing the car down the bank and finding Mullins in the front seat in a dazed condition at about 6.30 a.m. Questioned as to how he got there, Mullins said he had been dazzled by the lights of an approaching car, and had run over the bank. Constable Moss, of Waipawa, told how he had gone out and found Mullins in the car at about 7.30 a.m. and had taken him to Dr. Norris for examination. He gave it as his opinion that Mullins was a border-line case at that time so far as intoxication was concerned. He read statements made by Mullins to himself and later, to Constable Sutton. Dealing with the assault charge, Constable Moss said he had seen the boy at 5 p.m. on Saturday and his face was normal, but when he saw him the following morning his face had a swelling on the jaw. He and Constable Sutton had subsequently interviewed Fanning who had denied assaulting the boy. Outlining the case for the defence, Mr. Harker said Fanning admitted having been drunk on the Friday evening in question and that for that reason and that reason only he had asked Mullins to drive him in the car, but he submitted that the evidence against Mullins was weak and that Fanning was not actually in charge of the car while drunk. As to the assault charge Mrs. Fanning would say that there was no assault but that the boy lost his temper and threatened Fanning with a broom. Richard Wynn, motor mechanic, of Waipawa, in evidence said Fanning had had supper with him, but they had only drunk one bottle of shandy, and when Fanning left he was quite capable of driving the car. Fanning giving evidence said he was quite sober when driving the car, and the boy Hunt had not driven the car, but had arranged with Mullins to drive him home from Waipukurau. On the day of the alleged assault he admitted calling him a liar, but had made no attempt to strike him. The boy had rushed at him with a broom and when Mrs. Fanning took this away from him he rushed for a shovel and in doing so banged his jaw against a post. Mrs. Fanning, mother of defendant, gave corroborative evidence and said she remembered seeing the boy bang his jaw against the post although she had forgotten to mention it in making a statement to the police. In summing up, Mr. Miller said the case was a difficult one as there was no direct evidence as to the intoxication charge and he was left to infer what happened from the stories told in Court. As for Mullins there was no direct evidence that he was intoxicated and there was not sufficient evidenee to show how he went over the bank. The charge of being intoxicated in charge of a car against Mullins was therefore dismissed. The charge of assault was a most serious one and if proved would be a

case for imprisonment because it would have come about as a result of the boy answering the questions of the police. There was a doubt in this case, however, and he would dismiss it also. As for the charge against Fanning of driving a car while intoxicated he was satisfied that this had been proved. Therefore he would fine him £2 and costs 12s on the charge of being, on the Tavistock Hotel after hours, dismiss the assault charge and fine him £20 and costs 18s on the charge of being in charge of a car while intoxicated and order his license to be suspended for 12 months. On two charges of being on licensed premises after hours Mullins was fined £2 and £1 costs in each case.