POLICE COURT.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXX, Issue 5387, 13 February 1929, Page 2

POLICE COURT.

MONDAY'S SITTING AT PAEROA. CASES DEALT WITH. At a sitting of the Police Court at Paeroa on Monday the undemoted c.ases appeared for judgment before, Mr F. AV. Platts, S.M. ON LICENSED PREMISES. Thomas Sydney Short, for being, on licensed premises while prohibited, was fined 10s. and 10s costs. Sydney Septimus Ratliff, in answer to the charge of being found on licensed premises after hours .on the 6th inst., stated that he was a fruiterer, a.nd went to the hotel in question to try and dispose of fruit. He was., in the habit of so doing at any hour in the course of conducting his business, as he often had fruit on hand which had to be disposed of immediately before it went bad on him. Accused was fined £1 and costs. UNREGISTERED HOME. Minnie Dora Williams was charged with, in consideration, of payment, taking charge of a child and therefore being a foster-mother, keeping an unlicensed house. A second: charge, of failing to keep a record 1 book, was deleted, being obviated by the first charge. Mr. R. S. Carden, who appeared for the accused, pleaded that it was only a technical offence, and not a serious c.rime. Mrs Williams had taken charge of the child, an illegitimate, when it was three months old, had admitted taking payment, and ha:d licensed her house. Later,, on moving, she had failed to register her domicile. The child had been .well cared for. The mother had written to the Child Welfare Department asking for the child to be returned to her. Tt wa.s now in the parent’s care.

Mi’s Whitehouse, Child Welfare ’officer, corroborated what Mr Carden said. At the time the child was better off under, the charge of Mrs Williams than of the parents. The father of the child had offered to pay all expenses and: proposed marriage, but the affections of the woman in the case had been transferred to another man, who paid £5O towards the child’s upkeep. The mother later returned to the father of her child, but left him after a while and' obtained: a maintenance order against him- Mrs Whitehouse intimated that the Child Welfare Department wag not asking for a severe punishment. Accused was convicted and ordered to pay costs.