A West Coast Case.

Manawatu Herald, 2 June 1904, Page 2

A West Coast Case.

John Watson Scully, formerly an hotel-keeper at Westport, and now a restaurant-keeper in Wellington, was charged on remand at the Hokitika S.M. Court on Tuesday with supplying an instrument to Miss Amelia Edge for the purpose of procuring abortion in June last year. Before proceeding with the case, the Magistrate said it was unusual to have a case heard at Hokitika while the alleged offence took place at Westport, one hundred miles away, and unless the Crown undertook to pay the expenses of any witnesses.the accused might wish to call, he would refuse to hear the case. After some discussion, counsel for accused elected to proceed, and evidence for the prosecution was called, but the Court dismissed the information on the ground that the evidence did not disclose that accused supplied or attempted to supply the instrument It might be mentioned that accused was tried at the September sitting of the Supreme Court with the same offence, but under a different section of the Criminal Code. The jury found a verdict of guilty, but law points were raised, and subsequently the Appeal Court quashed the conviction.