LICENSING CASES.

Shannon News, 24 June 1921, Page 1

LICENSING CASES.

At the Magistrate’s Court at Palmerston on Monday, before Mr J. L. Stout,' S.M., Chjarless Vaughan and Wm. Edward Butler, both of Shannon, were charged with being found after hours on licensed premises the Club Hotel, Shannon. Constable McGregor sa,ld that- a porter was conveying beer m them, but when he saw witness he proceeded past the sitting room wherein the defendants w r ere waiting. Both made excuses lor their presence in the hotel, saying thej l were waiting to have tea. Mrs Moynihan, wife of the licensee, stated that Butler was an old friend of the family, and had a standing invitation to the house. The alleged offence was said to have occurred on a Sunday. The two beers were for the kitchen staff. His Worship considered that as the defendants were there at about the hour of tea time they might really have been waiting for a meal. The verdict was for the defendants. Mr Adams,'of Park and Adams, Levin, appeared for defendants. Michael Moynihan, licensee of the Club Hotel, Shannon, pleaded not guilty to permitting drunkenness on his premises. Mr Adams appeared for defendant. Constable McGregor said that on May 28th last, at 4.45 p.m., he visited the hotel. On a sofa in a public sitting room he found a man in a drunken condition. In reply to the constable the man said, “1 am full up with beer, can’t you leave a man alone.” When witness left the room Mrs Moynihan went in and said to the man: “Why can’t you go away, and not get us into trouble? I have told you to go away several times before.” The man was not a boarder. Constable Shannon gave corroborative evidence. William Joseph Moynihan, son of the licensee, said that he had seen the man in question on the premises early in the day, and he had left the premises when requested to do so. Later in the day he came back, but again left at the demand of witness. On neither occasion did he show signs of being very drunk. He had never given the hotel any trouble before. No beer had been served to him after 2 o’clock. Pie had been refused drink earlier in the day. Ellen E. Moynihan said she did not know the drunken man was in the room until after four o’clock. She immediately tried to get him to leave the premises, but just then the police took possession of him. Her son asked her eai’lier in the afternoon to keep a watch to see that the man did not loiter on the premises. His Worship thought there was some lack of supervision for the man to get into the room. It was the duty of a publican to see that men like this were not found on their premises. Defendant would be convicted aiifp fined £lO and costs. -Senior-Sergeant Fraser asked that the license be endorsed. He said that the licensee’s wife and son were virtually controlling the hotel. Mr Adams objected, saying that the licensee had been in ill-health of late. His Worship pointed out that in any case the licensee Was responsible for the conduct of the hotel. He would not, however, endorse the license on fhis occasion.