A REVOLTING CRIME.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXII, Issue 33, 3 February 1912, Page 5

A REVOLTING CRIME.

SENTENCE OF TAVENTY YEARS’ HARD LABOUR. STRONG COMAIENT BY JUSTICE CHAPA! AN. ; (Per Press Association.) ' AA r elJington, February 2. A most revolting case was unfolded in the Supremo to yd ay, when Albert Henry Hughes, a man -about twenty-six years of age, was tried on a charge of, on December 9, 1911, at Petone, committing a serious olfenco against a girl nine years of age. Mr. Justice Chapman was on the bench, and Air. H. H. Ostler, of the Crown Law Office, was Crown Prosecutor. Prisoner, who pleaded not guilty, was defended by Mr. AV. Cracrofc AVilson. The Court was cleared during, the hearing of the case. The jury retired shortly after 5 p.m., and returned in about ten minutes with a verdict of guilty. His Honour stated, in reply to prisoner’s counsel, that he proposed to pass sentence immediately. Mr. Wilson thereupon said that lie felt bound to mention the prisoner’s weakness of character.

His Honour: It is of no use in a case of this sort.

Mr. AA’ilson: He has had two kinds of fever, and has been under the doctor at Otaki on several occasions. His Honour replied that that was entirely a matter for the gaol authorities.

Mr. AA 7 ilson: I bow to your Honour’s opinion, but I felt it my duty to mention this matter.

His Honour: You are quite right to do so, Air. AVilson.

Addressing the prisoner, his Honour said: “This is the very worst case 1 have ever had the misfortune to deal witii • the most cruel and brutal outrage I ever heard of. You took this little girl away from her home and ruthlessly violated her in that lonely spot. J. have known people in my time hanged for such offences in the neighbouring States, but the leniency of the law now allows me to pass a less severe sentence on you. I do not think it necessary to pass sentence .of life, although 1 may have some difficulty in giving my reasons for not doing so. The sentence I am going to pass must, however, be a very long term, indeed, so long that 1 do not deem it necessary to add the punishment of flogging, which 1 had done in some cases that have come before me. The only sentence consistent with my duty is twenty years’ imprisonment with hard labour. Addressing the jury, his Honour continued: “Tins has been a painful case for you as well as for me. It may be that many people may think excessive the sentence I have just passed, but the law fixes the maximum penalty for such .an offence as hard labour for life.”

His Honour repeated that he might have difficulty in giving reasons for imposing the sentence that lie had, 'but it had been his endeavour to stamp out such outrages on young girls, for the reason that publication of the details of these cases was frequently forbidden, and because the newspapers, for the sake of the decency of their columns, did not enlarge upon them, even when publication was not forbidden. The public were not quite aware of the fact that the offences were so frequent. “Certainly,” his Honour concluded, “they are not often attended with such' violence, but I can inform you that iu a few years I have tried over one hundred of these cases.’

His Honour thanked the jury for their attention to the case, and discharged them from further attendance.