AMY BOCK.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 103, 28 May 1909, Page 2

AMY BOCK.

RECEIVES TWO YEARS. DECLARED AX HABITUAL. By Telegraph.—Press Association. Dtmedin, Last Xiglit. Amy Hock, mrest led to a scnslational development last month, nunc before the Supreme Court to-ilay (or sentence on charges of forgery and uttering, 'two charges of false preteuces, and a charge of mil king a false statement 11 luk'r tile .Marriage Aet, 11)08. At the outset, Mr. .Moore, tvlio appeaveil for accused. said lie wit-lied to draw attention to tile statements puulished in the daily press. Many papers in the Dominion had published statemeiiSs'Tii regard to accused which should not have been published until after alio was found guilty. Ilis Honor said he had not read any of the publication* complained or. If Jlr. Moore thought papers had committed contempt of Court he. could take proceedings against them. ilis Honor said he could not recall anything in particular of the nature complained of. It uilglit have been wrong to publish it. He did not know what was published, and for the present purpose it was not necessary that he should know.

Mr. Moore then proceeded to deal with the accused's past history. She gave her age as 47, and was just able to remember her mother before the latter was taken to an asylum. Her mother died in a mental hospital in Australia. Accused was brought up in a ladies' boarding tichool in .Melbourne. While she was there he r father lost a considerable sum of money, necessitating her returning home. Then she studied for a teacher and got a license when 13 or 14 years of age. Within a year or so, council understood, she was convicted and discharged for falee pretences in Australia. SliV then came to Xew Zealand. Dealing with the case in which accused forged Hoy's name to a receipt, counsel said that while in tlio town, accused met a ■woman who knew her past and had been kind to her in the past, but who at that particular moment was very hard-tip. Thus woman demanded lroiu her £2O, stating that if she did not receive the money she would go to Kov and expose accused's pas't and get her dismissed. Accused tried to put her off, but was unsuccessful and committed forgery and obtained the money under a bill of safe from Mr. Ellis. Hither one or two days after sTie received the money site wrote to Ellis, telling hint she committed the crime, that the, roe&ipt was a forgery, and that she intended to meet him. She did meet him. She got afraid that she would be "run-in' by the police. She did her liest to evade the police, and, evading them, led to other crimes. From accused's past there was a possibility, if not a probability, that she was not responsible for her actions, and he would a«k the Court to have her examined iliy mental experts as to the condition of her,mind. Dr. Dc Lautour, who was for many years one of the examiners of medical jurisprudent would >say that the facts as dis'closed to him could make a prima facie case that accused was not responsible for her actions.

His Honor: If so she ought to be sent to an asylum, and kept there. After the passing of sentence she will be medically examined. If the result is that she be declared insane she will be removed from the place where she will be sent, but T am not going to commit h'er to an asylum no>v. Mr. Moore: Will your TTonor make an orrler that she will hp medically examined by mental experts? His Honor: I don't know whetilier T will make an order. Imt 1 will suggest to the Crown that she should be. After tile Clown Prosecutor had read a list of previous convictions, his Honor said to accused: "Yrti will be sentenced to imprisonment for the term of two yenrs with hard Talior on each charge concurrently, and will als'o be declared all Mutual criminal." If iit be, the ease that (insinier w men tall v deficient It 'Would bo » matter for the consideration of the Government.