SUPREME COURT.

Taranaki Daily News, 15 May 1917, Page 3

SUPREME COURT.

OPENING OR NEW PLYMOUTH SESSIONS. (Before His Honor Mr. Justice Hocking). The May sittings of tiio Supreme Court opened in Now .Plymouth yesterday morning before Mr. Justice Hocking. THE GRAND .KEY. The following gentlemen formed the Grand Jury:—Messrs S. W. Shaw (foreman), A. Ambury, J. M»L. Auld, E. Beekbessinger, A. K. Brooker, C. Carter, H. Cocker, W. CutP.cld, E. Yv. Garner, E. R. C. Gilmour, H. V. S. .Griffiths, G. G. Grover, A. S. Hasell, T. G. Hunt W. E. Jenkins, F. S. Johns, J. T. Mannix, A. Mcllardy, J. McNeill. E. T. McQuade, J. L>. Sole, H. Ward, E. P. Webster. Mr. Shaw was chosen fore-man.

THE JUDGE'S CHARGE. His Honor, addressing the Grand Jury, said: I must congratulate you and the district upon the foot that"your duties at this sitting of the Court will 'be extremely light. There, is only one ease that calls for your consideration, and I think you will find it a very simple one to deal with. It is a case in which a man is charged with indecent assault on a .Native woman. Now, indecency in connection with an assault lias a vary wide range covering anything from rape, its most serious form, down to very slight evidences of indecency in which there might not have been any actual physical contact. In the first place the jury .would have to consider whether thera had been an assault, and an assault might he broadly defined « the application of fores by one person to another person, against the will oE the latter If you think there was an assault, and, if so, that the circumstances made it an indecent one, it will be your duty to return a true bill. Whether the prisoner was or was not drunk at the time is not a- matter for tho Grand Jury; if -that nuestion arises at all it will be one for the common jury to deal with.. The whole question as to whether there was an assault depends upon the credibility of the -witnesses; if you credit them yon will find there was assault and that there is little doubt as to the indecency. I do not think I can further assist you in this simple case; if you retire to your room the bill will be laid before you • IALLEGED ASSAULT.

William .Tamos Jones, againj. whom the Grand Jury returned a true lull on the second count of the indictment!, was charged with having on March 28 at Waitarr, assaulted a Maori girl named Violet Bangi. He pleaded not guilty. Mr. 11. Billing conducted the case for the Crown and.Mr. F. E Wilson appeared for the prisoner. The following jury was empanelled:— Messrs. P. E. Gadd (foreman), Frederick Lonsdale. T. Mae!;, S. Robb, V. H. Beale, E. 11. Bellrinscr, A. Lee. P. J. Julian, J. Blcwman, W. E. Bendall, M. G. Emcny, F. Goodwin. The Crown Prosecutor, in opening the ease, said the facts wore peculiar, liecause tiie assault took place in the main street of Wailara at an early hour in the evening. The explanation probably was that the man was almost drunk and overlooked the fact that he could be easily detected. Violet Eangi gave evidence to the effect that on March 2S she was in Wai-1 tara with two Maori companions. She parted from her companions, and afterwards looked for them in the ladies' room of the accused's stables. She did not <=ee them there, and asked the accused where they were. He made an improper suggestion, and she 'ran away, going towards the- town, and found her friends, the accused following her. Slio got behind her friends, whereupon the accused did the same and got hold of her. She said she would tell the policeman and the accused's wife, when the accused got hold of her he tore her dress. He told her not to say anything, but when the nonstable came on the scene she told him all about it. Her friends were in the habit of visiting the dressing room in the stable where she went to look for them.

Cross-examined by Mr. Wilson, witness admitted being in the stable earlier >n the evening but denied that the accused had gone into the dressing room with her. She did not call out in the stable nor when the assault took place. When accused got hold of her she saw tho policeman coming, but she did not call out to him. The assault took place in front of an hotel on the main road on the side nearest the bridge. She had known. "Scorcher" .Tones (the accused) and had occasionally gone to 'his stable.? 1 . He had never behaved wrongly to her before. When the assault took place she told accused there were too many people about.

Corroborative evidence for the prosecution was given by lline Hine and Hohipera,, the two Maori women referred (o by prosecutrix l as the friends who had been with her at Wtiitara on the day in question, the latter stating that accused was intoxicated at the time of the assault. Constable Lapouple, stationed at Waitara, gave evidence as to what happened and what was said to him after his arrival on the scene. The accused was drunk and witness arrested him on, that charge, to which be afterwards pleaded guilty. At the time witness spoke to the Maori women and the. accused he did not see anyone else about. Where tTiey were standing was in obscurity, the only light shining directly on the spot being one on the bridge. This was the case for the prosecution. Mr. Wilson, in opening, said he would not address the jury at that stage, but would merely state that the evidence he intended calling would put quite a different complexion on tho story. Hugh Partridge, stableman, residing at Waitara. deposed that he had been in charge of accused's stables on the afternoon and evening in question. Shortly after 0 n m the accused came to tho stable in a wry drunken condition and remained there, till S.-lu" p.m., sitting on a box in the office. While accused was there Violet Rangi and Hine Hine came to the stables and went into the ofneo. The three of them remained in the office for about twentv minutes. Men named Frank attenbnry, Sam Loveridge, AicDonald and -Tim Manu arrived at the stables while the three were in the office, Manu spoke to Violet Rangi through the office window and the two girls came out. The four went away, the girls in one direction and the young men in another. That was about 7.15 p.m. This accused was sound asleep all that time. His Honor asked what the defence was. H it was a denial that smy assault Had: taken place, what bearing on 4t had the evidence now being called!

Mr. Wilson said the object of the evidence was to show that the women were not to be 'believed. They had denied, on oath, seeing the men the witness had named, and who would be callfid, at the stables on the night in question. The assault alleged was denied, although it was admitted that the accused had .put his hand on the girl's shoulder.

His Honor: Very good. So long as we know what you are driving at. A, H. Loveridge gave similar evidence as to the girls being at the stables, and added that subsequently he saw accused with the women at the gate where the assault was alleged to have taken place. He was leaning against a post nearby for a considerable time. He saw Jones give a lurch, and the girl Violet seomed to pull herself from him. The policeman was there at the time. .

Evidence for ,the defence was also given by Frank Kattenbury. Mr. Wilson addressed the jury, and Mr Billing replied on behalf of the Crown. His Honor, in summing up, reviewed the evidence briefly, and said the question for the jury to decide was as to whether the accused had used force, however slight, to the girl against her will. If he had, then they had all the material to support the charge of assault, but, on the other hand, the jury might think that the accused had simply stumbled against the. girl, or merely laid a friendly hand upon her shoulder when passing, and if so, they would acquit him of any act or intent of a criminal nature. The defence really invited the jury to set aside altogether the evidence of tho Maori girls, and it would be for them to consider whether the evidence in the case as a whole would justify them in doing so. As to the condition of the man, they had the evidence of his own friends that after he had had a sleep of about two hours in the stable they eonsiderpd he had so fur recivered as to be fit and able to go home. The jury, after ten minutes' retirement, returned a verdict of not guilty, and the prisoner was dischargea.

The court then rpse till 10 a.m. to> day.