CHARGE AGAINST DOCTOR.

Taranaki Daily News, 13 July 1921, Page 5

CHARGE AGAINST DOCTOR.

military camp incident. THOMPSON—HOTOP CASE. CAME! SENTENCE REVERSED. By Telegraph.—-Press AssociationWellington, Last Night. The report of the Thompson —Hotop Commission, conducted by Mr. T. F. Martin, barrieter-at-law, has been received. by the Govern or-General. The Commission was set up to enquire into and report, on the proceedings and judgment of a court-martial held, at Featherston Camp on September 27, 1917, which found Henry Starsant Thompson guilty of knowingly making a false statement affecting the character oi an officer, by stating that Captain F. R. Hotop, N.Z.M.C., was noticeably under the influence of alcoholic liquor when reporting to him at a medical board on August 8, 1917. The court sentenced. Thompson to undergo detention for 112 days. The finding of the commission is, briefly, that there was no objection to the constitution of the court or its personnel, and no objection wu® made by Thompson that the court-martial acted wrongly in throwing the onus of proving I the good faith of hie accusation upon Thompson; that Thompson made the accusation, believing it to be true, and he had grounds for his belief in the reputation. of Captain Hotop in the camp, and, therefore, the finding of the court must be reversed.

The finding proceeds: “But even were I of the opinion that the evidence actually given before the court was sufficient to warrant a conviction, I should still hold that the judgment should be set aside, on the grounds: (1) That the whole onus of proving his good faith was thrown upon accused; (2) and especially that he was debarred by the rulings of the court from giving evidence of extraneous matters concerning Captain Hotojfs reputation that had come to his hearing before he wrote the letter of August 22, 1917, containing the accusation in question.” The Commissioner further states that he is satisfied that Captain Hotop was sober at the medical board. What witnesses have described as his dazed condition and dreamy look is explained by a Crown witness, S.S.M. Blandford, as his Natural look, which, coupled with a certain gruflness of manner, was mistaken by the men at the camp for signs of indulgence in alcoholic, liquor. Witnesses who saw and spoke to Hotop at different times of the day over a* considerable period deposed that in their relations with him in the camp they had always found him sober. It appeared also that Captain Hotop performed a larger num[ber of operations than any of the other medical officers, and it seemed incredI ible he would have been allowed to operate so frequently if his condition was as I described by Thompson’s witnesses. The Commissioner adds that if acI cused had been properly convinced of the i offence charged against him the senI tence of the court was not excessive. The icase would, have been one warranting | the imposition of the maximum detenj tion that was imposed under the reguj lations. Costs amounting to £35 12s were awarded to Thompson for his costs lat the commission, and the opinion was (expressed that he should be allowed his | costs in the court-martial. The costs (ordered are to be paid at once by the I Government, but the question of compensation, which was not submitted to | the commission, will be referred to a I committee of Parliament for recom- | mendation in the usual way.