PUNISHMENT FOR CRIME

Taranaki Daily News, 29 November 1926, Page 11

PUNISHMENT FOR CRIME

SUPREME COURT SENTENCES THREE YEARS’ GAOL FOR BIGAMY. JULIAN'S EVIDENCE CRITICISED. “I entertain no doubt that in order to escape the consequences of your crime you deliberately stepped into the box and committed perjury,” said the Chief Justice (Hon. C. P. Skerrett) in the Supreme Court at New Plymouth on Saturday morning in addressing Samuel Julian before sentencing him to three years’ hard labour for bigamy and making a false statement with regard to a marriage certificate. “With my knowledge of the world,” continued His Honour, “I have no doubt that you did commit perjury.” Such an action on the part of the prisoner aggravated the offence, said the Judge, in further addressing Julian. He was entirely in accord with the verdict of the jury, who had quite properly found the prisoner guilty of the serious crime with which he was charged. Had it not been for the fact that the accused, except for the one set of offences, had borne a good character and was said to be an industrious person, a heavier penalty might have been imposed. A plea for the extension of leniency towards the prisoner was made by his counsel (Mr. A. A. Bennett) who said that the prisoner was 31 years’ old. His father had died when he was three years’ old. and practically all his life he had been thrown on his own resources, his mother being at least to some extent dependent on him. During his younger days he had been engaged in farming work and general labouring. When 20 years of age he went to the war and had a thoroughly clean record, securing a very good discharge. Towards the end of his war career he became a second lieutenant in the Royal Flying Corps. His married life with the girl he met in England was unfortunately not a happy one, said Mr. Bennett. After parting with her at Tariki he had been engaged as a bond salesman and motor salesman, and the employers for whom he had worked gave him excellent recommendations. He bad no previous convictions against him, and his offences disclosed serious carelessness rather than criminal intent. When free to do so it was his intention to do the right thing by the girl with whom he had gone through a form of marriage at Opunake. GUILTY OF INDECENT ASSAULT. FIVE YEARS’ HARD LABOUR. Found guilty of committing a number of indecent assaults bn boys, John Alexander Owens was sentenced to five years’ hard labour. The prisoner was unrepresented by counsel, and had nothing to say in extenuation of his offences. In passing sentence His Honour pointed out that the prisoner had been convicted in 1912 for an unnatural offence, for which he had been sentenced to imprisonment for a period of ten years. This was a fact'which His Honour desired to make known in order that the public could understand the reason fertile severity of the present sentence. It appeared that the prisoner was a man of deficient mentality, and one of those unfortunate beings—a sexual pervert. As such he was a menace to the community and not fit to be at large.