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Criminal Sessions.

I ■ „„, . AtrcKLAND, April 2. I * The f Criminal Sessions opened to-day. I In his charge to the Grand Jury, Judge ■ Gillies said the,, number of charges was I exceptionally small,'being only eleven, of persons was excepI^^^Harge, viz., 51. There was a case against 19 Europeans, and. a against 24 Maoris, the cases being by Europeans Europeans. His Honor, in laming a qharge of Tape preferred against 1-4 constable by his half-caste servant- girl, ■ laid the.ease required careful consideraX tibn, ai the girl admitted,having previI ionsly had an illegitimate ch'ld, and that ■ while* the accused twice committed the I alleged ofienoe in one night none of the I £ve r children who slept,in the house ■ teemed to have been awakened. I After-referring ' to" the , case , .of atMtflflfi rape brought against a Maori Maori woman a» curious,' if not His Honor went on to. refer to ejectment case, whesein 19 Vweire - charged with foroible P^ffi^tyf pulling down certain fences and ■ oerUin wbfcres belonging to

nativeiC notwitbsf andirtg' th~elr r"resißtaneK He quoted; the alegar definition of the offence, and then commented on it, saying that what the law required was that a per«!>n, ejected must be in possession, and then if another came with force of arms or ,a multitude of people to dispossess the person in possession he committed the crime of forcible entry—tho question of right or title to the property had nothing | toj do with the charge, The law discouraged the use of the strong hand; it required an appeal to be made to itself. If? the facts alleged were proved there was no doubt the offence was that of forcible entry. The remaining case was one in which 23 natives had been committed on 4a charge of assault and robbery with violence. Now the essence of this crime was intent to steal, and it would therefore have to be shown that the object of the assault was intent to steal (section 43 of Larceny Act of 186*7 quoted),—the other circumstances were accessories, which made the ."offence 'still rmore -serious. It was probable the natives would be indicted for other offences than'the charge on which they had been committed. If the latter bill were presented to,them, however, it would be for the jury to say whether the evidence bore out the intent attributed to the accused. If they had some other object than robbery in view in making the assault, then they were not guilty of the offence under notice, although they might be guilty of others for which they would doubtless be indicted.—The Grand Jury returned no bills in the cases of Nicholas M*rch, ex-constable, for rape, at Maketu ; and of Hip, a Maori, rape on a native woman at Maketu. Charles Werner was acquitted on charges of larceny and horse stealing. Henry Whitaker Duval, for larceny as a bailee, three years' penal servitude.

„ April 3. The Supreme Court has been occupied all the morning in hearing a charge of cattle stealing against Thomas Gathercole. . True bills, have been fonnd. against Mahuki and 22 followers, on six counts; K. B. .Walker and others, concerned in the Cambridge ejectment case ; - and Whakauta for perjury. The bill was ignored in the case of John and James Lanigan for malicious injury to property. .April 9.

In tho case against Walker and other prisoners, counsel admitted the fact that the prisoners had forcibly entered upon land for the purpose of dispossessing the natives, and Walker's- legal right to do what he had done was argued. His* Honor, held that Walker bad no right, and bound him over in the sum of £500 to appear for .'.sentence at the next sitting of the Court. ,If prior to that time, he make's recompense to the natives for the crops, &c, destroyed, a nominal fine will be imposed; the other prisoners were .'discharged. A nolle proteqtd was entered in the case of Wakuata charged with perjury.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THS18830421.2.26

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Thames Star, Volume XIV, Issue 4460, 21 April 1883, Page 1 (Supplement)

Word count
Tapeke kupu
652

Criminal Sessions. Thames Star, Volume XIV, Issue 4460, 21 April 1883, Page 1 (Supplement)

Criminal Sessions. Thames Star, Volume XIV, Issue 4460, 21 April 1883, Page 1 (Supplement)

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