FATAL COLLISION

Waikato Times, Volume 119, Issue 19896, 27 May 1936, Page 10

FATAL COLLISION

DEATHS OF THREE MEN. 1 l - t TRUGK DRIVER 0N TRIAL\VHATAVVHATA CRASH SEQL’EL. The trial commenced at the Supreme Court. Hamilton, [O-day of Leonard Reay Grogan. a young man. “:11? “'35: charged with the negligent dl‘n‘ms 0‘ é. motor-truck at \\‘hatawhata on March is last. thereby causing the deaths of William Aikman. Henry Leslie \\'illianis and William Oliver Lester Jarvis. Mr H. T. Gillies conducted the case for the Crown and Mr \V. J. King ap—peared for the accused, who pleaded not guilty. ln opening the case for the Crown, Mr Gillies said the accused was conveyinsr on his motor—truck to Frankton a number of workers who had been engaged on relief works near \\'hatawhata, It was alleged that he cut the corner on a bend, as a result of which he collided with another truck and three of the passengers in his truck received fatal injuries. Therewere no allegations that Grogan drove at an excessive speed or was in any way affected by liquor. i Counsel quoted from the accused‘s ‘statement in which he attributed the accident to the unreasonable state of the road, which prevented him from getting over to his correct side in time to avoid an impact_ Counsel main—tained that Grogan knew the road and ‘should have realised the risk he was taking. A plan of the scene of the accident was produced by Harry G. Hail. surveyor. of Hamilton. He stated that the width of the metal was Lift” while there was Bit. of grass on the outside. 0n the other side .01 the road there iwas a bank. Cross-examined, witness agreed that the camber on the road tended to be dangerous. Most trafllc would tend to take the corner on the wrong side. Since the accident a local body had removed portion of the bank on the inside. graded the surface, and dug a water-table. Malcolm James Thomas. civil enslneer employed by the Public W'orks Department, also produced a plan based on measurements he had made. ‘ (Proceeding)