Below also see: James Wilson and Alexander Douglas, 1919 – Indecent assault
Northern Star, Thu 2 Dec 1915 1
ALLEGED THEFT OF FILMS.
SYDNEY, Wednesday, James Wilson has been committed for trial for the alleged theft of nine reels of films valued at £72, the property of the Australian Films Ltd. The prosecutor stated he had identified other films valued over £600.
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The Sydney Morning Herald, Wed 19 Jan 1916 2
LAW NOTICES.
———◦———
…
QUARTER SESSIONS.
James Wilson, stealing; William Kennedy, assault and robbery;
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The Sydney Morning Herald, Thu 20 Jan 1916 3
QUARTER SESSIONS.
(Before Judge Docker.)
Mr JN Mason prosecuted for the Crown.
…
GUILTY OF RECEIVING.
James Wilson pleaded not guilty to a charge of having, at Sydney, on November 15, stolen nine cinematograph films, the property of Australasian Films, Limited.
The jury found the accused guilty of receiving, and he was remanded for sentence.
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The Sydney Morning Herald, Fri 21 Jan 1916 4
QUARTER SESSIONS.
(Before Judge Docker.)
Mr JN Mason prosecuted for the Crown.
…
SENTENCED.
…
James Wilson, who had been convicted of receiving, was sentenced to two years’ hard labour in Goulburn gaol.
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James Wilson, Gaol photo sheet 5
![SRNSW: NRS2467, [3/6091], State Penitentiary photographic description book, 7 Oct 1915-12 Feb 1916, No. 14766, p. 142.](../../images/trials/1915-Wilson-6091-gaol-photo-14766.jpg "SRNSW: NRS2467, [3/6091], State Penitentiary photographic description book, 7 Oct 1915-12 Feb 1916, No. 14766, p. 142.") |
Gaol Photo Sheet - Transcribed Details
No. 14766
Date when Portrait was taken: 20-1-1916
Name: James Wilson
(aka Percy Burt, Albert Hanson)
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Native place: Tasmania Year of birth: 6-2-1873 Arrived Ship: BS Trade or occupation Religion: C of E Education, degree of: R & W Height: 5' 6⅜" Weight On committal: 132 Colour of hair: Brown to grey Colour of eyes: Grey |
Marks or special features: Slight scar inside left forearm. Right middle finger crooked scar in left side of neck |
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(No. of previous Portrait ... ) CONVICTIONS |
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Where and When |
Offence. |
Sentence |
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Central PC Newcastle PC Central PC Sydney Q.S |
20 12 10 19 |
7 5 6 1 |
1912 1914 1915 1916 |
Assault Not pay steamer fare Riotous Receiving |
1 month HL 10/- or 3 days HL £2 or 1 month HL 2 years HL |
James Wilson and Alexander Douglas, 1919
The Sydney Morning Herald, Fri 13 Jun 1919 6
LAW NOTICES.
———
Friday, June 13.
…
QUARTER SESSIONS.
Alexander Douglas and James Wilson, misconduct; Abdul Mahomet, Mary Nairne, Charles Bourke, larceny; Joseph Vincent, Susan Vincent, assault, occasioning actual bodily harm; Robert Beddell, larceny.
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The Sydney Morning Herald, Wed 18 Jun 1919 7
LAW NOTICES.
———
Wednesday, June 18.
…
QUARTER SESSIONS.
Patrick O’Rourke and Alfred Selborne, misconduct; Alexander Douglas, James Wilson, misconduct; Percy Dalton, malicious damage to property; William Jones, larceny.
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The Sydney Morning Herald, Thu 3 Jul 1919 8
LAW NOTICES.
———
Thursday, July 3.
———
…
QUARTER SESSIONS.
Alexander Douglas and James Wilson, indecent assault; Vernon Newell, indecent assault; Alick Johns, bigamy; Percy Dalton, malicious injury to property; John Clemlow, attempted arson.
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The Daily Telegraph, Fri 4 Jul 1919 9
CRIMINAL
———
Before Judge Armstrong, at the Quarter Sessions,
…
Alexander Douglas, [42], and James Wilson , [46], pleaded guilty to gross misconduct, and were remanded for sentence. Douglas was represented by Mr JW Abigail.
…
GAOL POPULATION.
———•———
PROGRESSIVE DECREASE.
———
LOWEST ON RECORD.
———
PRISONERS PROFITABLY
EMPLOYED.
———
The prison population of New South Wales on December 31, 1918, was 1,025, as against 1,500 at the end of 1908 and 2,353 at the end of 1888. The daily average of prisoners was 1,282 compared with 1,460 in 1908.
This information is contained in the annual report of the Comptroller-General of Prisons (Mr McCauley), made available yesterday by Mr Garland, Minister for Justice.
The prison population in New South Wales, said the report, declined from 1 in 385 of the general population on December 31, 1878, to 1 in 1,874 on December 31, 1918.
This decline, Mr McCauley considered, was due principally to the great improvement in social and economic conditions. Prison treatment, also, was continually advancing in the direction of training the prisoner in habits of industry and helping him to have a happier outlook on life.
The total prison receptions showed a decrease of 365 compared with the figures for 1917, described in his last report as “the lowest number of entries for any year in the prison records, which were first compiled for the year 1873.” The decrease for 1918 as compared with 1914 was 4,681.
SENTENCED LAST YEAR.
The numbers of prisoners actually received under sentence during 1918 were as follows:—From higher courts, 480 (including 233 who had been previously in prion); from police courts, 5,526; debtors and civil process, 24; naval and military offenders, 47; grand total 6,077 (4,588 males and 1,489 females). All of the females with the exception of 22, came from the police courts.
Higher court convictions, which are for the most serious forms of crime, accounted for 480 prisoners, equal to about 25 per 100,000 of the general population during 1893.
The 5,526 prisoners received on conviction from the police courts represented a decrease of 276 on the number for 1917.
Of this total, 3,637 were committed for non-payment of fines, but 709 subsequently paid part of the fines imposed, an amount of £2039 being collected.
There seemed to be no question that many of these might have avoided going to gaol if given more time to pay. The Comptroller-General suggested that this fact should receive consideration. New facilities provided in England for the payment of fine were reported to have had good results.
During the year, in each of the four cases of death sentences, the sentence was commuted.
IN GAOL AT YEAR’S END.
The great majority of prisoners during the year received short sentences. On December 31, 901 prisoners (796 males and 105 females) were serving sentences of penal servitude or hard labor. In addition, there were 58 males undergoing imprisonment only. Fifty-nine males were serving life sentences, one a term of 20 years, 48 from 10 to 15 years, 93 prisoners were serving periods ranging from one day to four weeks, and 265 prisoners were serving sentences of from one month to six months. There were 14 males in the indeterminate stage as habitual criminals, six “Governor’s pleasure” prisoners, and 40 maintenance confinees.
An unfortunate feature in connection with young prisoners was that very few had even an elementary knowledge of a good trade, but many had benefited by the operations at the Emu Plains Farm.
Mr McCauley said that he proposed to provide gardening for the female prisoners at the State Reformatory, and to ask approval for weakly and sick prisoners to be allowed up to 8 pm in summer in suitable weather in an open-air enclosure to be illuminated by electricity. Monsignor O’Haran had written in the visitors’ book, at the Reformatory in August last: “Not a prison, but a home.”
During the year, 161 prisoners in the gaols were punished for 200 offences. This satisfactory record was a symptom of more humane measures of correction rather than that the prisoners were less truculent than they were say 20 years ago.
VALUE OF PRISONER'S LABOR.
The value of prisoners’ labor during the year was £48,875. Manufactures for gaol use represented £13,470, manufactures for other Government departments, £12,133, buildings £10,979, and domestic employment, £12,293. Notwithstanding the decreased number of gaol entries, and the difficulty of obtaining the required quantities and quality of material for manufactures, the value of the output was £8,000 in advance of what it was in 1914, when Mr McCauley took over charge of the department.
Breadmaking at the State Penitentiary and Goulburn gaol continued to give most satisfactory results. The value of bread and flour supplied from bakeries amounted to £6,483, and the cost of production was £4,693, leaving a profit of £1,788. The bread was of first class quality and was much superior to what was formerly received under contract. The farm and garden operations resulted in a gain of £6,062, the outlay being only £194. The value of live stock at the gaols at the end of the year was £1,561.
Sufficient vegetables were raised for prisoners’ rations, and a large quantity was donated to the Red Cross, to dependents of soldiers, and to 24 hospitals and charitable institutions. Excellent results in reformative treatment had been achieved at the Emu Plains farm and at the Tuncurry afforestation area. The takings at the farm amounted to £1,201.
GAOL’S LOW DEATH-RATE.
Thirty prisoners (19 males and 11 females) were released from gaol on medical grounds. Nine deaths occurred from natural causes, and there was one suicide. The death-rate was 7 per 1,000 of the gaol population, compared with 10.3, the average death-rate per 1,000 of the general population for the last 10 years. One hundred and fifty seven cases of venereal disease (122 males and 35 females) were treated in the Lock hospitals at the various gaols.
Since the introduction of special treatment of inebriates, in August, 1907, 817 persons (358 males and 459 female) had been received. Thirteen males and six females were admitted to Shaftesbury during the year as voluntary patients, paying for their maintenance. The fees paid by them covered the upkeep (except salaries) of the whole of the inmates.
The total cost of the prisons’ administration was £93,750, an actual saving of £1,321 compared with 1917, and of £5,722 in 1914.
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The Sydney Morning Herald, Fri 4 Jul 1919 10
QUARTER SESSIONS.
(Before Judge Armstrong.)
Mr Dawson, Crown Prosecutor.
…
Alexander Douglas and James Wilson pleaded guilty to gross misconduct, and were remanded for sentence. Mr JW Abigail appeared for Douglas.
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The Daily Telegraph, Sat 5 Jul 1919 11
CRIMINAL
———
Judge Armstrong, at the Metropolitan Quarter Sessions, imposed sentences on the following:—
…
Alexander Douglas, indecent assault, two months’ hard labor in Grafton Gaol; but the sentence was suspended under the First Offenders’ Act .
James Wilson, indecent assault, was sentenced to be imprisoned until August 7 in Grafton Gaol.
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The Sydney Morning Herald, Sat 5 Jul 1919 12
QUARTER SESSIONS.
(Before Judge Armstrong.)
Mr Dawson, Crown Prosecutor.
The following sentences were passed:—
…
James Wilson, gross misconduct, imprisonment with light labour in Grafton Gaol till August 7.
Alex Douglas, gross misconduct, two months’ imprisonment with hard labour in Grafton Gaol, the sentence to be suspended under the first offenders’ provisions of the Crimes Act.
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James Wilson, Gaol photo sheet 13
![SRNSW: NRS2467, [3/6101], State Penitentiary photographic description book, 19 Jun 1919-15 Oct 1919, No. 16675, p. –.](../../images/trials/1915-Wilson-6101-gaol-photo-16675.jpg "SRNSW: NRS2467, [3/6101], State Penitentiary photographic description book, 19 Jun 1919-15 Oct 1919, No. 16675, p. –.") |
Gaol Photo Sheet - Transcribed Details
No. 16675
Date when Portrait was taken: 4-7-1919
Name: James Wilson
(aka Percy Burt, Albert Hanson)
|
Native place: Tasmania Year of birth: 16-2-1873 Arrived Ship: Trade or occupation Religion: C of E Education, degree of: R & W Height: 5' 6⅝" Weight On committal: 144 Colour of hair: Brown to Grey Colour of eyes: Grey |
Marks or special features: Slight scar inside left forearm. Right middle finger crooked. Scar on left side of neck |
|
(No. of previous Portrait .. 14766) CONVICTIONS Convicted with Alexander Douglas |
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Where and When |
Offence. |
Sentence |
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Sydney Q.S |
3 |
7 |
1919 |
Indecent assault on a male person |
Imprisonment with light labor |
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And 4 previous convictions for which See Photo No. as above |
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1 Northern Star (Lismore, NSW), Thu 2 Dec 1915, p. 5.
2 The Sydney Morning Herald, Wed 19 Jan 1916, p. 10. Emphasis added.
3 The Sydney Morning Herald, Thu 20 Jan 1916, p. 6.
4 The Sydney Morning Herald, Fri 21 Jan 1916, p. 5.
5 SRNSW: NRS2467, [3/6091], State Penitentiary photographic description book, 7 Oct 1915-12 Feb 1916, No. 14766, p. 142.
6 The Sydney Morning Herald, Fri 13 Jun 1919, p. 6. Emphasis added.
7 The Sydney Morning Herald, Wed 18 Jun 1919, p. 8. Emphasis added.
8 The Sydney Morning Herald, Thu 3 Jul 1919, p. 4. Emphasis added.
9 The Daily Telegraph, Fri 4 Jul 1919, pp. 6, 9.
10 The Sydney Morning Herald, Fri 4 Jul 1919, p. 7.
11 The Daily Telegraph, Sat 5 Jul 1919, p. 9.
12 The Sydney Morning Herald, Sat 5 Jul 1919, p. 9.
13 SRNSW: NRS2467, [3/6101], State Penitentiary photographic description book, 19 Jun 1919-15 Oct 1919, No. 16675, p. –.