The Assizes
| DOI | 10.1177/002201836603000303 |
| Published date | 01 July 1966 |
| Date | 01 July 1966 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
The
Assizes
HUSBAND AND
WIFE
BOTH PLEAD GUILTY TO AN OFFENCE
WHICH
COULD ONLY HAVE BEEN COMMITTED BY ONE OF
THEM
R. v. Clifford Lewis; R. v. Patricia Maureen Lewis
ANunusual situation faced the court at the Brecknock
assizes at Brecon: two defendants, ahusband and wife, were
each individually charged with
the
commission of the same
offence which could, on the facts, only have been committed
by one person.
The
facts were that, as a result of a disagreement in
apublic house in Cardiff, a man called Rogers was stabbed.
Rogers had said something to Mrs. Lewis
in
the
public house
as a result of which her husband went outside with Rogers to
"have it
out."
Alittle later
the
police arrived to find Rogers
lying in the street outside
the
public house suffering from a
stab wound. Mrs. Lewis approached
the
police and told
them
that
Rogers had gone for her and she
had
taken out
the
knife to defend herself and Rogers
had
run
on to it. Later,
at
the
police station, she made a written statement in
the
same
vein.
The
stabbing
had
taken place at about
10
p.m.; at
2.30
a.m. the next day
the
police called at Lewis's home and told
him
that his wife
had
been arrested. Subsequently Lewis told
the
police that he was responsible for
the
stabbing and he also
made a written statement under caution.
In
this he stated
that
he left
the
public house with Rogers
but
two companions of
Rogers followed
them
out
and he was afraid
the
three of
them
would beat him up so he drew
the
knife in self-defence. As a
consequence of Lewis's confession, Mrs. Lewis made a further
written statement saying
that
she was not responsible for
the
stabbing.
The
police charged
both
the husband
and
wife with
wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, contrary
to section 18 of
the
Offences Against
the
Person Act, 1861, and
both defendants were brought before the Cardiff Justices.
165
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