Widnes Examiner. — 1886-06-05 (Widnes, Cheshire, England)

CHAMBERLAINITES AGAINST THE  THE SAVAGE ASSAULT ON A WARRING-TON POLICEMAN. At the Liverpool Assizes, on Saturday, before Mr. Justice Grantham, two prisoners committed for trial at Warrington on a charge of murderously assaulting a borough policeman in a busy thoroughfare of the town, in open daylight, on the afternoon of Saturday, the 6th of February last, came up for trial. The two prisoners, Michael Connor (28), labourer, and Michael Hennessey (28), labourer, were indicted for haying attempted to murder Michael Hennessey, a police-constable, and also for having feloniously assaulted hits with intent to do him grievous bodily harm.—Mr. Hope prosecuted, and Dr. Commins and Mr. Segar appeared for the defence.— From the evidence it appeared that at half-past five o'clock on the day in question Police-constable Henneseev and Police-constable Singleton I% ere on duty at the Market-gate, Warrington, when the prisoners came up on the other side of the road. They were making use of bad language, and the constables cautioned them to use better language. Upon this one of the prisoners moved back as if to kick the prosecutor, and the latter thereupon gave him a push, which knocked him down. The prisoners upon this moved away, and were followed by the two constables. Wenneseey was heard to say, "I'll well settle vou before I go to sleep." The prosecutor then went to hie beat, and the prisoners returned about half an hour afterwards, when Connor said, "What did I say when I passed a short time ago?" and the prosecutor said he would tell him at the right time. Upon this the prisoner Hennessey caught hold of him by the . leg and Connor struck him on the head with a poker which he bad concealed in his sleeve. The prosecutor was stunned by the blow for a time, and on recovering he heard Conner Isay to Henn es sey, " You draw up and do the mama." He drew his staff and blew his whistle for assistance, upon which two other policemen ran up, and the prismere ran away. His helmet was broken by the force of the blow, and he sustained a wound on his head and lost a deal of blood. The medical evidence showed that had the constable not had on his helmet the blow which he received would probably have been fatal.—lt was urged for the defence that Constable Hennessey in the first place committed illegal acts by Knocking prisoner Hennessey down before he had committed any offence. The dignity of the officer, it was remarked, had been ruffled by being called a " slop " by the prisoners, and he thought upon that he was justified in committing an illegal act. The prosecutor, when he met the prisoners a second time, again assaulted Hennessey by pushing him, and it was then that Connor struck him on the head with the poker. As regarded the prisoner Hennessey, he offered no violence to the prosecutor whatever, and was no party to tbe assault which was committ-d. The jury found Connor guilty of attempted muruer, and Hennessey of wounding with intent to do grievous bealily harm. His Lordship, in passing sentence, said Connor had been in prison some twenty-two times for offences of a similar character, and it was evident that he would go on from bad to worse. The case, as regarded him, was hopeless, and all he could do was to protect the public and the police from such men as he. He would have to go to penal servitude for ten years. With regard to Hennessey, it was not evident that he intended to murder the constable, and the jury had taken a merciful view of it. He had been in prison for offences almost as often as Connor. He would have to undergo five years' penal servitude.