South Yorkshire Times, November 17th, 1951

Four Years for Goldthorpe Man

Housebreaking at Darfield

Sentencing a Goldthorpe man at Leeds Assizes last Thursday for housebreaking, the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Goddard, said “I wonder if you and other young fellows of your sort ever stop to think of the hardship and misery you often inflict upon people into whose houses you break.  I don’t think you do; all you think of is getting money for yourself.”

Fred Ford (21), colliery haulage hand, St. Marys Road, Goldthorpe, was sent to prison for four years after pleading guilty to two charges of breaking into houses at Darfield. He asked for several other cases to be taken into consideration.

Referring to Ford’s case being held at the Assizes, Lord Goddard said “This calendar is full of small cases of housebreaking and larceny which ought to have gone to the Quarter Sessions.”

“I hope magistrates will remember that it is not right to send these cases to the Assize unless there is some compelling reason for doing so.  This calendar, which contains the names of 179 prisoners, is swollen by the fact that a large number of cases are not Assize cases at all.

Ford was said by Mr. E. Baker, prosecuting, to have told the police, “What set me off doing jobs I am not quite sure, but I thought I might as well get hung for hen as for a chicken.”