Introduction

1 Notes of Evidence: His Majesty the King v. Eric Mareo, 17-26 February 1936 [First Trial Notes of Evidence], EMP, p.176.

2 NZH, 26 February 1936.

3 'Criticus' [Melville Harcourt], I Appeal (Auckland: Oswald-Sealy, 1945), p.71.

4 AS, 18 June 1936.

5 Mr Justice Callan to the Attorney-General, 24 June 1936, EMP.

6 See J.L. Robson, Sacred Cows and Rogue Elephants: Policy Development in the New Zealand Justice Department (Wellington: Government Printing Office, 1987), p.110.

7 Adele Bridgens, back cover of Freda Stark: Her Extraordinary Life, by Dianne Haworth and Diane Miller (Auckland: HarperCollins, 2000). Stark's biographers also tell the story of the Mareo trials but they rely almost entirely on contemporary newspaper reports and their subject's recollection of the events. Because they did not consult the Notes of Evidence of either of the trials, the various police reports and other archival material relevant to the case, there are some inaccuracies and numerous significant omissions in their account. The story needs to be retold if only to ensure accuracy and completion.

8 For a discussion of the many ways in which the law uses storytelling, see Law's Stories: Narrative and Rhetoric in the Law, edited by Peter Brooks and Paul Gewirtz, (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1996).