ABSTRACT
Per curiam: At the trial, the police evidence had been that it was sought to have the car keys in order to take the car to the police station to be searched, and to have the car in a safe place rather than unlocked in a place where it could have been stolen or damaged. The case could have been argued on the basis of the duty of the police to preserve property and C's obstruction of the police in the execution of that duty: Rice v Connolly and Coffin v Smith. It also appeared that at the trial the prosecution case had been put on a yet different basis, namely an unexpected and unprovoked blow on the officer by C. However, on the
