Circuit court case of John Petrie

Inverness, Oct. 3.

The Circuit Court of Justiciary was opened here on Monday last, by Lord Reston; and in the course of the day the following criminal cases came before him.

John Petrie, accused of stealing, on the night of the 10th April, 1815, from a barn, in possession of James Younie, farmer at Calfirhill, parish of Rafford, two sacks, containing a boll of barley; and of stealing, on the following night, from a kiln in the occupation of David Duncan, farmer at Bomanhill, parish of Forres, six pecks of barley, and a bed-cover, and from a barn, three bags containing two to three bolls of oats, after having forcibly broke into it.  On being called upon to plead, the pannel stated, that though he was quite innocent, he was forced, from circumstances, to plead guilty.  The Court, however, explained to him that his answer could not be received, and on being again asked, he pleaded guilty.  A verdict was accordingly returned, finding him guilty in terms of his own confession, and the Advocate Depute restricted the libel to an arbitrary punishment.  After an admonition as to his future conduct, he was sentenced to transportation beyond seas for fourteen years.

Published in the Aberdeen Journal, Wednesday 15th October 1817.

Circuit Court Cases

On Monday the Circuit Court of Justiciary was opened here, by the Right Hon. the Lord Justice Clerk, and Lord Reston.

The first case which came before the Court was that of James Henderson and John Davidson, both young men belonging to this town, accused of house breaking and then, in having entered the house of Heathens, on the 25th March last, by forcing open one of the windows, and stealing therein a variety of articles.  John Davidson having failed to appear, sentence of fugitation was passed upon him, in the usual terms.  James Henderson pled guilty; and no objection having been found to the relevancy of the indictment, the case was remitted to a jury, who found him guilty in terms of his own confession.  The Advocate Depute restricted the libel to an arbitrary punishment, and he received sentence of transportation for 14 years, after a very proper address from the Lord Justice Clerk.

The next case was that of Bathia Sutherland, alias Gray, accused of the crime of bigamy, in having, on the 16th of February last, married James Lothwood, a Chelsea pensioner residing in Aberdeen, her former husband, William Crombie, Kirk Officer of the parish of Kemnay, being still in life.  She pled guilty; and on account of the long confinement she had already suffered, and her seeming contrition for her offence, she was sentenced to 4 months imprisonment.

Published in the Aberdeen Journal, Wednesday 24th September 1817.

Trial of apprentice surgeons from Keith

Yesterday the Circuit Court of Justiciary was opened here by the Right Hon. the Lords Pitmilly and Reston.

The first case which occupied the attention of the Court was that of James Taylor, John Gordon, and George Pirie, Apprentices to Mr John Gordon, Surgeon in Keith, accused of violating the sepulchre of the dead, by taking up the body of John Bremner, recently interred in the Church-yard of Keith.  The pannels, who were all young men, pled guilty to the charge; and a jury having been impanneled, found them guilty, in terms of their own confession; but on account of their youth and other circumstances, unanimously recommended them to the clemency of the Court.  The Advocate Depute very candidly admitted all the circumstances tending to alleviate their guilt, particularly their ingenuous confession of the offence, their youth, and anxiety to make every pecuniary compensation to the relatives of the person whose grave they had violated.  All these circumstances were embodied in a Memorial or Petition to the Court, in their behalf, signed by most of the respectable inhabitants of Keith. - Their Lordships concurred in giving weight to these facts; and after a suitable and very impressive address from Lord Reston, followed by Lord Pitmilly, they were sentenced to be imprisoned for four months in the jail of Banff.

Published in the Aberdeen Journal, Wednesday 23rd April 1817.

Circuit Court, Inverness

The Court met this day at 10 o'clock, A.M. when Mary McPherson, from the parish of Snizort, in Skye, accused of Child Murder, and Concealment of pregnancy, was brought to the bar.  The Advocate-Depute, in consequence of the absence of material witness, moved that the diet should be deserted pro loco et tempore, which was accordingly done, and the prisoner committed on a new warrant.

Isabella McRae, from Strathmore, in the Parish of Durness, County of Sutherland, also accused of Child Murder, and Concealment of pregnancy, was, on her own confession, found Guilty of the statutory crime, and sentenced to be imprisoned eight months in the tolbooth of Dornoch.

Daniel Forbes, accused of robbery and theft, was next brought to trial.  His indictment consisted of two charges:- the first was, that on 14th. September last, he stole from the house of John McDougal, at Clepantown, a silver watch; the second, that on 6th September, in the vicinity of a fir plantation, near Fallie, he by force and violence, took and carried away from Benjamin Henderson, and did rob him of a silver watch.  - The prisoner pled guilty to the first charge, and the second having been passed from, the Jury returned an unanimous viva voce verdict, finding him Guilty in terms of his own confession.  - After a suitable admonition from his Lordship, the prisoner was sentenced to be transported beyond seas for seven years, under the usual certification.

Donald McKilligan, accused of Hamesucken, and who has for a considerable time past annoyed the inhabitants of the town with his yells or cries, was next brought the bar.  His Counsel stated, that he was a natural fool, and consequently not a fit object of trial.  In support of this plea, Dr Kennedy, who had attended the prisoner, and one of the jailors, were adduced as witnesses, and the plea having been sustained, the prisoner was recommitted, aye and until the Magistrates of Inverness shall find sufficient caution in the Books of Adjournal, for his safe custody in a place of confinement, suited to his unfortunate situation, and the safety of the lieges.

Published in the Aberdeen Journal, Wednesday 1st May 1816.

Circuit court intelligence

William Lees, convicted of theft and assault, as mentioned before, received sentence of transportation for seven years, and David Kemp, convicted of theft, was sentenced to eighteen months confinement and hard labour in Bridewell.

William Strath, cattle dealer in Boghead, parish of Fyvie, accused of theft and assault, pleaded Guilty to the indictment, and was sentenced to a year's hard labour in Bridewell, and ordained to find caution to keep the peace for two years thereafter, under a penalty of 600 merks Scots.

William Forbes was indicted for the murder of John Allan, apprentice ship carpenter, on 16th March last, by stabbing him in the side with a pen-knife, on the road leading from Aberdeen along the Spittal to Old Aberdeen.  A number of witnesses were examined for the Crown, and several in exculpation of the pannel.  The Jury found, by a plurality of voices, the libel not proven; whereupon the pannel, after a suitable admonition from Lord Pitmilly, was dismissed from the bar.

William Hay, accused of theft, was upon his own petition, consented to by the Depute Advocate, banished from Scotland for life, under the usual certification.

The last trial before the Court was that of John Garden, alias Shockey de Garden, accused of three several acts of theft, and of being habit and repute a thief.  After the evidence had been gone through on the part of the Crown, the Advocate Depute restricted the libel to an arbitrary punishment, and admitted that the charge of habit and repute had not been proven.  The Jury, after deliberating for a few minutes, returned a verdict, finding the first charge not sufficiently proven, and the Pannel Guilty of the two last; whereupon he was sentenced to be transported beyond seas for seven years.

Published in the Aberdeen Journal, Wednesday 24th April 1816.

Court of Justiciary Trials (2)

The Court next proceeded to the case of Jean Davidson, from Banff, accused of housebreaking, theft, and of being habit and repute a common thief.  This was a very distressing case.  The prisoner, a young creature, and apparently pregnant, appeared in the most calamitous circumstances, totally friendless and forlorn.  She instantly pleaded generally guilty; but the Court having permitted Mr Gordon to converse with her, it was reporter by him, - that the prisoner was neither aware of her situation, nor of the proper mode of communicating to the Court her real meaning; that she did not mean to admit her guilt as to the housebreaking, or the habit and repute; that she was innocent as to these charges; and that her only guilt was, a participation in the thefts libelled.  The Advocate-Depute, with great humanity, expressed his happiness at this explanation, and his satisfaction on the whole, that this was a case which he was at liberty to restrict from the capital pains, under circumstances singularly affecting in the history of the prisoner.  She then repeated her plea of guilty, under the qualifications stated by her Counsel; and a jury having been impannelled, were directed to return their verdict on Tuesday.

On Tuesday the Court resumed its sitting.  The jury, in Farquhar's case, returned their verdict , finding, by a plurality of voices, the libel Not proven; whereupon the prisoner was assoilzied and dismissed from the bar, after a suitable and impressive admonition from the Court.

After this, the jury in Jean Davidson's case returned a verdict, unanimously finding her Guilty, in terms of her confession. - Sentence to-morrow.

Published in the Aberdeen Journal, Wednesday 27th April 1814.

Court of Justiciary Trials (1)

On Monday last, the Circuit Court of Justiciary was opened here by the Right Hon. Lords JUSTICE CLERK and SUCCOTH.

The Court began with the trial of JAMES FARQUHAR, late flesher in Huntly, accused of stealing a considerable sum of money from the haversack of John Rose, private in the Aberdeenshire Militia.  It appeared in evidence, that Rose met with the pannel at Bainshole, on their way to Aberdeen, and kept company together to the end of their journey.  On their arrival in Aberdeen, they went to the same lodgings, and slept in the same bed.  Early in the succeeding morning, Farquhar rose and left the house; and Rose having reason to suspect him, got up and examined his haversack, when he found that his money to the amount of about L. 20, had been abstracted and carried off.  A good deal of evidence was heard, in order to bring the crime home to the pannel, particularly as to identifying the notes, and that the pannel employed some person the same morning, to change the small notes for L. 5 ones.  After an excellent charge by the Lord Justice Clerk, the jury were enclosed, and appointed to return their verdict on Tuesday morning.

Counsel for the Crown, Mr CLEPHANE, Advocate-Depute; - for the prisoner, Mr GORDON.

Published in the Aberdeen Journal, Wednesday 27th April 1814.

Circuit Court Trials, Perth

At the Circuit Court at Perth, on Wednesday last, Robert Ruxton, Jean McMillan, and Elizabeth Beattie, were found guilty of abetting and aiding the riots which lately disgraced the town of Montrose.  Ruxton was sentenced to banishment for seven years beyond seas - McMillan six months in the jail of Forfar - and Beattie four months in the jail of Montrose.

Published in the Aberdeen Journal, Wednesday 28th April 1813.