Manslaughter at Barwick-in-Elmet
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Manslaughter at Barwick-in-Elmet
Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer, 2nd April 1867
Barwicker No. 120
Spring 2016
Job Gill Spence was indicted for the manslaughter of William
Thompson at Barwick-in-Elmet, on 30 January. Mr Lascelles
prosecuted; the prisoner was undefended.
It appeared that on the day named in the indictment, the deceased,
the prisoner and a man named Goodall were thrashing at the farm of
Mr Richard Helm, of Barwick. About ten o'clock in the evening all
three men left the farm and proceeded in the direction of Scholes,
being at the time the worse for drink. On the way Thompson fell
several times, and was helped up by the prisoner, and also lost his cap
and coat.
On arriving at Scholes the prisoner and Goodall went to his house,
and as soon as they had got in the deceased came up to the door,
rattled it, and said he could not pay his way. Spence then said he
could not stand it any longer, and went to the door and pushed the
deceased. He fell down on his side and died there.
Whilst the first witness was being examined the Judge stopped the
case, saying that it was not a case of manslaughter, since the
deceased had been the aggressor all along, and the prisoner was the
innocent cause of his death. The learned Judge then directed the jury
to return a verdict of Not Guilty.
Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer, 2nd April 1867
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