The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1841-05-14 00:00:00

THEFT FROM A LAWYER'S OFFICE

Agnes Weir, aged 30, was charged with having stolen a
large quantity of law-books, account-books, papers, and do-
cuments, from the counting-house of Messrs. Keightlev and

Banning, attorneys, of this town. She pleaded guilty.
William John Clements was placed at the bar with the
same prisoner, charged with having received part of the above
property, knowing the same to have been stolen
Mr. Henderson conducted the prosecutio
phyappeared for the defence of Clements

and Mr. Mur-

. The female prisoner was employed to clean out the office
of Messrs. Keightley and Banning. One of the book-keepers,
Mr. John Dixon Ford, having occasion to refer to an old
letter book, went to the closet where they were kept, and
found it empty. He went to another closet in which account-
books were kept, and found that empty also. A further
search was made, and it was discovered that a vast quantity
of papers of various descriptions had been taken away. In
consequence of some information which Mr. Ford had re-
ceived, he went to the shop of Mr. Clements, in Great
Crosshall-street. Mr. Clements was just giving up his busi-
ness in that street, and his shop was dismantled. On the
premises, Mr. Ford found a large portion of the books, &c.,

Which had been missed from 'Messrs. Keight:
fling's office. Amongst them were several old
of Salkeld's, Hardwick's, and Wilson's repot
these had names in them. The firm was fora
and Keightley, and some of these contained
Rodgers. None of the names were erased
M'Combe was sent for, and he and Ford w

Constabi
to severa

Other shops, and there found other books, papers, &c. Mr.
Clements having a considerable quantity of this paper on his
hands, was endeavouring to sell it before he gave up his shop.
As it was suspected that the woman who cleaned the office
had stolen the papers. Mr. Clements was asked from where
he purchased them. He said he had purchased them from
a woman, and offered to go and identify the woman if she
could be found. He was taken to the female prisoner, and
he identified her.

Mr. MURPHY questioned Ford as to whether it were not
common for grocers to purchase old books, &c., for the pur-
pose of enfolding butter. Mr. Ford did not know that it was

common. It appeared that the whole transaction was an
open one on the part of Clements. _

'The learned liEcnanEn stopped the case, and put it to
the jury whether, though Mr. Clements had evidently been
exceedingly indiscreet, he had acted With such a guilty mind
or knowledge as was necessary to constitute a felony.

The jury acquitted the prisoner.
Many highly respectable persons were in court ready to
speak to the character of Mr. Clements, had it been neces-
sary.

STEALING IN A DWELLING-HOUSE.
John Redman, aged 25, was charged with having, on the
14th March last, feloniously entered the dwelling-house of
Mr. John Harvey, shopkeeper, and stolen from thence cer-
tain moneys the property of John Harvey and Mary Ann
Hopkins.
_ _

Mr. Harding conducted the prosecution, and Mr. Murphy
the defence.

Mary Ann Hopkins, who lived as servant with Mr. Harvey,
stated, that on Sunday evening, the 14th March, she went
to church. Her master and his sister were also out. She
returned about nine o'clock, and, on opening the door, found
that some person was in the place. She heard a noise, and
knowing that no person belonging to the hou
she became alarmed and dropped her bag, in IA
Gd., on the counter. She ran out and shut to the door. She
went to the house of a neighbour, and gave the alarm. A
Mr. Turner and his sister went with her, and the
light in the shop. Mr. Turner opened the front (lc
the key, and he heard a noise of two men in the hou!
locked the door fast, and went round to the bacl

was there,

with hi

sister, where they saw the prisoner and another man cl,-op
from the wall of Mr. Harvey's back yard. These men ran
off and were pursued by Mr. Turner and his sister, who
caught the prisoner. He was rescued by a body of men.
and Mr. Turner was knocked down. They returned to Mr.
Harvey's house, and found that it had been completely ran-
sacked. The goods had been turned over, and the beds
tossed off the stocks. The prisoner was subsequently taken
into custody by police-officer 55. He was taken to Mr.
Harvey's shop, where Mr. and Miss Turner identified him.
The jury found the prisoner guilty. Sentence deferred.