The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1843-03-31 00:00:00

LARCENY

Joshua Brooks, a youth, was charged with having, in Aug.
last, feloniously assaulted Joseph Ashhead, and having then
and there stolen a hat, value 155., the property of the prose-
cutor. Mr. Ashhead, a commercial traveller, was assaulted
by several men, who intended to rob him. They did not
succeed, but knocked him down and kicked him. His hat
fell off, and was afterwards found in the prisoner's possession.
who, while in custody, took out the lining of the hat and
secreted it. The prisoner said that he lost his hat in the
scuffle, and found that produced, which he kept in lieu of it,
thinking the owner had got his.
The jury found the prisoner guilty of larceny only. Sen-
tence deferred. The prisoner was not known as a previous
offender.

MINT CASES

Thomas Monaghan, aged 33, and Mary Monaghan, his
wife, was charged with having in their possession, at Salford,
in September last, a mould impressed with the stamp in re-
semblance of a shilling. The prosecution was withdrawn as
respected the wife. It was found that the mould, and also
some plaster of paris, were found in the prisoner's house.
The prisoner was found guilty ; but as there was another
indictment against both him and his wife, sentence was-
deferred.

John Hannah, 26, was charged with having, at Salford. in
December last, feloniously sold and put off twelve pieces of
counterfeit coin, resembling shillings, for less than the value
of that coin, supposing it to .be good.
The case depended almost solely upon the testimony of
James Weaver, a man employed at the time by the police in
the detective service, and he stated that the prisoner offered
to sell him some base shillings at three shillings a dozen, and
that he purchased twelve of them, giving him two shillings
for them, and leaving one shilling owing.
He was severely cross-examined by Mr. WILKINS, who
appeared for the prisoner, and admitted that lie bad been
imprisoned for sheep-stealing. The learned counsel addressed
the jury at considerable length, and with great ability, repre-
hending the system of espionage pursued in this and other
cases, which he considered pregnant with evils that were not
counterbalanced by its alleged expediency,— dwelling in
strong language on the abandoned character of the witness,
and throwing out the inference that the prisoner was the
purchaser, and not the seller, and the least guilty of the two.
The jury, after intimating that they did not consider the
evidence sufficient to prove the charge of " selling" the coin,
returned a verdict of not guilty. The prisoner was put down,
there being another indictment against him.
Thomas Itrelarence, a boy, was indicted for uttering a
number of base shillings to various parties at Manchester;
and the offence charged being a second one, was aggravated,
by the statute, from a misdemeanour into a felony.

The jury returned a verdict of guilty, and the prisoner was
sentenced to be transported for seven years.
John Hannah, (before acquitted on another charge,)
Ellen Dean, and John Williams were indicted for having in
their possession, at Manchester, a mould for counterfeiting
the current coin. Mr. Wilkins again defended Hannah.
The jury found all the prisoners guilty. In reply to the
judge, it was stated that all of them had before been con-
victed of felony. His Lordship sentenced them to be trans-
ported for the term of seven years.
James Hargreaves, 19, and William Wilson, 27, were
charged with having, at Little Bolton, in September last,
uttered a counterfeit half-Brown, well knowing the same to
be base. The jury found both the prisoners guilty. Wilson
had previously been imprisoned several times, and bore a
bad character. The other was not known. Wilson was
sentenced to be imprisoned 15 months, and kept to hard la-
bour, and Hargreaves for six =lithe.

Three true bills were found by the Graud Jury agains'
Betty Eccles, for the murder of three children at Bolton.
The trial is fixed for Tuesday next.
The court rose at a quarter past six.

NISI PRIUS COURT,

-WEDNESDAY

GARNETT v. MALLALIEu.—An undefended action to re-
cover the value of some machinery supplier by the plaintiff,
who is a manufacturer at Oldham, to the defendant, a spin-
ner and manufacturer in Yorkshire. The jury returned a
verdict for the plaintiff for the amount claimed, £9B.

FALSE IMPRISONMENT

BEST V. TURNER.—The parties in this case carry on busi-
ness as cheeselactors, in Smithfield-market, Manchester.
The plaintiff was represented by Mr. Wortley, Mr. Cowling.
and Mr. Atherton ; and the defendant by Mr. Baines, and
Mr. Martin.

The declaration stated that the defendant had assaulted the
plaintiff, and caused him to be taken into custody by the po-
lice on a charge of felony, which was false. Special damage
was also alleged by the plaintiff on the ground that some of
his customers had declined to deal with him, in consequence
of this affair. The defendant put in two pleas, upon which
issue was joined, first, that he had not assaulted the plaintiff;
and secondly, that some cheeses belonging to' the defendant
had been stolen from him, and were found in the plaintiff's
possession. _

The following were the circumstances of the case. The
stalls both of the plaintiff and defendant adjoined each other
in the Smithfield.market, and their cheese were placed in
piles, with the space of about a yard between the two heaps.
Many of the persons were engaged in the same trade, and
their cheese were ranged in like manner; and it appeared
that the usual course of business was to buy from fanners,
and sell to retail dealers. Considerable rivalry was alleged
to exist between the plaintiff and the defendant; and it ap-
peared that early on Thursday the 22d of November last,
when the plaintiff went to his business, the defendant was
there with a policeman named Knox, to whom he gave the
plaintiff in custody on a charge of felony, in having stolen a
cheese which was his property. The plaintiff said he would
go with the officer quietly, and he walked along with him
through the streets : on the way he was recognised by one
of his friends, who was astonished to see him in custody as
a criminal. He was brought before Mr. Bannerman, a ma-
gistrate of the borough of Manchester, who having heard the
defendant's story unanimously discharged the plaintiff.
Many witnesses were examined on both sides, the general
effect of whose testimony was that the cheese alleged to be
stolen was misplaced ; and, the learned judge was about to
read the evidence, when the jury said they would not give
his lordship the trouble. They then, after a few minutes
deliberation, returned a verdict for the plaintiff with 40s. da-
mages.