Sentence:  The man dipped a machete in a concoction of water, palm oil and kola nuts, held it in fire for several minutes, and then placed it on the right legs of the four suspects. None of the youths – ages 16 to 26 – appeared to flinch. They were deemed not guilty. This practice known as ‘<WSD>sassywood</WSD>' is banned under national law, but is still regarded as a legitimate form of justice by many Liberians. A suspect is subjected to intense pain and judged on his or her reaction – if the hot metal burns the person's leg, he or she is found guilty. ... According to a rights activist in Nimba County, the problem is that many people will submit to <WSD>sassywood</WSD> because they do not know it has been outlawed. “<WSD>Sassywood</WSD> is very common here and most people believe that it is the only means of knowing a guilty person,” said Dualo Lor of the church-based NGO Equip-Liberia in Nimba, 300km from Monrovia. “They are not even aware the practice is outlawed.” 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  A form of trial by ordeal in Liberia, typically involving a suspect drinking a poisonous concoction made from the bark of the ordeal tree (ver=171104), (ver=171104), or (ver=171021)<ref>(CRC Press)|year=2012|page=1645|pageurl=https://books.google.com/books?id=YC_lAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA1645|isbn=978-1-4200-8044-5.</ref> (called sassy bark); "by extension", other forms of trial by ordeal such as applying a heated machete to the suspect's legs, or dipping the suspect's hand into hot oil.