The Sun. — 1856-01-07 (London, England)

CRIMINAL COURT.—(This Day.)  The January sessions of the above Court was opened this morning, at ten o'clock, by the Right Hon. David Salomons, Lord Mayor ; the Right Hon. the Recorder ; Aldermen Farebrother, Farncombe, Sir F. G. Moon, Sir R. W. Carden, and Wire ; the Sheriffs, UnderSheriffs, and the usual city authorities. The first edition of the calendar contains the names of SS prisoners, a considerably smaller number tha❑ usual, but this is owing to the short period that has elapsed since the adjournment of the Court. The Recorder, in charging the grand jury, expressed his regret that for several consecutive sessions the calendar had contained charges of murder of the most grave character, and that there were five persons to be tried for that crime at the present session. In one of the oases, which was perhaps the most serious one, an unhappy man, named Corrigan, was charged with the murder of his wife, under very horrible circumstances ; but the facts appeared to be so clear that he was afraid they would feel that they had no alternative but to return the bill for wilful murder. There appeared to be no doubt that at the time the act was committed the prisoner was in a most excited state of mind from the effects of drink, but it was his duty to tell *hem that this afforded no justification or palliation in law for such a crime, and that the total deprivation of reason could alone be urged as an answer. There was another case of a most painful character, in which a man and a woman named Ray with whom he cohabited and who passed as his wife, were charged with the murder of two of the children of the male prisoner, and there appeared from the evidence in the depositions to be very little doubt that the death of the children was the actual result of starvation. This case was somewhat peculiar from the position of the parties in regard to each other ; but if it should be made to appear that proper food and nourishment were withheld by both parties with the intention to cause death, they would be amenable to the charge of murder. If, however, they should be of opinion that the intention to cause the death was not sufficiently clearly established, but that the children died from their gross neglect and inattention, in that case both prisoners would be guilty of the crime of manslaughter, and the rule of law that a wife was not responsible for acts that were supposed to be committed while she was under the control of her husband will not apply to the present case, as the female prisoner did not staid in that relation, and both would therefore be equally liable. There was another case of a similar kind, where a man and his wife were charged with the like offence upon one of their children ; but upon a perusal of the depositions, it appeared to him that there was a good deal of indistinctness in the evidence as to the cause of death. There was, however, some evidence of ■light violence and of exposure to the cold on the night previous to the death ; and if the jury should think, upon the facts that would be laid before them, that the case was one which ought to be further inquired into, they would find the bail. His lordship then made a few observations upon one or two other oases, and the grand jury then retired.  POLICE INTELLIGENCE,--(This Day.)