The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — 1846-12-15 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

SHOOTING AT, WITH INTENT TO MURDER. Wm. Lacey (35), Michael Taylor (27), Richard Cullen (40) were indicted for having, at Fulwood, near Preston, feloniously assaulted William Miller, with intent to rob .him, and also with having, at the same time and place, shot at Jane Miller, with intent to murder her. It appeared that the prosecutor, Mr. Miller, is a surveyor and land agent, carrying on business at Preston, and that he reisdes at Clayton-villa, Fulwood, about three miles from that town. The villa was oocupied by himself, his daughter, two female servants, and a man servant. On the evening of the 17th of November last, about six o'clock kthe man servant being absent on his master's business,) a knock was heard at the front door, when one of the female servants went to open it, and on doing so several men rushed into the lobby. Miss Miller, a grownup young lady, on hearing a noise, came out of the parlour and saw four men standing in the passage, and being aware that there was an alarm bell at the outside of the house, the rope attached to which communicated with the interior, she went for the purpose of ringing it, but was stopped on the stairs by one of the men (Lacey) who presented a pistol at her and fired. All the parties were armed with pistols. She succeeded in getting away and regaining the front door when another pistol was fired, from the effects of which she fell down and became insensible, the candle which the held in her hand having been previously extinguished. Mr. Miller then came out of the parlour and went towards the kitchen, when one of the fellows seized him, asked him for his money, and threatened to shoot him if he did not give it up. The man, however, repeated his threat, and while that was going on one of the servants succeeded in getting to the bell and giving the alarm. This had the effect of scaring them, for they all ran off immediately without being able to accomplish their purpose, namely that of robbing the house. Taylor was the man who presented the pistol at Mr. Miller, and Cullen was identified as one of the party. They were all spoken to most positively by Miss Miller, though she appears to have taken time before she identified them when before the. magistrates. They were arrested o❑ the day after the occurrence at a public-house called " Barrett's, ' situated at a short distance from Mr. Miller's villa. The prisoners are Irishmen. The prisoners called witnesses to prove an alibi ; and if the evidence for the defence were credible, which the jury considered it to have been, two of the prisoners were drunk in Preston, and the third was drunk at home, at the very time the robbery was committed. It appeared that this evidence for the defence bad not been given before the magistrates, i❑ consequence of the magistrates' clerk having then informed the attorney for the defence that, as the prisoners were so distinctly swor❑ to by Mr. and Miss Miller, and the servant woman, the magistrates were determined to commit. His LORDSHI r, in summing up, said emphatically that magistrates and magistrates' clerks greatly mistook their duty when they excluded any evidence whatever which might tell for or against the prisoners, "Because," said lie, " if the alibi here set up were the alibi of truth, it was right then that the prisoners should have the benefit of it, and at all events it could since then have been sifted by the prosecution for the purpose of ascertaining whether it was true or false, whereas, by the shutting it out altogether, the prosecution have been taken by surprise, and have been prevented from sifting it at all." His Lordship stated that of the fact of the robbery, or attempted robbery, having been committed at Mr. Miller's there could be no doubt ; the question was, whether the prisoners were the guilty parties? The jury, without quitting the box, returned a verdict of acquittal, and the prisoners were discharged.