The Kenilworth Advertiser. — 1880-01-24 (Kenilworth, Warwickshire, England)

CURIOUS CASE OF HOMICIDE IN  LICESTERSHIRE.  The circumstances attending the death of John Wileman, who died from the effects of injuries received in a quarrel formed the subject of an inquest at the Bath Hotel, Moira, on Thursday, Jan. 15, before Mr. Henry Deane, coroner, when the following evidence was taken : Mr. Michael Coote, surgeon, Ashby, said on the 28th ult, deceased called at his surgery, when he had a wound on the left frontal bone. The wounA was dressed by Dr. Williams, and the deceaseu, seemed to progress favourably until the 3rd inst., when witness received a message that he was worse. On the 9th instant witness found him 'Paralysed and unconscious. He gradually got worse, and died on the 13th instant. Witness had since made a post ntortent examinatiou by the coroner's orders, and presented his written report of that examination. The report minutely described the nature and extent of the injury, and the conclusion arrived at was that death had resulted from inflammation of the brain, the result of injury produced by violence. The witness added that the blow must have been a severe one, and that although deceased went to work after the injury, it was sufficient in itself to cause death.— Mr. C. R. Williams, surgeon, who assisted Dr. Coote in the examination, said he concurred in the report. —Joseph Wileman, collier, deposed that deceased, who was 36 years of ace, was his son, and he v. 3 engine.driver for the Moira Colliery Company. He and Thomas Ellis were great friends, and. had been so for years. There had been no quarrel between them. Thomas Ellis deposed that he now lived at Gresley, and on the Saturday before Christmas Day, about eight o'clock, he met deceased at the Rawdon's Arms Inn. They left together about 11 o'clock to go home. When they got to the end of Bath-lane they stopped to talk to another man, and George Shuttleworth came down the road. He was drunk and tumbled into the hedge. He began to fight at the hedge, and deceased and witness started to go home. Shuttleworth came running after them and struck witness a blow on the face with his fist. Witness had his basket with him with his bottle in it—a quart stone bottle in which he took his tea. Shuttleworth came up at him to strike again, and witness kept swinging the basket round to keep him off. While he was so doing deceased stepped between them, and the basket caught him across the forehead. It was dark and he did not see deceased when he hit lhe blow stunned deceasee, and he said " Mate, ,you've struck me." Directly afterwards Shuttleworth struck witness and knocked him down. John Brooks came up to his assistance, and then Shuttleworth said ne was sorry. Witness went home with deceased, who lived next door to him, and found his head was cut open and bleeding. He had seen him several times since, and he never blamed him for what happened. All he did in swinging his basket was for the sole purpose of keeping Shuttleworth off.—John Brooks deposed to hearing the disturbance on the night in question. It was very dark, and when he heard a bottle smash he went up to see what was the matter. Shuttleworth had his coat off, and knocked Ellis down. :Witness prevented them fighting again, and went home with deceased and Ellis, leaving Shuttleworth in the lane. He saw the wound on deceased's head, and took him to his (witness's) house, where his wife plastered up the wound. Deceased told witness how it wag done. He said Shuttleworth came down and attacked Ellis before either of them had anything to do with him, and that Ellis swung the basket round to keep Shuttlewortb off. He said " I don't blame Tom; he did not mean to harm me or Shuttleworth. He was trying to keep Shuttleworth off."—George Shuttleworth was called, and before being sworn, in answer to questions from the Coroner, said that he was not able to give an account of the occurrence of the night. He had no recollection of what happened as he was drunk.— The jury returned a verdict that deceased was accidentally struck on the head by Thomas Ellis with a basket containing a bottle, thereby sustaining a fracture of the skull, and that he after wards died from inflammation of the brain, the result of such fracture.—Shuttleworth was severely Censured by the jury for his conduct.  Vunting ppointmcuUs. t [