Subject_1 DECISIONS of the LORDS OF COUNCIL AND SESSION. COLLECTED BY THE REPORTERS FOR THE FACULTY OF ADVOCATES.
James and William Stewart and His Majesty's Advocate v. George Story
Date: 25 January 1785
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George Story was brought to trial by the son and father of the deceased William Stewart, surgeon in Paisley, and by the King's Advocate for the public interest.
In the major proposition of the indictment, it was set forth, that murder, especially the murdering of a person in his own shop, was a crime of a heinous nature, and severly punishable.
The minor proposition proceeded to allege, that the pannel, having conceived a previous ill-will at the deceased, did wickedly and feloniously attack him in his own shop, breaking several bottles full of some liquid substance over his head, till the blood gushed from him: That, having afterwards thrown him on the ground, and while he was unable to defend himself, the pannel had beat him with his hands, and trampled him under his feet, till he was at length rescued by some people coming into the shop; and that, notwithstanding every care having been taken of the deceased, he had languished five days, and then died of the hurts he had received from the pannel.
The defences urged for the pannel were, That he had always lived on the best terms of friendship with the deceased, to whom he was nearly allied by marriage: that the deceased having, at different times, thrown a quantity of assa fætida on the pannel's clothes, the pannel had threatened to break all the bottles in his shop; and soon after, being much intoxicated, he had gone into the shop of the deceased, and had thrown several bottles at him and his apprentices, but without any intention to hurt, far less to deprive him of his life.
Some exceptions likewise were taken to the relevancy of the indictment, which however the Court sustained as relevant to infer the pains of law; but at the same time allowed the pannel a proof of all circumstances tending to exculpate him or to alleviate his guilt. And the jury returned a verdict, “That the pannel, George Story, was not guilty of the murder libelled, but that he was guilty of culpable homicide.”
This verdict was approved of by the Court, who pronounced the following sentence:—
“In respect of this verdict, the Lords find the pannel liable in an assythment to John Stewart, private prosecutor, for himself, and in behalf of the other nearest of kin of the deceased William Stewart; and having considered the circumstances of the pannel, they modified the same to the sum of 1000 merks: Farther, they adjudge the pannel to be committed prisoner to the tolbooth of Paisley for the space of eight months, and thereafter till payment of the said assythment, and also until he find security, in the books of adjournal, to keep the peace for the space of two years, under the penalty of 2000 merks Scots.”
