Drunken Row Leads to Death

In 1900 a man who struck his partner after a drunken row was convicted of manslaughter after she died of her injuries.

William Hughes, a 41 year old labourer, lived with 50 year old Margaret Cornwell in Skirving Street, along with Margaret's daughter and her husband.  The relationship was generally a good one, but both were prone to drink and would often quarrel when under the influence of alcohol.

On 29th October 1900 one of those rows took place and Hughes hit Margaret, causing her to fall and hit a mangle, then bang her head on the floor. Two days later she died in hospital, a post mortem revealing that the cause of death was compression of the brain caused by blood clots.Although there was plenty of bruising, the skull had not been fractured.

Hughes was charged with manslaughter and appeared at the Liverpool assizes on 3rd December, where he was sentenced to nine months imprisonment with hard labour.