Canal Killers Bound Over

Three men who were guilty of manslaughter when a man drowned who they had stripped naked and thrown into a canal were given a huge let off by the judge.

On the afternoon of Sunday 28th August 1892 a carter named William Culshaw was stood on the banks of the Leeds & Liverpool canal near the lock at Lightbody Street. Looking across to the other bank he saw a man being stripped naked by four others. The victim was John Swindells, a nineteen year old youth who lived in Gildart's Gardens, who today would acknowledged as having learning difficulties.

Seconds later Swindells was in the canal and being unable to swim, sank immediately. Two of those who had been seen to strip him jumped in but despite their best efforts could not find him. It was several hours before the body was recovered. 

Four men were arrested; Walter Peloe and John Leicester, who were both twenty four year old labourer, as well as eighteen year old carter Joseph Wilson and twenty one year old labourer Thomas Davies. 

At the inquest Culshaw said he saw the four men throw Swindells into the canal and a verdict of manslaughter was returned. The following day at a committal hearing, the deputy stipendiary magistrate Mr Kinghorn decided that they should instead be considered for  murder charge. By now however Culshaw had changed his mind about what he saw, saying there was a crowd around Swindells and he couldn't be sure if he had been thrown, pushed or fell into the canal. 

Concluding that there had been no intent to kill and that death was as a result of rough horseplay, the men were committed on the lesser charge. Leicester was remanded in custody as he had ran away at the time, but the other three were granted bail in light of having stayed at the scene to try and rescue their victim.

The men appeared at the Liverpool assizes on 9th December. With the exception of Davies, they all pleaded guilty. Satisfied that Davies had not actually pushed or thrown Swindells in, the Crown decided not to proceed against him. In summarising what had happened, the prosecutor Mr McConnell described Swindells as a 'soft lad' who had not resisted the prank that had gone horribly wrong. The victim had even been laughing at what was going on, probably having no idea of the perilous position that he was in.

After the defence counsel stated that the three guilty men were all hard workers of good character, Mr Justice Grantham then showed exceptional leniency. Saying that it was clear there was no intention to cause harm, he bound each of them over 'to come up for judgement when called upon' which is the equivalent of a conditional discharge today.

Servant Girl Acquitted of Strangulation

A servant girl charged with murder after a dead baby girl was found in her room was given the benefit of the doubt and found guilty only of concealment of birth.

In the autumn of 1847 a seventy one year old widow living in Shannon Street (off Brownlow Hill) took on a servant named Jane Pearson. The twenty two year old was described by her employer Mrs Roberts as rotund in stature and there were no suspicions about any pregnancy, instead it being believed that she suffered from dropsy.

On Thursday 11th May 1848 Mrs Roberts went out leaving Jane to do some chores and on her return the servant girl was sick in bed. The following morning Jane was lucid and Mrs Roberts decided to check her room, where she found the body of a newborn child in a box. The body was wrapped in rags and Jane got on her hands and knees begging her employer to keep the find a secret.

A surgeon named Dr Burrows was called in and examined the body, forming the opinion that the baby girl had been born alive. A tape was wrapped around the neck and an apron was stuffed into the mouth. An inquest returned a verdict of wilful murder and Jane was taken to Kirkdale gaol to await her trial at the next assizes.

On 21st August Jane appeared before Mr Justice Cresswell. As so often happened in this era, the jury was reluctant to convict if there was even the slightest element of doubt. Even though Jane had admitted giving birth to the child the Crown could not prove beyond reasonable doubt that she had carried out the strangulation. This led to the jury acquitting her of murder but finding her guilty of concealment of birth. She was then sentenced to twelve months imprisonment with hard labour.

Road Killer Denies Drink to Blame

A man who was charged with manslaughter after knocking down a pedestrian denied that the crash had anything to do with drink.

At around 10.15pm on 5th June 1944 Agnes Brown was returning to her Oakhill Park home after visiting her daughter. At the junction of Queens Drive and Edge Lane Drive the sixty one year old was struck by a car being driven by Edward Formby, who was driving to his home at 46 Childwall Priory Road. Agnes was thrown in the air and landed on the tramlines, from where she was picked up and taken to hospital with serious injuries.


A man named Timothy Sullivan had seen Formby's car zig-zagging in the road and confronted him, only to be told that he had swerved to avoid a dog. Other witnesses gathered around only to be told by Formby, a thirty four year old butcher, that he was only doing twenty miles per hour. 

When Formby was arrested he was so unsteady on his feet that he had to be assisted to the police station. When examined by a force doctor at midnight, he was showing signs of having been drinking but not necessarily drunk. Agnes died from shock at around 3am but initially Formby was charged with driving a motor car whilst under the influence of drink and granted bail. Agnes was buried in Allerton cemetery.


A committal hearing took place at the Magistrates' Court on 17th July, by which time the charge had increased to manslaughter. A police officer said he had seen Formby being held up by two men earlier in the evening, but didn't realise he had a car. The officer who arrested him described him as unsteady on his feet, but the defence solicitor put this down to the shock of the accident.


On 30th October Formby appeared at the assizes, where he was defended by Mr Edward Hemmerde, the prosecutor in the infamous Wallace case thirteen years earlier. The police doctor stated that although not drunk at midnight, Formby would certainly have been incapable of driving at the time of the accident. 

In giving his own evidence, Formby claimed that he had only drank two and a half pints of beer and that he was swerving as he was trying to fix a mat and then saw dog. Nobody else was able to say they had seen a dog, even though the incident happened in clear daylight.

Formby's friends denied helping him to his car on the night of the crash and he was given an exemplary character reference by a colonel for the Home Guard, with whom he served as a caterer for three years. After the jury returned a verdict of guilty Mr Justice Stable sentenced him to nine months imprisonment.

Peacemaker Killed By Fighting Woman's Son

A man who intervened in a fight between two women was kicked to death by the teenage son of one of them.

On Monday 19th September 1864 John O'Neill, a thirty seven year old cattle driver returned to his home in a court at Bull Entry, off Scotland Road. Witnesses said he was in an intoxicated state but he was able enough to try and calm down two women who were fighting outside his home.

One of the women lived in the court but the other, Mrs Nolan lived in nearby Ennerdale Street and O'Neill told her to go home, putting his arm on her shoulder to escort her there. A scuffle broke out between the two and they fell to the ground. Mrs Nolan's fourteen year old son saw what was going on and kicked O'Neill in the neck, close to the ear. He then picked his mother up and took her home.

A few moments later O'Neill was sat up but then fell down immediately, sighed a few times and died. A postmortem revealed that there was a contusion under the skin by the ear, at the same place where he had been kicked. There was also extravasated blood at the base of the brain, which was considered to have been caused by external violence.

When the youth was told that O'Neill had died he replied 'How could I kill him with these', pointing to his laced up boots. He then disappeared and an inquest was held two days later in his absence before the Deputy Coroner Mr John Wybergh. Mrs Nolan was present and Wybergh showed some sympathy in his summing up, saying 'No doubt seeing his mother on the ground and not knowing the cause he felt bound to assist her.'

The coroner's jury found Nolan guilty of manslaughter but added there were extenuating circumstances. The Deputy Coroner then said that he hoped the boy could be found and that he could offer bail. He did not have the same sympathy for Mrs Nolan though, telling her that her conduct had been reprehensible and that if it had not been for her drunkenness O'Neill would be alive and her son wouldn't be facing trial at the next assizes.

Nolan remained at large for a week, having made his way to Ormskirk where he stayed with relatives. he surrendered himself to Wybergh on 27th September and was granted bail at £20. The following March he appeared at the assizes,where Mr Justice Mellor sentenced him to four months imprisonment with hard labour.

Two Days Jail For Baby Boot Killer

A man who threw a boot at his wife but instead killed a baby was sentenced to just forty eight hours behind bars.

On 10th October 1864 at around 5pm Joseph Whittle finished work as a baker and went to his Duncan Street home, expecting his wife to have his tea ready for him. She wasn't home and when she did return drunk, she refused his request for food and shouted what the Liverpool Mail described as 'filthy and abusive language' back. 

In anger Whittle took off his boot and threw it at his wife, who ducked out of the way. At exactly the same time Mrs Hanson, who also lived in the house, came into the room carrying her six week old son John. The boot struck the baby on the head and he was taken to the South Dispensary where some medicine was given.

Two days later John died, a postmortem revealing that there was compression on the brain as a result of external violence. The inquest on 14th October returned a verdict of manslaughter and Whittle was committed for trial, but the Coroner allowed bail on sureties of £40.

Whittle surrendered himself at St George's Hall on 24th October he was found guilty but with a strong recommendation for mercy by the jury. Mr Justice Mellor then sentenced him to imprisonment without hard labour for a period of just two days, allowing him to return to work on the Monday.

Death of an Unknown Hawker

The identity of a man who was robbed and later found dead in a ditch with head injuries was never discovered, while a man charged in relation to his death was acquitted.

On the evening of 24th September 1864 a man carrying a bundle under his arm entered the Eagle & Child public house on the turnpike road in Huyton. A number of carters were presented and he offered combs for sale, three of which were bought. He stayed for three glasses of ale then left and took the road in the direction of Liverpool.

Nobody can be sure what happened as the man walked along the road, but at 630pm he called at the home of Catherine Ashton and asked if she had seen any boys wearing white smocks, as he had been robbed of twelve shillings. A passing girl named Jane Bulfield said she knew they were two brothers, but refused to give him their names even when offered half a guinea, a handsome sum back then.

Half an hour the man was seen being chased by a man named Thomas Roughsedge  near the Farmers Arms. When Roughsedge caught him he struck him and the man fell down, staying on the ground as his attacker made off. At 8pm police arrived and found that the man was dead, but Roughsedge, a farm labourer, was not apprehended until the Monday night at Horn Smithies off Stockbridge Lane.

At the inquest at the Knotty Ash hotel a lady named Ellen Woods said she saw Roughsedge quarreling with a man who had a bundle under his arm and both then separately made off towards Liverpool. She didn't see any blows traded, but did see the unknown man make offensive gestures. Ralph Elsby, who had seen Roughsedge strike the man near the Farmers Arms, deposed as to what he had seen. 

In summing up the coroner Mr Driffield said provocation hadn't been proven but neither could it be certain that Roughsedge intended to cause serious harm. As such, he suggested that the jury should instead consider a manslaughter verdict, which they did. Roughsedge was formally charged and appeared at the magistrates for committal, where he was granted bail.

The following March Roughsedge, described by the Liverpool Mail as 'a respectable looking aged man' appeared at the Liverpool assizes. He acknowledged that he 'slapped' the deceased, whose identity still hadn't been established, but that it was down to insulting remarks being made. 

Dr Glazebrook of West Derby, who had carried out the post mortem, described the dead man's brain as in a diseased state though intemperance and said that excitement other than the blow may have caused death. Given this evidence, the jury returned a verdict of not guilty and Roughsedge was freed.

Spurned Man Cleared of Killer Punch

A man taunted by a navy cadet who was dating his ex girlfriend killed him with a single punch but was acquitted at his trial.

In March 1940 Phyllis Pape broke off a four year courtship with George Vincent, a twenty four year old painter. They both lived in Gladstone Road in Seaforth and soon afterwards Phyllis began seeing Thomas Griffiths, a naval cadet from Great Crosby.

On the evening of 25th May that year Thomas and Phyllis went to the pictures and afterwards they were both talking outside of Phyllis's home when Vincent walked past. When Thomas followed Vincent and taunted him, it was a step too far and he was punched in the face and fell backwards, hitting his head on the kerb. His skull was fractured and the following evening he died in Bootle Hospital of a brain hemorrhage.

Vincent was arrested and charged with manslaughter and was tried at the Manchester Assizes on 8th July. In opening the case the prosecution acknowledged that Vincent had lost his temper and struck a sudden blow on impulse, and had no intention to kill. All that Phyllis was able to say was she saw Thomas go after Vincent and then heard a thud and when she ran down the road her new boyfriend was lying on the ground. 

Vincent then went in the witness box to give his version of events, expressing great remorse for what had happened. He told the court that he had been told by a friend that Thomas had been boasting about taking Phyllis from him. When Thomas refused to admit what had been going on, Vincent struck him. He then said 'when he fell backwards to the road and stayed there I was flabbergasted and called his name.'

The defence counsel said that his client had put himself in the dock to describe what happened as there was no direct witness and he was being truthful. The judge agreed in his summing up and the jury returned a verdict of not guilty without leaving their box. The judge then commented 'I agree with you and am very glad' before praising Vincent for his honesty and saying he was free to leave.