The last beheading was of a Scottish lord in 1747; he had been
involved in an attempt to restore the Stuarts to the throne. So
many people came that some overcrowded bleachers fell down and
crushed about 20 spectators. Henceforth, every sentence of death
was by hanging, even for peers.
In 1772, the process of pressing a man to death, if he refused to
plead to an indictment was abolished. In 1772, persons accused or
indicted, in Great Britain or America, of felony or piracy who
stand mute shall be convicted of such charge. Property of a felon
was still forfeited to the crown.
From 1749 on were established special procedures for speedy
decisions in local courts in some areas for debts or damages under
40s. and imprisonment for such was limited for up to three months.
Otherwise, sentences were longer, and debts grew during the time
in prison. When prisons were overcrowded, Parliament let the
inmates out if they gave up their possessions. They could go to
Georgia.
In 1763, the homes of John Wilkes and others were searched for a
seditious and treasonous published paper and all related papers
because they had been rumored to have some relationship to the
conception, writing, publication, or distribution of the paper.
Wilkes had such papers and was convicted of libel. He countersued
for damages due to criminal trespass. The court held that general
search warrants were subversive of the liberty of the subject of
the search in violation of the British Constitution, declared the
statute void, and found for Wilkes.
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