Prisoner name(s): Adolphus Massey and William Mayden (or William Maid). Prisoner...

Prisoner name(s): Adolphus Massey and William Mayden (or William Maid).

Prisoner occupation: Adolphus Massey is the apprentice of Joseph Turner. William Mayden is the apprentice of Joseph Turner's brother.

Court and date of trial: [Not stated].

Crime: Robbing gardens; at 5 o'clock on Friday 11 July 1829, the prisoners robbed a garden near the new church, Chelsea, [London] belonging to Daniel Oakham, a market gardener, of more than three pints of mixed currants and raspberries worth 9d.

Initial sentence: Committed to Cold Bath Fields House of Correction for two months and to be kept to the treadmill.

Petitioner(s): Joseph Turner of Bishops Palace, Fulham Road, [London].

Grounds for clemency (Petition Details): The prisoners are mild and inoffensive youths; the prisoners were on a legitimate errand when they passed the garden; Joseph Turner contradicts the testimony of Daniel Oakham and his employee, John Oakham, by claiming that the current bushes were not enclosed by a hedge or bank; the unenclosed bushes were too much of a temptation for two youths; the sentence is too severe for a minor crime; Joseph Turner did not arrive at the police station to provide evidence of the prisoners' good characters until after their commitment to the house of correction; the prisoners were too terrified by their situation to reveal their identities and were not given the opportunity to demand that their masters attend the examination.

Other papers: Testimony of John Oakham a common labourer of 1 Oakham Street, Chelsea, [London] who apprehended the prisoners.

G M Marriott, Magistrate of Queen Square Police Office, [London] submitting Joseph turner's statement.