[Editor: This article, regarding two men sentenced to capital punishment, was published in The Bendigo Advertiser (Sandhurst, Vic.), 29 April 1891.]
The law to take its course.
— A meeting of the Executive Council was held yesterday, when the cases of Johnston, sentenced to death for the murder of his wife and children at Ballarat; and Wilson, condemned to death for a criminal assault upon a little girl at Ballarat, were duly considered. It was decided that the law should be allowed to take its course, and both prisoners will be executed on Monday, 11th May.
In connection with the case of James Johnston, the executive received a petition signed by 41 Melbourne doctors praying that a board be appointed to inquire into the mental condition of the prisoner, but the council decided that there was not the faintest ground for considering he was insane when he committed the terrible deed.
Mr. Justice Webb, who was present, pointed out that Mr. Finalyson, the prisoner’s counsel, when examining the medical men called as witnesses in the case, never once raised the question of prisoner’s sanity.
Our Ballarat correspondent wired last evening that the decisions of the executive have not yet been communicated to Johnston and Wilson.
Source:
The Bendigo Advertiser (Sandhurst, Vic.), 29 April 1891, p. 2, column 4
Editor’s notes:
counsel = an advocate, counselor, lawyer, or legal adviser (or a group thereof) engaged for the purpose of giving legal advice to a client or a defendant regarding legal matters or a court case
Executive Council = a group of Ministers of the Crown who exercise executive power and are overseen by a lieutenant governor, governor, or governor-general, to whom they give advice
See: “Executive council (Commonwealth countries)”, Wikipedia
wired = telegraphed; sent a message by telegraph (i.e. a message sent by telegraph operators via telegraph wires); a “wire” is telegram or message sent by telegraph
[Editor: The original text has been separated into paragraphs.]
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