Kangaroo Court

The Court Trial That Helped Change a Nation

By: C. R. Thomas

Narrated by: Michael Carman

The long forgotten true story of two convict "assigned" servant girls, Sarah 18 y/o & Mary 20 y/o, tried in colonial Australia for the murder of their “master”.

All the people are real. All court testimonies are real. The blatant unfairness of the trial was also very true. The deceased, Captain Waldron, was a retired army Captain, then gentleman farmer and magistrate. The police investigator, Capt. Allman, was Capt. Waldron's friend, also an ex-army officer from the same regiment and a fellow magistrate. The judge, Burton, was ex-navy. There was no inquest, autopsy or death certificate. There were no marks or bruises on the head of the deceased.

The witnesses except for the widow and her 12-year-old son saw no punches, allegedly the cause of death. The attending doctor did not arrive in time to give evidence. Hearsay evidence was admitted. There were no witnesses for the defense. The defense counsel, Rowe, was soon after struck off for pocketing witness expenses. The defendants were not allowed to testify. The jury was seven serving military men and took just 15 minutes deliberation before the verdict. The handwritten transcript of the trial was only recently uncovered. The media of the day called it the most sensational trial Australia had ever had. The verdict caused near riots on the streets of Sydney. The police contingent guarding the girls had to be reinforced. The trial led to such outrage that the government had to intervene. The government referred the case to the King.

Three years later the British House of Commons initiated an enquiry into the Transportation of convicts and status of Australia, especially the "assigning" of convicts to private masters, such as were Sarah and Mary. They were effectively slaves. The committee chairman, Molesworth, delivered the final report in 1840. The chairman then moved the motion that would change Australia forever. Queen Victoria by proclamation ended Transportation to NSW a few months later.

©2023 C. R. Thomas (P)2023 Author’s Republic, Inc.