LONDON: Mrs. Helen Duncan, who claims to be a spiritualist medium, was on Monday sentenced to nine months’ imprisonment at the Old Bailey Criminal Court after a seven days’ trial under the 200-year-old Witchcraft Act. Mrs. Frances Brown, another of the accused, was sentenced to four months’ imprisonment, while Ernest Edward Homer and Mrs. Elizabeth Jones, known as Mrs. Homer, were each bound over for two years.

A notice of appeal was given on behalf of all the four defendants. The Jury had reached a verdict of guilty after 25 minutes’ deliberations on Friday. Mrs. Duncan collapsed on hearing the sentence and broke her silence which had lasted throughout her trial. “It is all lies,” she cried. The recorder declared that the Jury does not decide, whether spiritualistic manifestations are possible, but merely that those exhibitions made by the defendants amounted to fraud. It was stated during the proceedings that Mrs. Duncan had made £112 in six days.

Published in Dawn, April 4th, 2019