Captain Preston’s Trial Accounts - 773 Words

Since the 1960s, considerable disagreements between North American colonists and British soldiers derived in the so called â€Å"Boston Massacre† because of imposed laws by the British Empire into the colonies. After this conflict that took place on March 5, 1770, Captain Thomas Preston was charged with murder. The event occurred as a response of a series of violent encounters between the two groups. Curiously, Capt. Preston trial was delayed until October 24 in order to calm down witnesses’ exasperations. However, the witnesses who declared in the trial gave controversial and questionable testimonies; as a result, it creates indeterminate conditions to make a valid verdict. Among the allegations, Capt. Presto stood between the infuriated town and soldiers; for that reason, it was not clear if the order to shoot was given and if it was, the order came from behind the soldiers. After considering all declarations there were not sufficient evidences to condemn Capt. Pre sto because British soldiers acted in self-defense. Therefore, my decision for the case is that Capt. Preston was not guilty of giving the order to fire. Several conflicts between the colonist and soldiers ended in the Boston Massacre which resulted as a response to some laws imposed in the colonies from the British Empire. Examples of these laws were: the stamp act in perpetuity, which was repelled after colonists’ protests; the Townshend Revenue Act, which add new taxes to goods like sugar, tea, glass, etc.; andShow MoreRelatedBoston Massacre Essay Outline1164 Words   |  5 Pagesof The Boston Massacre began with a few colonists throwing snowballs at a soldier outside the Custom House in Boston, Massachusetts. (Text, 155) The argument began to escalate as more colonists gathered. Captain Thomas Preston arrived with a number of soldiers to maintain order. (Text, 155) Captain Preston tried to get the crowd to disperse; however, the crowd continued to throw snowballs, stones, and sticks at the British soldiers. Then one of the soldiers fired into the crowd and soon after, a numberRead MoreThe Causes Of The Boston Massacre1211 Words   |  5 Pagesthe colonial elite and was used by that same group to further escalate emotions and anger within the colonies to secure a united call for a much-desired revolution. Before one can make a clear assessment of the evidence available for Cpatian Preston’s trial, it is important to note the environment proceeding the Boston Massacre. This event did not stem from nowhere, tensions had been steadily increasing between the colonists and England, but what was the result of this tension? Most people tendRead MoreMultiple Perspectives Psactivity1778 Words   |  8 PagesMultiple Perspectives: Primary Source Activity Directions: On the night of March 5, 1770, several Boston residents were shot and killed by British soldiers in what became known as the Boston Massacre. What follows are several images and first-hand accounts from eyewitness to and participants in the event. Following each primary source are questions to help you examine and interpret the information. Primary source #1: Report of the Committee of the Town of Boston (patriot viewpoint) On Friday, the 2dRead MorePrimary Sources of Boston Massacre2239 Words   |  9 PagesLegal Papers of John Adams, No. 64, Rex v Wemms | John Adams | 1755-1784 | To record what he heard and saw during the trial and how he defended for the British soldiers. | Despite the fact that most eyewitnesses’ testimonies denounced Captain Thomas Pretson ordering his men to fire upon the citizens, he believed these people were biased and words aren’t 100% reliable. | Anonymous account of the Boston Massacre March 5 1770 | Unknown | Unknown | To briefly explain what caused the people to rise up againstRead MoreEssay on The Boston Massacre: Whos to Blame1917 Words   |  8 Pageshad buckets of water, after responding to a fire alarm. Others had clubs to defend themselves or perhaps to threaten the despised â€Å"lobsterbacks.† Private Hugh White was, in fact, being threatened by several wigmakers’ apprentices (Aron 24). When Captain Thomas Preston heard of Private White’s situation, he came with seven other soldiers to help. Words escalated into snowballs and stones, and the soldiers began to fight back with the butts of their guns. The crowd of Bostonians was growing and nowRead MoreA Massacre or a Riot? Essay1536 Words   |  7 PagesMassacre is viewed with overwhelming bias and many contradictions in accounts exist, yet overall the â€Å"Boston Massacre† is better defined as a riot than an actual massacre. The Soldiers were provoked to fire upon the crowd, and the actual scope of the provocation could be much greater than many of the Patriotic witnesses testified. Many contradictions exist in the evidence, and without proper proof one must assume the Soldiers and the Captain to be innocent until proven guilty. In the days and weeks leadingRead MoreBoston Massacre vs. Kent State Shootings3432 Words   |  14 Pagesevents all built up to the final climax in each of the two situations. On March 5th, 1770, a British captain, John Goldfinch, was stopped by a wig-makers apprentice, Edward Garrick, who accused Goldfinch of not paying for his new wig. The captain ignored Garrick and continued on his way despite Garricks protests. A sentry by the name of Hugh White heard the commotion and told Garrick that Captain Goldfinch was a gentleman and would pay for the wig if he hadnt. Garrick responded by saying thatRead MoreThe British And The American Colonies3148 Words   |  13 PagesParliament clearly claimed the right to pass laws â€Å"in all cases whatsoever† with the Declaratory Act. For some in the British government, they would simply find another way to raise revenue from the colonies. What Happened During the Boston Massacre and Trial? With the tensions continuing to rise between the colonists and the British, despite the efforts from both sides to settle things down, some of the more patriotic and more enraged groups of people, like the Sons of Liberty, confronted the troops GarrisonedRead MoreContemporary Issues in Management Accounting211377 Words   |  846 Pagesalso reflective of a wider tradition of significant involvement in the practical sphere by senior British accounting academics. For we must remember that it was Professor Edward Stamp who was one of the first to call the British audit profession to account with his questioning of ‘who shall audit the auditors?’ The subsequent institutional response has most likely gained as much from the likes of Professors Harold Edey, Bryan Carsberg, Ken Peasnell, Geoffrey Whittington, and  ´ David Tweedie as it has