Blog 41: 1933 Tunbridge Wells Kent - The unlawful assault on an 11 year old girl

The criminal trial of Thomas Turner for the unlawful assault on Emma Carrett

Thomas Turner was born in November 1814 in Tunbridge, Wells, to farm labourer Thomas Turner and Ann nee Huggett. He was the first of eight children. When he was old enough, he worked with his father.

His life changed dramatically when, on November 13th 1833, at age 19, he was accused of unlawfully assaulting Emma Carrett, a girl eleven years of age, in Tunbridge Wells.

Emma Carrett was described as a rather good-looking girl, looking older than eleven years old.

She was born in Speldhurst in March 1822 to John Carrett, a farm labourer and Jane nee Budgen. She was the youngest of six children.

Thomas appeared before the Magistrates' court on November 15th and committed to trial at the next Assizes.

On the morning of Monday, December 16th, in Maidstone, the Commission opened the Winter Assize for the county of Kent. Afterwards, the Learned Judges attended Divine Service at All Saint's Church before commencing with the Monday court cases.

On Tuesday morning, Mr Justice Gaselee took his seat in court.

He delivered the charge to the grand Jury, which was composed of the following gentlemen:

Foreman—Earl of Brecknock. Hon. J. W. King, Mr E. Darell, Esq. Sir J. K. Shaw, Bart. Mr W. Bridger, Esq. Sir B. W. Bridges, Bart. Mr M. D. D. Dalison, Esq. Mr T. L. Hodges, Esq. M. P. Mr J. Best, Esq. Mr T. Rider, Esq. MP. Mr J. Jacobson, Esq. Mr J. P. Plumptre, Esq. MP Mr C. T. Pattenson, Esq. Mr. J. W. Stratford, Esq. Mr T. T. Alkin, Esq. Mr N. J. Knatchbull, Esq. Mr F. Bradley, Esq. Mr W. A. Morland, Esq. Mr D. J. Parker, Esq. Mr T. Austen, Esq.Mr E. Hussey, Esq., Mr B. Powell, Esq. Mr T. Monypeny, Esq.

During his address, his Lordship remarked upon the unusual number of prisoners for trial, several of whose offences were very heinous. There were no less than four cases in which there were charges of rape, and three felonious assaults were upon children of a very tender age.

He trusted that the Grand Jury would narrowly inquire into the charges of that nature, for he was deeply grieved that such offences had lately increased to the most alarming degree. It became necessary to protect society and to stop them so that where a conviction took place, it should be visited with the most severe punishment.

They then worked through the list of people until it was finally time for Thomas Turner to stand in the dock for his trial.

Emma Carrett gave evidence that her mother had sent her out into a field to gather acorns. She did not find many, so she went to the woods to pick some wood. While there, she met the prisoner, who offered to help her.

After getting wood for her, he threw it to the ground and committed the offence. She then ran home and told her mother, who reported the incident.

On cross-examination, she contradicted herself on several points.

Thomas Turner never denied what he had done but, in his defence, said he did what he did with her consent and denied that he used any force or violence.

The legal age of consent in England was twelve from 1275. It was raised to thirteen in 1875 for GB and Ireland, and ten years later, in 1885, the government raised it to sixteen. So whether he said she had consented or looked older than her age, the law was against him! This legal context is crucial to understanding the trial's implications and the law's changes over time.

The Jury, after considerable deliberation, returned the verdict of Guilty but recommended the prisoner mercy on account of his age and the size of the girl.

His Lordship said they had to reconsider their verdict if they had any doubt. The Secretary of State could only decide on any recommendation to mercy.

The foreman replied that they did not doubt Thomas Turner had committed the offence. Still, he expressed himself in a manner that implied indecision. Several of the jury members were also in anxious conversation.

Mr Clarkson, for the Defence, immediately rose and said that, as he had to defend several other prisoners under similar charges, he must request his Lordship to relieve this Jury, or he would feel it his duty to challenge them all peremptorily.

Mr Shea, for the prosecution, also concurred in the request.

His Lordship then said that, in law, the accused was not entitled to such a proceeding. Still, the Jury would be more satisfied to be relieved, as the following cases were similar.

The Jury concurred and was relieved accordingly.

The second Jury heard all the evidence on the 9th December and found him Guilty! He received the sentence of death with no mercy, along with William Allen for an unlawful assault on Ruth Roffe Austin at Lydd (Blog 27) and George Cropper, who was found guilty of an unnatural crime with another man in Deptford.

Several gentlemen immediately began a petition to save him from hanging and sent it to the secretary of state. The petition detailed the circumstances of the case and argued for clemency based on Thomas Turner's age and the circumstances of the alleged crime. This petition and the public reaction to the case provide insight into the social attitudes of the time.

On Sunday, December 22nd, Thomas Turner received good news at the Gaol: a respite from death. His sentence was commuted to 99 years of life imprisonment, and arrangements were made for his transportation to the convict colony of Tasmania. This news brought relief and hope to Thomas Turner, who was now spared from the gallows.

On January 16th, 1834, he was transferred to the Prison Hulk Ship Retribution in Woolwich, where he would remain until his voyage.

He was boarded onto the convict ship John Barry, which sailed its third Convict journey from England to Hobart, Australia, on April 4th, 1834, under the command of John Robson.

She embarked with 320 male convicts, who, together with the crew and military guard, brought the total to 412 persons on board. None of them died en route. The journey to Australia was a significant part of the punishment for convicts, as it involved a long and arduous sea voyage, often under harsh conditions. She arrived on Sunday, August 10th, 1834, and the convicts disembarked on the 11th.

LIFE AFTER

Thomas Turner

After twelve years and seven months in captivity, in July 1849, at age 33, having received a ticket of leave intermittently for four and a half years, he was given a conditional Pardon due to his good conduct. This is a testament to the resilience and determination of Thomas Turner, who managed to survive and even thrive in the face of adversity.

He remained in Australia and, in 1852, settled in Molong, Ashburnham, New South Wales, where he bought a small piece of land.

This is where I came to a dead end, with no further records confidently confirming what he did after this time. No passenger lists were found to prove that he returned to England. I have been unable to find any marriage records and no records of him dying in Molong, so that indicates he may have moved and died elsewhere. The Australian Gold rush started in 1851, so he may have sold up his land and moved to join in that discovery.

Emma Carrett

She eventually became a live-in servant. In 1841, at age 19, still living in Tunbridge Wells, she was working for a farmer.

On March 28th 1850, at age 27, she married 20-year-old Charles Funnell, a Sawyer from Maresfield Sussex, and moved over the border into Sussex.

They never had children, and she had suffered from Hepatitis for a long time, which finally took her life on March 6th 1867, in Buxted Sussex. She was age 45

Her husband Charles remarried in 1869 at age 40; his bride, Mary, was 20. They emigrated to New Zealand in 1873.

SOURCES

1. (1833, December 17). Latest intelligence. Kentish Weekly Post or Canterbury Journal, Pg2.

2. (1833, December 14). ''Wednesday''. Dover Telegraph and Cinque Ports General Advertiser, Pg8.

3. (1833, December 24). The men under sentence of death. Maidstone Journal and Kentish Advertiser, Pg4.

4. Medical and surgical journal of the convict ship John Barry. Government Discovery National Archives UK. https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C4106685

5. Age of Consent reform UK. (2025, March 19). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age-of-consent_reform_in_the_United_Kingdom

6. Bring your backstory to lifeTM (no date) Ancestry® | Genealogy, Family Trees & Family History Records. Available at: http://www.ancestry.co.uk/

7. History’s colourful stories in black and white, Home | Search the archive | British Newspaper Archive. Available at: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/