File:Jerome Guerrini (15650432713).jpg

English: Name: Jerome Guerrini

Arrested for: Murder
Arrested at: North Shields Police Station
Arrested on: 22 July 1904
Tyne and Wear Archives ref: DX1388-1-53-Jerome Guerrini
The Morpeth Herald for 26 November 1904 reported that:
"At the Assizes on Saturday, before Mr Justice Darling, Jerome Guerrini, alias Joseph Brunetti (27), fireman and a French subject, was charged with the wilful murder of Patrick Gillighan on July 4th in the Borough of Tynemouth ...
Mr Hans Hamilton, in opening the case for the prosecution, said prisoner for the last four years has been a seafaring man. He was a Frenchman by birth, having been born in Corsica, although his name appeared more like an Italian one. Patrick Gillighan was a labourer and resided in Clive Street, North Shields. It appeared that on July 2nd prisoner came with a ship into the Tyne and took up his lodgings at 82 Clive Street. The deceased man lived almost directly opposite, with two brothers of the name of Davis.
About 11 o'clock of the night of July 4th a noise was heard at the back of No. 10 Clive Street. One of the brothers Davis went out and saw the deceased, the prisoner and a friend of the latter named Petro Arteche. He heard the deceased man tell the prisoner and his companion to shift, as it was no place for them to commit a nuisance. Davis would tell then that he saw the prisoner strike the deceased in the chest. Davis told the deceased to come into the house which he did.
Gillighan sat down to supper and just at that moment a noise was heard at the shop door in the front street. Wm Davis opened the door, but saw no one. The deceased also appeared to have come to the door, spoken to someone in the street, and proceeded immediately down an adjoining passage. While he was going down a noise was heard at the back door. Davis followed him down the passage and saw him with head of prisoner's friend, Arteche under his right arm, and was striking him. The deceased also struck at the prisoner on the right side of the head, causing it to bleed. Then it appeared that the prisoner retired a few yards, rushed at the deceased and struck him on the left side. Davis saw no knife but a few seconds afterwards he was attacked by prisoner. Davis avoided a blow and when the prisoner raised his hand he saw he had a knife. Deceased staggered forward and fell. Davis went to help him up the passage and while he was going Gillighan said 'Willie, I am stabbed'." Gillighan died shortly afterwards of internal bleeding.
During the trial Guerrini's solicitor, Mr Mitchell-Innes asked the jury to find a verdict of manslaughter, emphasising that he was not the aggressor and only used his knife in the heat of the moment. He pointed to Gillinghan's conviction four years earlier for a serious assault on another man with a bottle and a knife. Caroline Evans, a married woman living in Clive Street, also testified that she saw Gillighan "seize the prisoner and drag him across the back lane". She heard the prisoner say "I am not making a noise, I don't want to fight".
The Morpeth Herald reports that "Judge Darling, in his summing up, said that if there was anything that distinguished a Corsican from the native of any other country, it was the hotness of his blood and the constant use of the knife. He thought the jury should observe this fact in the case. The jury found prisoner guilty of manslaughter and he was sentenced to fifteen years penal servitude".
These images are a selection from an album of photographs of prisoners brought before the North Shields Police Court between 1902 and 1916 in the collection of Tyne & Wear Archives (TWA ref DX1388/1).

(Copyright) We're happy for you to share this digital image within the spirit of The Commons. Please cite 'Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums' when reusing. Certain restrictions on high quality reproductions and commercial use of the original physical version apply though; if you're unsure please email archives@twmuseums.org.uk.