Robert Hale

Life events

1. 28 Dec 1762

   Court¹

   Salem, Essex County, Massachusetts, British North America

   Robert Hale, sheriff of Essex County, sued Eleazer Lyndsey of Danvers for helping John White of Marblehead escape from the Salem gaol after White had been arrested on a writ obtained by Thomas Robinson of Philadelphia for a debt. At Salem December Court 1762, the jury found for Hale and awarded £239 16s 6d lawful money plus costs. Lyndsey appealed.

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   Robert Hale of Beverly, sheriff of Essex County, sued Eleazer Lyndsey of Danvers, yeoman, for allegedly assisting John White of Marblehead to escape from the Salem gaol. White had been arrested on 6 Aug 1762 under a writ obtained by Thomas Robinson of Philadelphia for a debt of £326 18s 9d Philadelphia currency, equal to £261 11s lawful money in Massachusetts. The case was first brought at the September 1762 court at Newbury and continued to Salem December Court 1762, where the jury found for Hale and awarded £239 16s 6d lawful money damages and costs. Lyndsey appealed to the Superior Court, and William Crowell of Salem, labourer, was later summoned as a witness in that appeal.

2. 8 Jun 1763

   Residence²

   Beverly, Essex County, Massachusetts, United States

3. 14 Jun 1763

   Court³⁴

   Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts, United States

   Appeal of Dec 1762 judgment regarding the Sept 1762 escape of John White from Salem Goal. Jury found for Lindsey, resulting in a full reversion of the prior £239 16s 6d debt judgment. Lindsey was awarded court costs against the Sheriff.

   Superior Court of Judicature

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   In June 1763, Eleazer Lindsey, a yeoman from Danvers, successfully overturned a major legal judgment against him in the Superior Court of Judicature held at Ipswich. The case originated from a September 1762 incident at the Salem Goal, where Lindsey was accused of "voluntarily" assisting John White, a merchant from Marblehead, in breaking out of custody. White had been imprisoned for a significant debt of over £261 lawful money owed to Thomas Robinson, a merchant from Philadelphia.

   When White escaped, the High Sheriff of Essex County, Robert Hale, became personally liable for the lost debt. Hale subsequently sued Lindsey in the Inferior Court of Common Pleas in December 1762 and won a judgment of £239 16s 6d. Lindsey appealed this decision to the higher court. After his attorneys' initial attempt to have the case dismissed (a "plea in abatement") was overruled, the case was heard by a new jury. This jury found in favor of Lindsey, resulting in a full reversion of the previous judgment. Consequently, Lindsey was cleared of the massive debt and was instead awarded court costs against Sheriff Robert Hale.