In the winter of 1628, the legal apparatus of early modern Scotland turned its attention toward Alesoun Tailyeour, a resident of the parish of Pencaitland in Haddington. According to the extant judicial records, the process against Alesoun commenced on December 9, 1628, under the formal designation of case C/EGD/1066. At this time, the community and the local kirk session were the primary arbiters of moral and spiritual order, and the transition of her case into the formal judicial system marked the beginning of a significant legal inquiry into her alleged activities.
The subsequent proceedings were recorded under the trial reference T/LA/611, documenting the progression of the charges brought against her. Within the context of the Scottish witch trials, the transition from a local accusation to a formal trial was a protracted process involving the gathering of depositions and the convening of the necessary legal authorities. For Alesoun, these documents serve as the definitive traces of a legal struggle that occupied the final weeks of 1628, reflecting the period's rigorous insistence on documenting the testimonies and evidence presented before the court in Haddington.