Isobell Young, a woman of middling status from East Barns near Dunbar, occupied a position of relative prominence within her community as the wife of a portioner. At the time of her trial in 1629, she was approximately 65 years old, having maintained a multifaceted household where she managed numerous servants while trading in cloth and dairy products, alongside active money lending. Despite her standing, Isobell lived under a cloud of suspicion for four decades; her reputation as a practitioner of witchcraft had been established long before her formal prosecution. This history of local tension culminated in the legal proceedings of 1629, during which her dittay—the formal list of charges—was submitted by Robert Sandie mekill, and her alleged activities were linked to the testimony of several other accused individuals, including Margaret Melrois, Jonet Achesoun, and Katharine Gray.
The formal allegations brought against Isobell were extensive, covering a wide range of perceived harms, including the destruction of ale, crops, and dairy, as well as damage to boats, fishing interests, and the loss of animals and entire estates. Her case was significantly complex, involving protracted defence pleadings that necessitated the trial being carried over from its initial date of 4 February 1629 in Edinburgh. Despite the rigorous legal debate, the court eventually found her guilty. Following a central justiciary order, Isobell was taken to Castle Hill, where she was executed by the method of strangulation and burning on 5 February 1629, marking the conclusion of a period of scrutiny that had spanned depositions taken as far back as 1619 in Duns and 1624 at the Dunbar Presbytery.