In the late autumn of 1649, Margaret Adinstoun, a resident of the parish of Borthwick in Edinburgh, was drawn into the administrative machinery of the Scottish judicial system amidst the intense scrutiny that characterized the period. Her legal journey began on September 27, 1649, when she was formally identified in the judicial records under case reference C/EGD/1652. This initial documentation marked the commencement of proceedings against her, leading to her subsequent appearance before the courts as detailed in trial record T/LA/1985.
During the course of the legal proceedings, Margaret provided a confession that was formally documented by the authorities. While the specific nature of the accusations brought against her remains confined to the judicial archives of the mid-seventeenth century, the existence of this recorded confession signifies a critical stage in her encounter with the law. In the context of the era, the transition from a formal charge to a documented statement was a definitive moment in the processing of witchcraft allegations, reflecting the standardized legal procedures employed by the commissioners and courts of Borthwick during this tumultuous period.