On October 2, 1616, Barbara Scord, a married woman residing in Shetland, appeared before the Court of Justiciary of the Sheriffdom of Yetland in Scalloway. The judicial proceedings, formally documented in the Sheriff Court books under case reference C/EGD/2219, concluded with a verdict of guilty. At this time, the legal framework governing such trials in early modern Scotland viewed the charge of witchcraft as a severe transgression against both civil and ecclesiastical order, necessitating rigorous judicial intervention.
Following the pronouncement of the court’s decision, Barbara was sentenced to death. Consistent with the standard practices for capital punishment in witchcraft cases within the jurisdiction, the sentence was carried out by strangulation followed by burning. The official trial records, cataloged under T/LA/1412, confirm that the execution was duly performed, bringing the legal matter to its final resolution.