The case of Alexander Hay, a resident of Kinmudie in the parish of Peterhead, provides a stark entry in the legal landscape of early seventeenth-century Aberdeenshire. On April 2, 1629, legal proceedings were initiated against him, cataloged under the judicial records as case C/EGD/625. While the specific nature of the charges brought against Alexander remains obscured by the brevity of surviving clerical notations, his involvement in the formal mechanisms of the Scottish witch trials places him within a period of intensified surveillance and judicial scrutiny regarding alleged maleficium and superstitious practice in the North East.
Following the initial registration of his case, the matter proceeded to a formal trial, recorded under reference T/LA/725. In the context of 1629, such a trial represented the culmination of a rigorous administrative and legal process, involving local kirk sessions and the central justiciary. By documenting the progression of Alexander through these distinct legal phases, the historical record preserves the memory of his ordeal within the complex framework of the Scottish criminal justice system, highlighting the bureaucratic thoroughness with which these accusations were pursued at the time.