In late 1643, Jonet Barker, an Edinburgh shop-keeper of humble means, became caught in the intensifying scrutiny of the Scottish legal system. Records suggest Jonet lived with aspirations beyond her socioeconomic standing, described by contemporaries as a woman who desired to be among the best-dressed servants in town. Her legal ordeal began in November 1643, during which she was subjected to at least three separate interrogations and recorded confessions between the 22nd of November and the 1st of December. Throughout these proceedings, Jonet was implicated as an accomplice by another accused woman, Jonet Cranstoun, and she in turn implicated Margaret Lauder, an acquaintance who had provided Jonet with food—specifically cake—while she was held in prison.
The judicial process culminated on December 29, 1643, when Jonet was brought before an assize composed of local tradesmen, including a merchant, a cordiner, a wright, a baxter, a stabler, and a locksmith. During the trial, further details regarding her history emerged, including testimony from Lauder concerning a prior imprisonment four years earlier on charges of fornication. Ultimately, the court found against her, and Jonet was taken to Castle Hill in Edinburgh. There, the sentence was carried out in accordance with the customary practices of the era: she was strangled and then burned.