In June Lady Isabel Barnett, a well-known TV personality was convicted of stealing a tin of tuna fish and a carton of cream, total value 87p, from a small shop. The case was given enormous publicity. She was fined £75 and had to pay £200 towards the cost of the case. A few days later she killed herself.
Fraud
This is an example of a civil case rather than a criminal one. A man had taken out an insurance policy of £100,000 on his life. The policy was due to expire at 3 o’clock on a certain day. The man was in serious financial difficulties, and at 2.30 on the expire day he consulted his solicitor. He then went out and called a taxi. He asked the driver to make a note of the time, 2.50. He then shot himself. Suicide used not to cancel an insurance policy automatically. (It does nowadays.) The company refused to pay the man’s wife, and the courts supported them.