The trial of Levi Weeks, or, The Manhattan well mystery

the long version

In 1799, the murder of a young woman caused a terrific stir in the city of New York. The victim was Gulielma Sands who, on December 22, left the boardinghouse where she lived, never to return. Her bruised body was found several days later in the Manhattan Well, a 20-minute carriage ride from her home. The accused was Levi Weeks, a fellow boarder who, Miss Sands had claimed, was to marry her the night she disappeared. Two of the attorneys for the defense were Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton, friends of the defendant's brother. The citizens of New York raised an enormous hue and cry over the murder: the body was displayed in the streets before the trial, mobs shoved their way into the courtroom, and--when the verdict was read--few felt that justice had been done. This book includes the entire transcript of the first American murder trial ever recorded.--From publisher description.