Thomas Briggs seeks an account of debts and injunctions to stop legal actions against him. In 1828, Briggs hired a slave named Winney and household furniture to widow Sarah A. Walker "for a nominal sum as a mere act of charity," because Walker had a large family to support and was destitute. Walker did not return Winney or the furniture on 1 January 1829 when they were due, so Briggs took back Winney in May 1829. In September 1829, Walker enticed Winney away from Briggs, kept her hidden for several months and finally sold her to David Payne. In 1830, Sarah Walker "commenced an action of malicious prosecution and false imprisonment" against Briggs and obtained a judgment of $1000 in damages. Briggs asserts that Walker owes him $1120 for Winney's hire and sale value and for provisions that he gave her. He did not sue her for the debts, because "she was wholly and utterly insolvent, and he was unwilling to distress one in such necessitous Circumstances." He asks that the court enjoin further proceedings on Walker's award until she accounts for her debt to him and that the court reduce the award by the amount she owes Briggs.
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Repository: South Carolina Department of Archives and History, Columbia, South Carolina
