She spoke about how a knowledge of time of the offence, the severity of the crime (and hence the type of court faced) and its location should enable you to identify the probable location of any surviving records. Reports in local newspapers naming the villain and his home can be useful pointers to the dates and places of trials. Although there are enough cases of minor crimes being prosecuted in higher courts and serious offences being tried in a different locality that you should always search widely as well.
Researchers need also to be aware that there were "other" courts operating in parallel with the criminal system. You may also want to search for records of Courts Martial, Ecclesiatical (Church) Courts, and Coroners Courts. Helen also explaind that the idea of "prison" meant something quite different until the mid-nineteenth century.
Websites of Interest:
- Old Bailey Online http://www.oldbaileyonline.org/
- Capital Punishment UK http://www.capitalpunishmentuk.org/
- Newgate Calendar http://www.exclassics.com/newgate/ngintro.htm
- Victorian Crime & Punishment http://vcp.e2bn.org/prisoners/
- London Lives http://www.londonlives.org/
- Warwickshire Prisoners 1801-1900 http://apps.warwickshire.gov.uk/PrisonersDb/prisoners/indexes
- Bedfordshire Gaol Register http://apps.bedford.gov.uk/grd/
- Welsh Crime and Punishment https://www.llgc.org.uk/sesiwn_fawr/index_s.htm
- York Assizes 1785–1851 http://www.yorkfamilyhistory.org.uk/resources/york-assizes/