the Curse of Crowleys

This is the true story of James Crowley, born in 1813, the son of a wealthy farmer. He and his elderly father were in conflict over a share of the family business. James threatened to kill his father and, on Christmas day, 1842, he went to the family farmhouse and shot dead, William Tilsley, a special constable who had been hired to protect his father. James fled the scene and he was captured two years later. He was tried for murder, found guilty and sentenced to death. An unsuccessful appeal for mercy was submitted to the Home Secretary supported by many local dignitaries, including the Earl of Warwick, on the grounds of insanity, claiming madness throughout the Crowley family, inherited from the father, William Crowley. Was James insane or was he a callous murderer?