HMA v Ritchie and Morren

HMA v Ritchie and Morren (1841) 2 Swin 581 is a case before Scotland's High Court of Justiciary considering whether, in a prosecution for uttering of base coin (passing false coins off as genuine), the prosecutor could present evidence of previous unsuccessful attempts when he had not described any such attempts in the Indictment.
The three presiding judges were Joshua Henry Mackenzie (Lord Mackenzie), Alexander Maconochie (Lord Meadowbank), and John Hope, Lord Justice Clerk.
Background
James Ritchie and Andrew Morren were charged with two violations of the uttering statute: Uttering a base shilling, and possessing base shillings with intent to utter them.
Opinion of the court
The judges had to decide whether to permit the prosecutor to present evidence to the jury of previous unsuccessful attempts to utter, when he had not described any such attempts in the Indictment.
This evidence was held to be admissible. Two other similar cases are R. v Francis (1874) L.R. C.C.R.128 and Gallagher v Paton (1909) S.C. (J.) 50.

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