Case II: Jacqueline den Carot (1319, France): den Carot’s case was tried under the Church’s Inquisition.
The Church sought to prosecute Jacqueline den Carot.
The woman in question is brought in “to answer charges of heresy. She was also accused of witchcraft…”
The defendant is alleged to have stated that “There will never be another world but this one, and men and women who have died will never rise again.” These sentiments are reinforced by the testimony of multiple witnesses. den Carot eventually confesses to the crimes of heresy and witchcraft, but swears to refrain from spreading such unholy thoughts and actions in the community. She requests an absolution from her Inquisitors and is granted a reprieve from excommunication from the Bishop …show more content…
Firstly, the accused, Jacqueline den Carot, is given no opportunity to address or cross-examine the witnesses that are brought to speak against her character. This blatant ignoring of the 1215 rulings of the 4th Lateran Council are born of Pope Innocent IV’s Ad extirpanda document, which institutes summary procedure in religious cases in order to more effectively convict heretics. Since the case itself does not ever notate any testimony from den Carot herself, it is unclear if she is initially aware of the charges brought against her. It can be presumed that she manages to determine the accusations of the Inquisitorial officers, as she eventually “confessed under oath and repeated the confession before the judge in court.” This falls in line with the practices of Bernard Gui and his instruction on the proper methods of torture, in which offenses should not be made clear to the defendant. Adding to the list of due process violations in this case, den Carot is provided with no lawyer or other means of legal defense. The most significant feature of this case is the use of torture. In the description of the defendant’s treatment it is stated that “She at first denied them [the Inquisitors], but was then arrested and detained in
The Church sought to prosecute Jacqueline den Carot.
The woman in question is brought in “to answer charges of heresy. She was also accused of witchcraft…”
The defendant is alleged to have stated that “There will never be another world but this one, and men and women who have died will never rise again.” These sentiments are reinforced by the testimony of multiple witnesses. den Carot eventually confesses to the crimes of heresy and witchcraft, but swears to refrain from spreading such unholy thoughts and actions in the community. She requests an absolution from her Inquisitors and is granted a reprieve from excommunication from the Bishop …show more content…
Firstly, the accused, Jacqueline den Carot, is given no opportunity to address or cross-examine the witnesses that are brought to speak against her character. This blatant ignoring of the 1215 rulings of the 4th Lateran Council are born of Pope Innocent IV’s Ad extirpanda document, which institutes summary procedure in religious cases in order to more effectively convict heretics. Since the case itself does not ever notate any testimony from den Carot herself, it is unclear if she is initially aware of the charges brought against her. It can be presumed that she manages to determine the accusations of the Inquisitorial officers, as she eventually “confessed under oath and repeated the confession before the judge in court.” This falls in line with the practices of Bernard Gui and his instruction on the proper methods of torture, in which offenses should not be made clear to the defendant. Adding to the list of due process violations in this case, den Carot is provided with no lawyer or other means of legal defense. The most significant feature of this case is the use of torture. In the description of the defendant’s treatment it is stated that “She at first denied them [the Inquisitors], but was then arrested and detained in