Grissell Walker was a woman of Humbie, in the parish of Haddington, Scotland, and in the year 1678, she found herself entangled in the era's pervasive fear of witchcraft. The records of her case, registered under C/EGD/615, reveal Grissell's story as one marked by the formidable judicial processes of her day. Though married, details of her personal life remain sparse apart from her residence and status. What presses through the historical veil is the lingering shadow of the accusations against her and the severe consequences that soon followed.
The trial proceedings against Grissell, officially noted under T/LA/1449 and T/LA/832, commenced in Edinburgh on the 13th of August, 1678. However, Grissell did not appear before the court to face the charges levied against her. As a result, she was declared a fugitive, a severe legal status that denoted her absence as an implicit admission of guilt in the eyes of the law. Being "put to the horn," she was proclaimed an outlaw, implying that she forfeited any protection from the law and could be captured by anyone who found her. This harsh outcome reflects the tumultuous and dangerous period of Scottish witch hunts, where fear and accusation could irrevocably alter the course of a person's life, casting individuals like Grissell into a perilous existence on the fringes of society.