6. Describe the social wrongs that led to Norman's situation, according to Lydia Child. In November 1843, Amelia Norman of New Jersey was arrested for the attempted murder of a successful merchant, Henry S. Ballard. The defendant claimed to have been the victim of seduction, which in the mid-19th century was a criminal offense punishable by 5 to 20 years in prison (Murray 5) and defined as "the act of a man having sexual relations with a person.” woman of chaste character under promise of marriage, or by resorting to seduction or persuasion” (Humble 145-146). In February 1844, noted columnist, feminist, and abolitionist Lydia Child published "Letter from New York [The Trial of Amelia Norman]," detailing the extraordinary fanfare that surrounded Norman's trial, including the surprisingly loud wave ( and favorable) of public sympathy. . Legally speaking, Norman's case is rarely mentioned except in reference to a particular period of American jurisprudence when legislation (and its inevitable influence on social conscience) was remarkably provincial. In 1841, Amelia Norman was a 16-year-old girl who had been in legal status. has worked as a servant in a wealthy New York family since the age of thirteen. That year, she was introduced to successful (and significantly older) clothing merchant Henry Ballard, and they immediately began a relationship. Impartial and strictly objective accounts of the nature of the relationship are rare, and the details available do not lend themselves to honest courtship. According to sources, Ballard took great care to ensure that the relationship remained largely clandestine, financing the termination of two of Norman's pregnancies for which he was directly responsible (Jones 178). In 1843, Ame... in the middle of the newspaper... The belief in "just dessert" was no longer politically correct and therefore enjoyed much less front-page prominence in the most widely circulated newspapers. Although Norman's tribulations would likely still elicit sympathy from contemporary audiences, Ballard would not simply be dismissed as a lech with a contemptuous reputation. On the contrary, sympathy for his prolonged and violent psychiatric disorder is said to be overwhelming, with at least one mental health professional saying that Ballard was likely a victim of sexual misconduct himself - although he buried any memory of it. event deep in his subconscious. Norman would still be acquitted, but only because his team of generously paid lawyers successfully mounted a self-defense argument against a raging madman. His virtue would have little (if any) importance in the trial.