1692: Pressed to Death: the Only Person in America Executed by Stone for Refusing to Plead
Giles Corey, an 81 year old farmer in Salem, Massachusetts, refused to enter a plea when charged with witchcraft during the hysteria of 1692. By standing mute he prevented a trial from proceeding under the law of the time, which instead prescribed peine forte et dure: the accused was stretched on the ground and heavy stones piled onto his chest to force a plea.
Corey endured the ordeal for two days without submitting. Sheriff’s men reportedly used a stick to push his tongue back into his mouth when it protruded under the weight. His last words are said to have been a simple demand for more weight: “more weight”.
By refusing to plead, Corey ensured he was never convicted, which meant his property could not be seized by the colony, an outcome believed to be his deliberate motive in choosing this brutal death over a trial. He remains the only person in American history known to have been executed by pressing.
