During the 1700s, there was no police force and it was victims and private individuals who had to initiate prosecutions. In the second half of the eighteenth century potential prosecutors banded together to form Societies for the Prosecution of Felons. This happened in Castle Bromwich.
In 1834, fed up with their property and crops being stolen and their turnips “injured”, wealthy land owners formed the Castle Bromwich Association for the Prosecution of Felons and started handing out rewards to people helping in the detection or apprehension of the culprits.
