Assault

A "negro" man Named Matt Ross and his wife Ailsey were arrested and sent to the grand jury after allegedly assaulting a white citizen of Henrico. There are no facts in the case that suggest the "negroes" actually struck the white man, there is only evidence that they used threatening language.

Assault.--A negro named Matt Ross, and Ailsey, his wife, were before Justice Wade yesterday on a charge of making an assault upon Clinton Davis, a citizen of Henrico. So far as we understood the case, there was no proof that any blow was struck, though the negroes made use of very insulting and threatening language. They were remanded to await the action of the Grand Jury.

“Assault,” Reconstructing Virginia, accessed March 30, 2023, https://reconstructingvirginia.richmond.edu/items/show/318.