Legal Definitions - backberend

Backberend is a historical legal term originating from Old English. It refers to two related concepts:

• The act of bearing or carrying stolen goods upon one's back or about one's person. This implies being caught in the physical possession of recently stolen items.
• A person who is caught in the act of carrying stolen goods.

Essentially, "backberend" describes the situation where someone is apprehended "red-handed" with the physical evidence of theft directly on or with them, making the crime immediately apparent.

Examples:

• Imagine a person attempting to leave a grocery store without paying. A store security officer stops them just outside the exit, and upon inspection, discovers several expensive cuts of meat and a bottle of premium liquor concealed inside the person's jacket and backpack. The act of carrying these unpaid items in their jacket and backpack would historically be considered backberend. The individual themselves, caught with the goods, would also be referred to as a backberend.

• Following a report of a break-in at a jewelry store, police officers quickly establish a perimeter. They soon spot a suspicious individual running a few blocks away, carrying a large, bulging sack. When apprehended, the sack is found to contain numerous trays of watches and rings, still bearing the store's tags. The individual's act of carrying the stolen jewelry in the sack immediately after the burglary perfectly illustrates backberend, as they are literally bearing the stolen items.

• Consider a scenario in a medieval village where a farmer's prize chicken goes missing. Later that day, a villager is seen walking through the market square with a large, live chicken tucked under their arm, attempting to conceal it with a cloak. The farmer recognizes their chicken and confronts the villager. The act of the villager carrying the stolen chicken on their person, making the theft evident, would be a classic example of backberend in its original historical context.