The first indictment and conviction for murder in Genesee County occurred in June of 1807 when James McClean was tried for murdering William Orr. The accused was an alien (non-citizen) and was entitled to be tried by a jury composed of 50 % aliens. In accordance with this statue, a jury was thus composed and found him guilty. McClean was sentenced to be hanged.
The crime was committed near Caledonia Springs which in 1807 was a part of Genesee County. McClean, Orr and a man named McLaughlin were squatters on the 40,000 Acre Tract. A dispute arose regarding a tree located on the land which McClean claimed and Orr had cut down. McClean knocked Orr down with an axe, killing him with the second blow. McLaughlin interfered to prevent the tragedy and he too was killed. (McClean was charged with only killing Orr because there was a question as to who killed McLaughlin - Orr or McClean.)
The night of the murders, McClean hid in a hollow log near his home and the following morning took to the woods. When the crime was discovered, the Militia went out in small squads and searched the entire region. Several days passed before McClean was captured. He was recognized at a tavern a few miles east of Canandaigua and was arrested.
A great crowd from all parts of the County attended the public execution on August 28, 1807. It was reported in the newspapers that when the weight fell, the rope broke and McClean fell to the ground. He soon recovered from the shock and rising to his feet, expressed a strong desire not to be "hung again". Some insisted that one hanging was a fulfillment of the law. Others, however, thought differently and informed McClean that "as he had killed two men, he ought to be hung twice." (Remember that he was only convicted of killing one.) The County Clerk was dispatched by the Sheriff for a new rope. He soon returned with a "trace rope" sufficiently strong and after considerable delay, the miserable culprit was again mounted upon the scaffold and launched into eternity!
A further note: William Keys was paid $8.25 by the County Supervisors for building the gallows. Eight gallons of brandy was also supplied to the guards.