Stouthrief or stouthreif [1] ( Scots: stouth 'theft' + rief 'reiving, robbery') is the Scottish crime of use or threat of violence against a householder who defends themselves during a housebreaking; it is additional to any associated robbery. [2]
It is to be distinguished from the crime of hamesucken ( Old English: hám-sócn, lit. 'home-seeking') which is breaking into the home of an individual and assaulting him where that is the initial purpose. [3] Both are crimes at common law, typically to be found in the description of the crime libelled in court relative to a single incident rather than in the usually less-detailed newspaper reports of such a trial.
Although rarely used, prosecutions for hamesucken were brought in 2011, [3] 2015, [4] 2021, [5] and 2022. [6]