When the literacy test was abolished in 1706 , the lesser sentence given to those who pleaded benefit of clergy was increased to up to 6 – 24 months ' hard labour . Under the Transportation Act of 1718 , those who pleaded benefit of clergy could be sentenced to seven years ' banishment to North America . The American Revolution ( 1775 – 1783 ) disrupted the application of this punishment ( although two of the British soldiers convicted for their roles in the 1770 Boston Massacre made use of benefit of clergy to receive reduced punishments ) . With the abolition of branding in 1779 , benefit of clergy was no longer an option in most cases . Although transportation shifted to Australia , this came to be done using straightforward sentences of transportation for a number of years or life
Boston Massacre
Boston Massacre
Benefit of clergy