Melsonby is a village and civil parish

Civil parish

In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...

 in the Richmondshire

Richmondshire

Richmondshire is a local government district of North Yorkshire, England. It covers a large northern area of the Yorkshire Dales including Swaledale and Arkengarthdale, Wensleydale and Coverdale, with the prominent Scots' Dyke and Scotch Corner along the centre. Teesdale lies to the north...

 district of North Yorkshire

North Yorkshire

North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. It lies a few miles west of the A1(M) motorway.

Murder of Diana Garbutt

In March 2010, village postmistress Diana Garbutt was found dead in the living quarters above the shop, after suffering severe head injuries. Her husband Robin Garbutt was charged with her murder. He was committed for trial and pleaded not guilty.
On 27 September Robin Garbutt was released on bail due to a significant breakthrough in the case against him.

On 19 April 2011, following trial at Teesside Crown Court, he was convicted of the murder of Diane Garbutt and was sentenced to life imprisonment.