‘Amr b. Shu'aib, on his father’s authority, said his grandfather told that God’s Messenger was fixing the blood wit for accidental death at the rate of four hundred dinars or their equivalent in silver for townsmen, and he was fixing it according to the price of camels, so when they were dear he increased the amount to be paid and when cheap prices prevailed he reduced the amount to be paid. In the time of God’s Messenger they reached between four hundred and eight hundred dinars, their equivalent in silver being eight thousand dirhams. He said that God's Messenger gave judgment that those who possessed cattle should pay two hundred cows, and those who possessed sheep two thousand sheep. He said that blood wit was to be treated as something to be inherited by the heirs of the one who was killed, and he gave judgment that the blood wit for a woman should be divided among her relatives on her father’s side, but the killer should not inherit anything.
He said, on his father’s authority, that his grandfather reported the Prophet as saying, “Blood wit for what resembles intentional murder is to be made as severe as that for intentional murder, but the Culprit is not to be killed.”
‘Amr b. Shu'aib, on his father's authority, said his grandfather told that the value of the blood wit in the time of God’s Messenger was eight hundred dinars or eight thousand dirhams, and that the blood wit for the people of the Book at that time was half that for Muslims. He said that applied till ‘Umar became Caliph, and he made a speech in which he said camels had become dear; so ‘Umar fixed the value for those who possessed gold at a thousand dinars, for those who possessed silver at twelve thousand,* for those who possessed cattle at two hundred cows, for those who possessed sheep at two thousand sheep, and for those who possessed suits of clothing at two hundred suits. But he said he left the blood wit for dhimmis as it was, not raising it in proportion to the increase he made in the blood wit.
