Criminology Studies In Society Research Assignment (Essay Sample)

CRIMINOLOGY STUDIES IN SOCIETY
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CRIMINOLOGY STUDIES IN SOCIETY
Introduction
The creation and evolution of law throughout the history of mankind have been influential in regulating and promoting social behavior. Criminal law is one set of law that includes substantive criminal law and procedural criminal law. Substantive criminal law determines behaviors that the society considers harmful, brands the actions as crimes and stipulates their punishments. On the other hand procedural laws stipulate how crimes are to be investigated and prosecuted.
For the most part the creation of criminal law today involves the revision or expansion of existing laws that reflect the changes in society.
Early Codification of Law
The Hammurabi Code is one of the primary legal codes in western society- it dates back to the eighteenth century. The laws established in this code were credited to divine guidance and did not differentiate between religious and secular interests in regulating behavior. The code stressed that the law should be fair in substance and process.
Roman Law
The law of the Twelve Tables that began around 450 B.C was secular ("History of Crimes from Common Law to Codes", 2017). It codified the rights, duties and expectations of the citizens. The Romans distinguished between positive law and natural law. The legal codes that governed citizens and foreigners as formalized by the State founded on reason formed the positive laws. Natural law was viewed as having been created by a deity and was a reflection of the principles and rules that bind behavior. Both positive and natural law existed together in the Roman society and neither was deemed superior.
Common Law
The early legal codes established the groundwork for the formalizing principles and customs into law. However it was the English common law that herald the development of criminal law. When Henry II tried to impose Norman values on the conquered Anglo-Saxons, he introduced a centralized system of courts by appointing judges. The judges met diverse customs that mostly conflicted with each other and with the new laws introduced by the King. This necessitated the rise of common law that permitted the judges to determine which actions constituted crimes and what punishment could be meted when they were violated. This established the tradition of common law that was used by the entire nation.
Stare decisis which means to stand by the decisions was one of the most important notions functioning in common law. The doctrine of precedent as it was known allows courts to apply and interpret laws according to previous decisions. When encountered by a case that was similar to a previous one, the judges were required to interpret the law in the same manner as the precedent.
Since common law had little centralized planning, it existed as a compilation of recordings of previous cases over the years. The signing of the Magna Carta in 1215 led to the first set of statutory laws. During the sixteenth century the English parliament began enacting legislation which shifted the country’s legal system from common law to codified statutory law.
Sources of American Criminal Law
Criminal law in the United States emerged from the English common law during the colonial era. Although most of the common law was integrated into America’s legal codes, the citizens viewed it as inadequate for their new nation. They were afraid of the fact that if judges were to be the sole source of determining which wrong actions were criminal, then they would be subject to judicial arbitrariness. The early citizens chose a codified system of law that provided uniformity, predictability and standardization. This led to the States and the federal government to formalize law by establishing statutes and drawing upon other sources which included administrative rules, case law and the States’ and...