Crime and punishment topic 6 Flashcards
Why does society punish those who commit crime
To discipline/deter/reform/keep order/protect or for retribution
What factors have influenced attitudes to punishment
Attitude of government, social change, wealth and poverty, role of the media, fear of crime and actions of individuals
What was the attitude to punishment in the medieval times (16th and 17th centuries)
Main focus was deterrance, there was no ideas of reform and capital and corporal punishment were dominant
What was the attitude to punishment in the industrial Era (18th and 19th century)
As there was more migration to the city, methods had to change eg transportation and corporal punishment ended
What are the attitudes to punishment in the 20th and 21st century
Society is more tolerant and punishment is seen as both rehabilitation and retribution. There are other punishments than prison now such as community service and probation and parole
What is corporal punishment
Punishment of the body, eg whipping or flogging (often done in public)
When was corporal punishment ended
1948
When were the stocks abolished
1872
Give examples of crimes that you could be executed for under the Bloody Code
Stealing horses or sheep
Sending threatening letters
Rioting against high food prices
Why was the Bloody Code developed
Fear over the sharp rise in crime, increase in new crimes eg vagrants, influence of rich landowners wanting to protect their properties
When were public executions ended
1868
What replaced public executions as a punishment
Transportation overseas
Which two men fought to abolish the Bloody Code in Parliament
The MP Sir Samuel Romilly and the Home Secretary Sir Robert Peel
What were the five capital crimes(crimes worthy of the death penalty) by 1861
Murder, treason, espionage, arson in royal dockyards and piracy with violence
Why did the criminal code end
Juries weren’t willing to unfairly convict low level criminals, alternative punishments like transportation were now available and public executions upped levels of pickpockets and riots
Why did prison reform happen
Campaigns of humanitarians that highlighted the bad conditions, ending of transportation, changes in public and government attitudes
What was the great debate that the Victorian period witnessed
How to treat prisoners - punish or reform?
Silent or separate system?
What were the main points of the report by the Gladstone Committee on prison conditions
Isolation had negative effects on mental health
Prisoners 16-20 shouldn’t have the same harsh treatment as older prisoners
Younger prisoners should be given education and training while in prison
When was hard labour on the crank and tread abolished
1902
When was the flogging of prisoners abolished
1948
What replaced borstals in the modern era
Youth Detention Centres
What are some new ways of youth punishment in the modern era
Antisocial behaviour orders, tagging and curfew orders as well as fining the parents
What were the five types of murder capital punishment was restricted to in 1957
Murder
of a police officer
By shooting or explosion
While resisting arrest
while stealing
Of more than one person
Give arguements for the death sentence
Good deterrent, dead murderers can’t kill again, less expensive than prison, satisfies the victims family
Give arguements against the death sentence
An innocent person could be hanged, it’s barbaric, some people murder because they are mentally ill, it can make martyrs of criminals eg terrorists
What was the case of Timothy Evans
He was convicted of killing his wife and daughter and hanged. It was later found out that his downstairs neighbour was a serial killer who confessed to murdering Evans’ wife. Evans was given a posthumous pardon
What was the case of Derek Bentley
Hé shouted ‘let him have it ‘ to his 16 year old friend Christopher Craig who killed a policeman. Craig couldn’t be executed as he was underage so Bentley was even though he had learning difficulties and the mental age of 11. Bentley was given a full pardon in 1998
What was the case of Ruth Ellis
She was the last woman to be hanged in the UK because she murdered her lover who assaulted her. The appeals that this was a crime of passion were not accepted and she was hanged
When did capital punishment completely end in the UK
1999
What is restitution
Giving something back to society or the victim of the crime
