Attitudes Flashcards
(24 cards)
What were the general attitudes to punishment in the Early Modern Era?
Without a strong system of law enforcement, punishments were harsh to
deter people from committing crimes. Plus the idea of retribution, making criminals pay for what they had done. The main
forms of punishment were capital and corporal, resulting in pain or death.
What were the general attitudes in the Victorian to Industrial era?
To begin with, punishments were as harsh as they had been in previous
centuries. With industrialisation and urbanisation, fuelled by population growth, the Bloody Code was less effective.
Transportation was tried as an alternative to the death penalty, but by the 19th century the Bloody Code was replaced by with
a system of imprisoning criminals. There were experiments with how harshly prisoners should be treated, but the death
penalty was still used in private.
What were the general attitudes in the 20 and 21st century?
This period saw the end of capital punishment by the 1960s and
saw a move away from the harsh treatment of prisoners. There was an increasing emphasis on reforming offenders, but
punishments still include an element of retribution. Prison is now only one of many possible punishments, there are also
community sentences that can be issued as well
When did public executions end, corporal punishment end and finally capital punishment end?
1868, 1948, 1969
What is meant by Pious Perjury?
Juries would find people not guilty or reduce the value of the amount stolen to avoid the criminal receiving a capital offence
3 Main reasons why the bloody code was introduced?
- Harsh Deterrence, scare people into obeying the law
- Protect property, trades, commerce, rich landowners wanted to protect their property from a time of growing population and poverty
- Many people believed “an eye for an eye”
- Claimed crime was rising, so harsher laws were necessary
- Social Control from the rich
3 reasons why the bloody code was abolished
- Too harsh, (pious perjury)
- Reform Movements, like Sir John Howard
- Changes in Punishment, prisons were more developed, seen as better alternatives, as crime rate didn’t actually reduce
You could be executed for stealing something worth more than?
1 shilling
Although the death penalty was gone by 1969, what crime was still punishable by death until 1999?
Treason and Piracy
What was the 1957 Homicide Act?
- Only crime punishable by death were murders of police/prison officers, murders caused by shooting or bombing, or murders committed whilst being arrested
What was the case of Timothy Evans?
- Timothy accused of murdering his wife and baby daughter
- Innocent , real killer was John Christie, his neighbour
- Evans was executed
- Major miscarriage of justice, public outcry built opposition to the death penalty
What was the case of Derek Bentley?
- Bentley, 19, learning difficulties and 16 year old Christopher Craig committed a burglary
- Craig shot a police officer
- Bentley allegedly said “Let him have it , Chris”
- Craig was too young to be executed, Bentley was hanged despite not firing the gun
- Sparked protest
What was the case of Ruth Ellis?
- Ruth shot her abusive lover David in public
- She was repeatedly abused and humiliated by him
- Confessed and was executed, last woman to be hung in Great Britain
- Huge public sympathy
- All 3 cases built momentum to help abolish the death penalty
Explain the Separate System, 1830 onwards
ThePrison Act of 1839preferred the new prisons to adopt the separate system.
In separate system prisons, prisoners were isolated from each other, kept alone in cells for weeks
and worked on machines such as the crank.
Prison chaplains would try to encourage them to live a more Christian crime-free life.
The belief was that with a lot of time alone, a prisoner would reflect on his crime and be reformed.
If prisoners left their cells, they were made to wear a mask and were kept silent.
At exercise time, each prisoner held on to rope 4.5 metres apart from the next prisoner so they
were too far apart to talk.
Explain the Silent System , 1840 onwards
- Prisoner’s worked in groups, but in complete silence, talking was punishable
- Purpose was for punishment and deterrence
- “Hard bed, hard food, hard labour”
- Punishments were whipping or solitary confinement
What were some menial labour tasks and in which prison system where they conudted?
- Oakum picking
- Treadwheel
- Crank machine, harsh officers would tighten the screw’s as punishment
- Labour was central in both, more harsh in the silent system
What were the key findings of the Gladstone Committee, 1895?
- Systems were overly harsh, mentally damaging to prisoner’s
- Prisons should shift to rehabilitation, not punishment
- Prison staff need better training
- Juvenile prisoners, 16-20 should not be objected to harsh treatment for older prisoners
What was the timeline of attitudes to prisons
1902 - Hard labour like crank abolished
1907 - Probation introduced
1921 - Close cropping of hair and humiliating broad arrow uniforms abolished
1932 - Prison rules softened, more letters
1936 - Last use of treadwheel
1948 - Flogging abolished
50’s - 60’s - Focus shifts to rehabliliation
Why were young offenders considered particularly suitable for reform?
- Still developing, less hardened, moral responsibility to rehabilitate them
What were Juvenile Courts & Approved Schools?
Juvenile Courts - Separate courts for young people, more understanding and leniency, less formal
Approved Schools - Replaced reformatory schools, focused on education, discipline, strict, designed for children criminals and rough home lives
Why were Borstals abandoned and Youth Detention Centres introduced?
Borstals were aimed to reform young males
Borstals became ineffective, many reoffended
YDC - Shorter, tougher approach, more on punishment and discipline, also criticised
What is restitution?
- Giving something back to society or the victim of the crime, e.g. community service, repairing criminal damage
What is rehabilitation?
Educating an offender to help them get on the
correct path e.g. teaching of new skills, rehab
for drug misuse
Why were the Separate and Silent Systems abolished?
By the end of the 19th century, neither the separate or silent systems were working. The suicide
rate was high and there was little evidence that criminals were actually reformed. The cost of separate
cells was high and prisons continued to be unable to accommodate the high number of convicted
criminals.
