Assess the significance of individual cases in changing attitudes towards crime and punishment in the years 1830-1965
Since the 19th century, law enforcement and punishment has developed rapidly into the justice system we rely on today. Obscure laws that had become irrelevant in an industrial and post-industrial era were fast being replaced, and despite its lack of existence at the beginning of the 1800’s, policing standards are, today, high. The necessity for this drastic change in approach to crime has stemmed from the needs of industrial Britain, and the increased awareness of the public, and government, and their perception of crime and punishment. Rather than individual cases having a direct impact on these changes, in general they provide an insight as to the reactions of the public at the time, and along with the myriad of other cases, allow us to develop an understanding of how attitudes towards crime and punishment changed.
The case of James Hardy Vaux serves as a prime example of the inefficiency and weakness in the British justice system, especially in terms of punishment. It is significant in highlighting how ineffective trials were at convicting criminals. Over his criminal career, he was trialled 4 times, and eventually transported for life. His 3rd trial is perhaps the most significant in providing an outlook on the inefficiency of the trialling system. Vaux had stolen a silver snuff box out of the pocket of a gentleman in a theatre. After leaving it with the landlady of a public house to have it refilled, he was caught picking it up again, along with the scissors he used to slit the gentleman’s pocket in his possession. Despite the large amount of evidence against him, he was found not guilty by the jury, thanks to the tactics he employed to avoid a sentence. He dressed very expensively, and acted gentlemanly, and paid for the best lawyer he could find. He swayed the jury with his demeanour. Such was common at this time, for a criminal to sway the public, bribe witnesses and even threaten the prosecutor. After 1000 trials at the Old Bailey in 1793, 562 were
The case of James Hardy Vaux serves as a prime example of the inefficiency and weakness in the British justice system, especially in terms of punishment. It is significant in highlighting how ineffective trials were at convicting criminals. Over his criminal career, he was trialled 4 times, and eventually transported for life. His 3rd trial is perhaps the most significant in providing an outlook on the inefficiency of the trialling system. Vaux had stolen a silver snuff box out of the pocket of a gentleman in a theatre. After leaving it with the landlady of a public house to have it refilled, he was caught picking it up again, along with the scissors he used to slit the gentleman’s pocket in his possession. Despite the large amount of evidence against him, he was found not guilty by the jury, thanks to the tactics he employed to avoid a sentence. He dressed very expensively, and acted gentlemanly, and paid for the best lawyer he could find. He swayed the jury with his demeanour. Such was common at this time, for a criminal to sway the public, bribe witnesses and even threaten the prosecutor. After 1000 trials at the Old Bailey in 1793, 562 were