NYS V. Guiseppe Smeraldi In The 1900's

Since the start of the United States how crimes have been punished have always

changed depending on the era, and the circumstances of the country, this fact was no

different during the late 1800’s, and early 1900’s. The length of the sentence for a crime

mainly depended on societal changes that occur at the time, but immigration, education,

and economic status also played a smaller role in the sentence of the suspect. Guiseppe

Smeraldi was an immigrant from Italy, part of the working class, and also lacked education, he

was on trial for larceny even though there was a lack of evidence against him (NYS v.

Guiseppe Smeraldi, pg.3 & 31). During the late 1800’s and the start of the 1900’s the way

in which the criminal justice

This shows that those who participated in the trial, whether as a victim,

suspect, and or witness lacked an education in the English language. Also during the trial the

occupations of both the victim, and suspect, as well as the suspect’s employer are brought up.

(NYS v. Guiseppe Smeraldi, pg.31, 46 & 47). The victim was a coal miner, while the suspect

worked in a bakery; this shows us that both the suspect, and victim belonged to the working class

in America (NYS v. Guiseppe Smeraldi, pg.2 & 31).

The defense main argument came from the lack of any empirical evidence that showed that

Guiseppe Smeraldi took two-hundred dollars from Leonard Dinatalie pocket, while the

prosecutor only brought up past events in Guiseppe Smeraldi life (NYS v. Guiseppe Smeraldi,

pg.30, 36, 47 & 54). Guiseppe Smeraldi was convicted of the larceny charges, and this can be

contributed to the societal changes that had occurred in the United States years before with the

court implementing harsher punishment for anyone who was accused of grand larceny, as well as

the racial tenses against Italian immigrants that was around during the late 1800’s, and early

1900s’s (Bailey, 299 & Gilfoyle,