The History of Law and the Justice System

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Laws and the justice system have had an important role all throughout history. The development of laws has an effect on each civilization, its people, and even religion. Different sets and types of laws can be linked to different government systems. For example, the laws of a democratic society are very different from those of a communist society. The ways that each civilization over time controlled the people and carried out punishments are all very different, yet in a way the same. Many civilizations build off of each other, and extend off of the past laws. During the course of my project, I really enjoyed seeing how we got to where we are today. It all started somewhere, and it was interesting to find the places where things began.
I traced all the way back to 1 BC and before. I started my research in Mesopotamia, 1780 BC, where I went in depth on Hammurabi’s code. King Hammurabi’s code of laws is one of the earliest that we have records of today. The laws clearly distinguish the social system, where free and wealthy men were at the top, serfs in the middle, with the poor and slaves on the bottom. At this point, crimes could be compensated for with money. So this obviously meant that the rich had options others did not. This code of laws had an “eye for an eye” outlook on punishment. The punishment for crime was equal to the crime committed. If something was stolen, it was returned, replaced, or paid for. The punishments for some things were rather harsh; as in law number 192. This law states that if any child disrespects their adoptive parents by saying, “you are not my real father/mother,” that their tongue would be cut off. These laws were effective in scaring the people, causing the crime rate to go down. Hammurabi’s Code...

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...om the United States of America, Great Britain, France, and the Soviet Union. 24 Nazis were tried, twelve of which received the death penalty. However, Hermann Goring committed suicide only hours before his execution. The crimes of the Nazis included torture, deportation, persecution, and mass extermination. This trial expressed that in wartimes, basic standards still apply in spite of military law principles.
During my project, I learned a lot about where the laws of today come from. Tracing all the way back through history is effective because when you start from the beginning and make your way up to the present day, you can link things together in a way that it makes sense. I learned a multitude of new things, and extended my knowledge on the things I thought I already knew all about. History can be a lot of fun when you discover the things that interest you.

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