Classical School Criminology Chapter 2 Questions The Classical School emerged in which century Which two writers had the most influence on the Classical School According to the Classical School there was only one justification for punishment What was What are the three components of deterrence this justification Demonology Institutionalized set of beliefs in evil spirits and demons The world is a battleground between forces of good and evil Deviance crime sin evil temptation and possession Methods of punishment torture Supernaturalists Good behavior God s power bad behavior devil s doing Church doctrine the original state of people is innocence and grace Innocence was lost in the Garden of Eden Supernaturalists Illness disasters crime misfortune God s punishments Crimes are committed by those possessed by the devil Naturalists Rebelled against church doctrine Order and disorder in the world is separate from religious influence Science and human reason is important to understand the physical world Classical School 18th Century First systematic effort to explain crime and criminal behavior Challenged the church and the aristocracy Church and CJS exposed for history of torture secret inquisitions Judges criticized for abusive practices barbaric punishments Classical School 18th Century Rejected emphasis on supernatural powers and control over human behavior Enlightenment ideas of democracy rationality and free will Rousseau Hobbes and Voltaire Primary Tenets of the Classical School Social contract an individual is bound to society only by his her consent Free will individuals are free to make their own choices Choices people seek pleasure and avoid pain Punishment should deter crime should be based on seriousness of crime and identical crimes Equity the law should apply equally to every member of society regardless of social status race Primary Tenets of the Classical School should have identical punishments religion gender or ideology Primary Tenets of the Classical School Due Process every individual who is charged with violating a law must be afforded the full protection of the law during investigation prosecution and adjudication Cesare Beccaria 1738 1794 Born in Milan Italy philosopher and mathematician with crime penology interests Second and most important publication On Crimes and Punishments Appealed to enlightened rulers of Europe to use all of their coercive power to crush the petty tyrannies of aristocratic privilege and bureaucratic abuse Cesare Beccaria 1738 1794 greatest number Basic principle of the book utilitarianism which means the greatest happiness shared by the Three general categories of crime crimes that destroy society crimes that injure the individual crimes that disrupt public peace and tranquility Deterrence Theory Two types General and specific deterrence Three primary assumptions 1 Certainty 2 Celerity 3 Severity Jeremy Bentham 1748 English social philosopher refined Beccaria s ideas Punishment should be severe but not excessive Hedonistic calculus the listing of appropriate punishments for crimes based on the harm or injury they caused Beccaria and Bentham Main Ideas Beccaria and Bentham Main Ideas punishment Beccaria and Bentham Main Ideas Not much focus on actual causes of crime Criminal behavior as the rational calculation of costs and benefits More likely to commit crimes if the pleasure benefits and rewards outweighs the pain More of a focus on how a rational fair and democratic CJS should be designed Utilitarian philosophy the greatest good for the greatest number Supported the presumption of innocence judicial neutrality and proportionality in sentencing Beccaria and Bentham Main Ideas Opposed to torture and capital punishment Punishment is a necessary evil and only justifiable if based on humane and rational processes Modern Society and the Classical School Classical school ideology remained strong until the early 1900s Decline due to a more treatment oriented approach fostered by positivists Modern Society and the Classical School Deterrence principles have stood the test of time and many people appear to support deterrence policies today even if they are not empirically supported For example three strikes laws get tough on crime war on drugs quicker executions more police authority Modern Society and the Classical School The US CJS often lacks certainty and celerity and we OVER RELY on severity According to Beccaria and Bentham severity alone cannot produce conformity Have you ever been in a situation where you were out of control and did not consider the Free Will and Rationality consequences of your actions Neoclassical School aggravating circumstances Neoclassical School ignorance and intoxication Court System and adjudication of adult offenders Key Points from the Classical School Flaws with the idea of identical punishments for identical crimes need to allow mitigating and Flaws with free will sometimes circumstances in which freedom of choice is limited Flaws with rationality people don t always act rationally or calculate costs benefits Consider such circumstances as youth necessity duress self defense and to a lesser degree The Neoclassical school remains the model by which the US CJS operates in the prosecution If punishment is certain swift and severe crime will be deterred Deterrence Key Points from the Classical School Empirical studies show weak or moderate support overall for deterrent effect and for capital punishment there is no effect on the homicide rate brutality hypothesis Evaluations of policies and programs based on classical school ideas shows that some work but that most don t