Formulation of Criminal Laws (From Canadian Criminal Justice System, P 42-53, 1982, Craig L Boydell and Ingrid Arnet Connidis, eds. -- See NCJ-108176)

• NCJ Number: 108179
• Author(s): S L Hills
• Date Published: 1982
• Length: 12 pages
• Sale Source: Holt, Rinehart and Winston of Canada, Ltd
• Language: English
• Country: Canada

Annotation

This article summarizes and critiques two major theories on the origin, maintenance, and function of criminal law: the value-consensus theory and interest group theory.

Abstract

Both perspectives are competing theories, but individually inadequate to explain the development of criminal law. All modern legal codes contain aspects of both. From the value-consensus perspective, criminal law reflects societal values which transcend immediate individual or group interests, and legal norms change in response to society's well-being. The interest group perspective emphasizes the ability of particular groups to shape criminal law to serve their needs and interests. Society's organizing principles, according to the interest group perspective, are power, coercion, and constraint. The law may support one group's interests at the expense of others. Recent studies indicate that interest groups play a major role in shaping the content and application of many modern statutes. Selective enforcement of drug, organized crime, and white-collar crime laws are best understood from the interest group perspective. Moral entrepreneurs are people who through political power and access to decisionmakers translate a particular interest group's needs into public policy. Victory or defeat of laws concerned with prostitution and gambling is often symbolic of the status and power of the subcultures involved. Severe sanctions of criminal laws should be restricted to protecting citizens from personal and property injury, preserving public order, and preventing the exploitation and corruption of the young. 23 footnotes.