NCJ Number
123928
Journal
Italian Journal Volume: 4 Issue: 2 Dated: (1990) Pages: 29-31
Date Published
1990
Length
3 pages
Annotation
Cesare Beccaria was one of the most important influences upon American attitudes toward criminal justice.
Abstract
Beccaria emphasized individual dignity within the criminal justice system. He stood against the use of torture and capital punishment. The ideas presented in his 1765 treatise had great influence upon major political documents of the era, not the least of which was the U.S. Constitution. Beccaria was endorsed by Voltaire and by such rulers as Frederick II of Prussia, Marie Teresa of Austria, the Grand Duke Leopold of Tuscany and Catherine the Great of Russia. Beccaria's ideas are especially remarkable considering the era in which they appeared when conventional wisdom based crime prevention on fear and punishment on the "eye for an eye" principle.