NCJ Number
95915
Editor(s)
P B McGuigan,
T L Donovan
Date Published
1984
Length
29 pages
Annotation
A transcript is provided of a conference session which focuses on the issues of crime and religion, religion and criminal justice reform, and morality and criminal justice reform.
Abstract
The implementation of Thomas Paine's 'Common Sense' doctrine by Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes in the l920's is discussed, and the application of this libertarian philosophy to the first, fourth, and fifth amendment freedoms is reviewed. These freedoms have been pushed to the point of becoming absolutes at the expense of other values: the result is a soaring crime rate and numerous judiciary impediments regarding the apprehension, the conviction, and the punishment of criminals. Distinctions are drawn between crime and sin, and between humanitarians and humanists. Jewish and Christian teachings about justice, the Bible's teachings on restitution, capital punishment, and crime are discussed. Additionally, the theological ramifications of crime are explored, and crime is viewed as the most logical expression of humanism and autonomy.