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Harsh Justice

James Q. Whitman · 2003

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About the book

Publisher's description: Criminal punishment in America is harsh and degrading-more so than anywhere else in the liberal west. Executions and long prison terms are commonplace in America. Countries like France and Germany, by contrast, are systematically mild. European offenders are rarely sent to prison, and when they are, they serve far shorter terms than their American counterparts. Why is America so comparatively harsh? In this novel work of comparative legal history, James Whitman argues that the answer lies in America's triumphant embrace of a non-hierarchical social system and distrust of state power which have contributed to a law of punishment that is more willing to degrade offenders.

Book details

Year
2003
Language
English
Publisher
Oxford University Press, USA
Editions
3
Pages
336
ISBN
9780195155259

Data source: Wikidata

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