Hanging in the Balance traces the history of capital punishment in the United Kingdom from ancient times to the modern day-through periods of reform until hanging for murder was finally abolished by Parliament in 1969. It describes in detail the Parliamentary and public debates, and notes the stance taken by organizations and individuals (including the tenacious and persistent Sydney Silverman MP). The book collates data and references not previously brought together in one place - and in exploring the underlying issues and the recurring arguments about deterrence, retribution and expediency...

A biography of Thomas Erskine, one of the greatest advocates ever to appear in an English court of law.

In eighteenth century continental Europe penal law was barbaric. Gallows were a regular feature of the landscape, branding and mutilation common and there existed the ghastly spectacle of men being broken on the wheel. To make matters worse, people were often tortured or put to death (sometimes both) for minor crimes and often without any trial at all. Like a bombshell a book entitled On Crimes and Punishments exploded onto the scene in 1764 with shattering effect. Its author was a young nobleman named Cesare Beccaria (1738-1794). A central message of that-now classic-work was that such...

An account of the lawyers who helped - over centuries - to develop and protect civil liberties, human rights and the Rule of Law. Also discusses breaches of the Rule of Law in modern cases and in response to terrorism.

Shows the historical importance of challenges to the state and powerful groups. Demonstrates how rights we take for granted have been acquired and set into law over time thanks to the actions of committed men and women.A key historical text. A certain level of dissent, protest and open debate is a central part of UK history and democratic processes. Taking key events from both the past and modern times John Hostettler demonstrates how when legitimate avenues of challenge to the actions of the state or other powerful groups become closed to people then they are bound to assert their grievances...

Takes the lid off the prime-time TV series. A must for lawyers and other viewers. For any of the five million people who saw the prime-time BBC series -Garrow's Law- this is an absorbing book. It is written by expert commentator John Hostettler who has studied Garrow extensively. The book uses the true facts on which the programme was based to compare drama and reality. In Part I he looks at the world in which the real life Garrow worked, marking out the main aspects of crime and punishment, which at the time operated primarily to deal with a troublesome but deprived and under-privileged...

The case of Iain Hay Gordon involves a miscarriage of justice set against the backdrop of social, religious and class divides in Northern Ireland shortly after World War II. It lifts the lid on a closed world of privilege, hidden influences and opaque institutions whilst pointing out that the passage of time has not served to formally unmask the identity of the true perpetrator. The events involved a trial for murder of the daughter of a High Court judge in which an innocent man was convicted but a way had to be found to make sure he did not end up on the gallows. Hence the twists and turns...

A classic work which surveys the length and breadth of English legal development and shows how punishment and politics have always been intertwined.