Cicero's Law

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Courts ◽  
Criminal Trials ◽  
Apparent Contradiction ◽  
Legal Realism ◽  
Rhetorical Strategy ◽  
The Way

Why did Roman prosecutors typically accuse the defendant of multiple crimina, when in most standing criminal courts the punishment imposed on a guilty defendant was the same (typically “capital,” that is, a kind of exile), no matter how many charges were proven? The answer lies not in a failure to distinguish between legal charges leveled at the defendant and defamation of his character, but rather in a rhetorical strategy that made sense in light of what was legally necessary to obtain a conviction. The greater the number of charges, the more likely the jurors would be persuaded that the defendant had in some way violated the statute according to which the trial was being conducted. It is true that prosecutors typically argued that the defendant’s prior conduct made it plausible that he had committed the crimes with which he was charged, but in a way that, as much as possible, made his guilt on these particular charges seem likely, and defense patroni attempted to undermine the charges and the character defamation. This answer to the apparent contradiction between multiple charges and unitary punishment favors a moderate formalism over legal realism as the way to interpret Roman criminal trials.

scholarly journals Οι νευροεπιστήμες στις ψυχιατρικές πραγματογνωμοσύνες: ευρήματα από ομάδες εστίασης

Bioethica ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 46
Author(s):  
Γεωργία Μάρθα Γκότση (Georgia Martha Gotsi)
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Law ◽  
Forensic Psychiatry ◽  
Interaction Process ◽  
Scientific Field ◽  
Criminal Courts ◽  
Criminal Proceedings ◽  
Criminal Trials ◽  
Major Interest ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Way

Neuroscience is a rapidly growing scientific field, whose recent findings gain major interest in the field of criminal law and forensic psychiatry. Neuroscientific evidence is increasingly being used in criminal trials as part of psychiatric testimony, particularly in the US, but also in Europe.This article presents the findings of an empirical study with focus groups involving judges, lawyers, psychiatrists and neurologists, aiming to examine through a focus group interaction process, the use of neuroscientific data in psychiatric testimony from the perspective of all the actors involved in the criminal proceedings. In particular, the study aims to examine the way that neuroscientific evidence would likely be used by lawyers, the way that this evidence is perceived and interpreted by judges, as well as the opinion of psychiatrists - experts and neuroscientists concerning the usefulness, effectiveness and limitations of neurosciences’ use in criminal courts, especially in relation with the assessment of guilt and the assessment of the recidivism risk posed by an offender.

scholarly journals Die resepsie van retoriese momente van die Filemonbrief deur Patristiese eksegete

2016 ◽  
Vol 72 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Francois Tolmie
Keyword(s):  
Rhetorical Analysis ◽  
Rhetorical Strategy ◽  
Theodore Of Mopsuestia ◽  
John Chrysostom ◽  
Theodoret Of Cyrus ◽  
The Way

The reception of rhetorical elements in the Letter to Philemon by Patristic exegetes. The aim of this study is to offer an overview of the way in which Patristic exegetes interpreted the rhetorical aspects of Paul’s Letter to Philemon. Although a rhetorical analysis of the letter was not the matter which interested them as such, one can still obtain a fairly good idea of the way in which they perceived such aspects by reading their explanations of this letter. Accordingly, the contributions of all the Patristic exegetes in this regard are studied systematically in this study. The interpretations of the letters by Ambrosiaster, Jerome, John Chrysostom, Pelagius, Theodore of Mopsuestia and Theodoret of Cyrus are investigated from this angle. In each case, the most important comments on Paul’s rhetorical strategy are identified and discussed.Keywords: Pauline Letters; Letter to Philemon; Rhetorical Analaysis; Patristic Exegetes

Strange Cases: Jekyll & Hyde Narratives as Rhetorical Strategy in Sir Alexander Morison’s Physiognomy of Mental Diseases

2020 ◽  
Vol 75 (2) ◽  
pp. 151-170
Author(s):  
Madeline Bourque Kearin
Keyword(s):  
19Th Century ◽  
Fluid Dynamic ◽  
Physical Symptoms ◽  
The Self ◽  
Rhetorical Strategy ◽  
The Core ◽  
Mental Diseases ◽  
Radical Transformation ◽  
The Way

Abstract Sir Alexander Morison’s Physiognomy of Mental Diseases (1838) was created as a didactic tool for physicians, depicting lunatics in both the active and dormant states of disease. Through the act of juxtaposition, Morison constituted his subjects as their own Jekylls and Hydes, capable of radical transformation. In doing so, he marshaled artistic and clinical, visual and textual approaches in order to pose a particular argument about madness as a temporally manifested, visually distinguishable state defined by its contrast with reason. This argument served a crucial function in legitimizing the emergent discipline of psychiatry by applying biomedical methodologies to the observation and classification of distinctly physical symptoms. Robert Louis Stevenson’s “quintessentially Victorian parable” serves as a metaphor for the way 19th-century alienists conceptualized insanity, while the theme of duality at the core of Stevenson’s story serves as a framework for conceptualizing both psychiatry and the subjects it generates. It was (and is) a discipline formulated around narrative as the primary organizing structure for its particular set of paradoxes, and specifically, narratives of the self as a fluid, dynamic, and contradictory entity.

Punitive Processes? Judging in Thai Lower Criminal Courts

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-25
Author(s):  
Duncan McCARGO
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Criminal Courts ◽  
Criminal Cases ◽  
Criminal Trials ◽  
Interview Research ◽  
Societal Expectations ◽  
Shed Light

Abstract This article examines how Thai courts of the first instance deal with run-of-the-mill criminal cases. How do judges deal with criminal trials of a rather routine nature, often involving defendants from ethnic minorities and reflecting the particular conditions in the provinces concerned? Drawing on participant observation and interview research conducted mainly in two provinces in different regions of the country, the article examines the challenges faced by judges and court officials in dealing with heavy caseloads in a highly bureaucratized system where acquittal rates are extremely low. How far do such cases shed light on how judging is carried out in the majority of Thai courts? What kind of challenges do Thai judges face in adjudicating minor but often messy cases in order to fulfil societal expectations in line with their own understandings of justice?

Popular Dramas Between Transgression and Order

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Siemens
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Mass Media ◽  
The United States ◽  
Global Perspective ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Research Needs ◽  
Criminal Courts ◽  
Criminal Trials ◽  
Crime News

This article examines the importance and the effects of crime news and courtroom journalism for modern societies, taking a global perspective. Mass media starting in the middle of the nineteenth century identified criminal courts as important places that allowed for popular and often-sensational stories of transgression and order. In the United States, in Europe, and in Asia, popular dramas based on criminal trials that appeared in the newspaper stimulated important societal debates, questioning the very notion of modern law and its application. However, it is argued that future research needs to pay more attention to the narratives and effects of courtroom reporting on democracy, both past and present.

scholarly journals A Rhetorical analysis of Philippians 1:27-2:18

2005 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 783-809
Author(s):  
A H Snyman
Keyword(s):  
Rhetorical Analysis ◽  
Rhetorical Strategies ◽  
Rhetorical Situation ◽  
Rhetorical Strategy ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Spiritual Problems ◽  
The Way

A new trend in rhetorical analysis is to reconstruct Paul’ s rhetorical strategy from the text itself, rather than applying ancient or modern rhetorical models to his letters. A proposal for such a text-centred approach, in which the focus shifts from the formal to the functional,is briefly summarised in this article, followed by a discussion of the rhetorical situation that Paul wants to address in this letter. Spiritual problems, especially internal unrest and opposition from outside, called forth the letter. In order to address these problems, Paul tries to persuade his audience to persevere in living and proclaiming the gospel.  This dominant rhetorical strategy of 1:27 – 2:18 can be divided into four phases: 1:27-30  (exhorting the Philippians to persevere in proclaiming the gospel); 2:1-11 exhorting them to persevere in living the gospel); 2:12-13 (exhorting them to persevere in living the gospel), and 2:14-18 (exhorting them to persevere in proclaiming the gospel). In order to persuade his audience, Paul uses various rhetorical strategies and techniques. In analyzing these, the focus is on exegetical issues with rhetorical impact, on the types of arguments used, on the way Paul argues and on the rhetorical techniques used to enhance the impact of his communication. I hope to prove that Paul’ s persuasive strategy in Philippians could be constructed fairly accurately from the text itself, provided that it is read carefully and systematically.

scholarly journals s.VII Anxieties, Ch.29 Inequality of Arms Reversed?: Defendants in the Battle for Political Legitimacy

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Glasius Marlies ◽  
Meijers Tim
Keyword(s):  
International Criminal ◽  
Political Legitimacy ◽  
The Political ◽  
Criminal Courts ◽  
Criminal Trials ◽  
Reverse Inequality ◽  
Political Dimension ◽  
High Profile ◽  
Set Up ◽  
International Criminal Trials

This chapter discusses a communicative advantage for ‘defiant defendants’, otherwise known as the ‘inequality of arms reversed’. A common critique of international criminal justice is that international criminal trials, when faced with high-profile and charismatic defendants, are basically doomed: either they silence the defendant’s political rhetoric and become show trials, or they let the defendant speak of the bias and inconsistencies in their institutional set-up, thus equally imperilling their legitimacy. This chapter argues that international criminal courts are not doomed by the reverse inequality: the communicative outcomes of international criminal trials remain contingent. For instance, prosecutors can make arguments that are politically and culturally attuned to local audiences. Moreover, the procedure of the trial can influence the defendant’s attitude. This chapter contends that it is possible for prosecutors and judges to acknowledge the political dimension of international criminal processes without turning them into show trials. Indeed, it is desirable for judges and prosecutors to confront the politics of the defendant head on.

Communicating Scientific Findings in the Courtroom

Criminology ◽  
2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joëlle Vuille ◽  
Nicole M. Egli Anthonioz
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Good Practice ◽  
National Research Council ◽  
Mutual Understanding ◽  
Criminal Trials ◽  
Scientific Experts ◽  
The Social ◽  
Forensic Scientists ◽  
Scientific Results ◽  
The Way

The number of civil and criminal trials in which there is presented at least one piece of scientific evidence—by which we mean the analysis and interpretation of physical evidence derived from the so-called hard sciences (thus excluding the fields of psychology, psychiatry, and the social and behavioral sciences)—is constantly increasing. Yet the fact finders, be they judges or juries or the attorneys arguing the cases, have limited scientific education. In this context, the way scientific experts express the results of analyses and interpretations carried out, as well as the way the members of the court understand the content of their message, is of utmost importance. Misunderstandings do happen and have dramatic consequences, as an abundant literature on wrongful convictions now well illustrates. It is thus urgent that forensic scientists learn to write more transparent statements. This requirement is also set out in a landmark report published in 2009 by the National Research Council. Following this trend, the forensic community has started developing guidelines concerning statement writing, and a structured approach to communication of expert opinion in court is now emerging. However, empirical results as to what constitutes good practice in the expression of results, and particularly the uncertainty attached to scientific results, are not abundant. Indeed, while guidelines exist, the improvement in mutual understanding is not evident. This quest for mutual understanding, in particular in the expression of evidential value, is the subject of this article. Joëlle Vuille wishes to thank the Swiss National Science Foundation for their financial support (grant PP00P1_176720).

Categorizing Identity: Literary, Performative, and Legal Languages in Oscar Wilde’s Libel Trial vs the Marquess of Queensberry

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fred Hook
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Trials ◽  
Child Prostitution ◽  
Picture Of Dorian Gray ◽  
The Law ◽  
Dorian Gray ◽  
Concrete Image ◽  
The Way

Wilde has been generally accepted as one of the first figures of the queer man that is now known, however, how he came to represent this identity has not been much discussed. While his criminal trials, which led to his eventual conviction of ‘gross indecency,’ undoubtedly played a strong part on his emerging portrayal as a gay man, his first trial involving a libel suit against the Marquess of Queensberry is little discussed in relation to the start of his downfall and portrayal as a gay man. Thus, this project looks at Oscar Wilde’s libel trial and its effects on the identity of the homosexual man. By looking at the language used in the libel trial and its use of The Picture of Dorian Gray as evidence, the project concludes that by using the interpretations of Wilde’s novel during the trial, the law created a concrete image of what ‘gross indecency between men’ was, and of the type of person who participated in it, using Wilde as a representative for this identity. The way that his identity was forged allows us to see that while homosexuality as a way of being began to take shape thanks to Wilde’s trial, it was still imbued with negative connotations and seen as pederastic, tying it to anxieties around child prostitution and trafficking of the 1800s. The development of this new identity and its portrayal betters the understanding of the vilification of Wilde during his downfall and his novel’s role in this.

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