New South Wales is that rare political creation, a state founded for and upon the criminal law. The history of its criminal law from settlement to Federation is uniquely fascinating. Drawing on his range of experience as a university scholar, a criminal law QC and a judge, the author explains how Britain's criminal laws were established and developed in its (arguably) most successful colony. There are three themes:
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the horror and savagery of the criminal law transported to Australia and imposed there; \n
the constitutional importance of basic criminal law rules requiring certainty of proof; \n
the corrupt but necessary role of mercy in the administration of the law. \n
\nThere are several genuinely remarkable features of this book. One is that the author draws upon a vast body of material recently brought to light by Bruce Kercher in his massive disinterment of early colonial case law, to explain in detail the actual working of the New South Wales criminal courts.
\n\nAnother is that the core of the book is an analysis of New South Wales parliamentary debates between 1871 and 1883 on criminal law, illuminating the history of the law (and its future). Yet the most remarkable thing of all about this book is its rarity. In the many places where the British Empire imposed its laws, there are hundreds of universities and centres of legal study.
\n\nHistories of the criminal law, or studies which can be so described, are rare or invisible. This admirable study will become a classic in its field, required reading by legal scholars, historians of colony and empire, and by astute legal practitioners making arguments for contemporary submissions or judgments.
\n\nThe second volume (Woods, 2018) continues the still-fascinating story from 1901 (when the colony became a state) through until mid-20th century, when the death penalty was effectively abolished.
By:
G. D. Woods
Imprint: Federal Publications
Country of Publication: Australia
Weight: 1.040kg
ISBN: 9781862874398
ISBN 10: 1862874395
Pages: 480
Publication Date: 01 January 2003
Audience:
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Foreword by Justice Mary Gaudron, High Court of Australia Acknowledgments/ Preface/ Abbreviations/ Notes on Citations of Statutes; Geography; and Conversions Savagery, principle and mercy in the criminal law Imposition and inheritance: The transportation of English criminal law to New South Wales Criminal law in a penal settlement Criminal law and Governor Macquarie: Right and wrong, cheek by jowl Crimes of the pen; and an experiment Struggling from chains: Juries, the lash and natives Making trials work: The other William Blackstone English reforms adopted: Retreat of the death penalty The colony legislates on crime The insanity defence: McNaghten and Knatchbull The end of transportation, 1849 Sir John Jervis: Lower court reforms of 1850 The Gold Rushes: Temporary problems for criminal law Outlaws and urchins A most irregular traffic : Slaving cases in New South Wales courts The Mad Fenian: Criminal process under pressure The first Law Reform Commission and its 1871 Report Edward Butler and the Reform Bill: Untoward circumstances J G L Innes and the Reform Bill: A second failure W B Dalley and the Reform Bill: Yet another failure The larrikin residuum, 1881 The 1882 debate: Serving their term The Great Bill passes: 1883 The light that failed: Mandatory sentencing repealed Enter, the accused The accused as witness: The comment issue Doctor Malthus and the baby farmers George Dean and friends Tidying up in 1900 Epilogue Bibliography/ Index of Cases/ Index of Statutes/ Index of Subjects/ Index of Names
Reviews for A History of Criminal Law in New South Wales
Woods uses notable cases and characters to illustrate the influences that shaped the laws and the system that imposed them. ... The brutality of the convict era with mass executions in front of the Old Sydney Gaol in George St is a chilling reminder of the not-so-distant past. So too is the discussion of 'baby farming', the horrendous practice of concealed infanticide where desperate parents allowed ... 'child carers' to dispose of unwanted children. ... The book does much to explain the challenges faced by lawmakers and law enforcers. Woods' extensive use of footnotes and extracts from newspapers of the day provides an accessible text to those afraid of 'legalese'. - Newcastle Herald, 19 April 2003
