Classical Criminology

Classical criminology in Law Enforcement

Main Entry: Law Enforcement in the Legal Dictionary. This section provides, in the context of Law Enforcement, a partial definition of classical criminology.

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Definition of Classical Criminology

The Canada social science dictionary [1] provides the following meaning of Classical Criminology: Considered to be the first formal school of criminology, classical criminology is associated with 18th and early 19th century reforms to the administration of justice and the prison system. Associated with authors such as Cesare Beccaria (1738-1794), Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832), Samuel Romilly (1757-1818), and others, this school brought the emerging philosophy of liberalism and utilitarianism to the justice system, advocating principles of rights, fairness and due process in place of retribution, arbitrariness and brutality. Critical criminologists see in these reforms a tool by which the new industrial order of capitalism was able to maintain class rule through appearing to apply objective and neutral rules of justice rather than obvious and direct class domination through coercion. Criminal law is stated in terms of moral universals rather than being seen as rules that simply protect the interests of property holders. The claims to fairness in the justice system provide a sense of legitimation for the state and the order it represents. See: POSITIVE SCHOOL in this legal dictionary and in the world encyclopedia of law.