Individual liberties can be arbitrarily infringed upon by those who act on behalf of the law if the sovereign deems that it is necessary to protect the public from the actions of an individual. Beccaria makes the following statement, “the sovereign’s right to punish crimes is founded; that is, upon the necessity of defending the public liberty, intrusted to his care, from the usurpation of individuals; and punishments are just in proportion as the liberty, preserved by the sovereign, is scared and valuable” (17). The sovereign has the authority to punish crimes that are seen as tyrannical (acts of power over another) in order to protect the public and their liberties from those who take power from another. The punishments that the sovereign imposes on this individual must be as severe as the liberty that was taken.
Before continuing, it is imperative to understand what Beccaria identifies as a crime. According …show more content…
These are the reasons (what is the rule? What did the person do? Does what the person do count as breaking the law?) that the judge must consider during their cases because any other reasoning can create uncertainty. In order for a judge to effectively apply the laws, the laws must not be obscure. A law can be obscure “if the laws are written in a language unknown to the people; who, being ignorant of the consequences of their own actions, become necessarily dependent on a few, who are interpreters of the laws, which, instead of being public and general, are thus rendered private and particular” (26). Therefore, in order to be guarded against arbitrary power, the laws must be clear not obscure. Having obscure laws will make it difficult to ensure that the most appropriate punishment is applied and that it will deter
Before continuing, it is imperative to understand what Beccaria identifies as a crime. According …show more content…
These are the reasons (what is the rule? What did the person do? Does what the person do count as breaking the law?) that the judge must consider during their cases because any other reasoning can create uncertainty. In order for a judge to effectively apply the laws, the laws must not be obscure. A law can be obscure “if the laws are written in a language unknown to the people; who, being ignorant of the consequences of their own actions, become necessarily dependent on a few, who are interpreters of the laws, which, instead of being public and general, are thus rendered private and particular” (26). Therefore, in order to be guarded against arbitrary power, the laws must be clear not obscure. Having obscure laws will make it difficult to ensure that the most appropriate punishment is applied and that it will deter