Crime And Punishment In America Summary

In the novel that I, Taylor Barnes read, Crime and Punishment in America, the two authors David B. Wolcott and Tom Head express evidence that show how American history of crime, and the justice system changed year by year to shape what it is now. David B. Wolcott is known for his book, Cops and Kids: Policing Juvenile Delinquency in Urban America that talks about juvenile justice and the role of police in the whole process (Ohio State Press, 2005). David Wolcott is visiting assistant professor in the department of history at Miami University, Oxford, Ohio (Ohio State Press, 2005). Tom Head is a long time activist on civil rights. He became worried of the Libertarian Party because they normally support state’s rights (About.com, 2015). Tom …show more content…
They supported this by using statistics of homicide rates saying there were 10 homicides per 100,000 people during the entire decade (Wolcott and Head, 2010, p. 220). The author’s use places like New York City to prove how dangerous places can be, saying that New York had earned the reputation as one of America’s most dangerous places due to drugs, prostitutes, and muggers (Wolcott and Head, 2010, p. 220). The author’s talk about how in the 70’s the death penalty was being discussed, better known as capital punishment. They back up this idea of why citizens didn’t agree with it by using the percentage of who were in favor and who wasn’t. To rule that this statement is true, Wolcott and Head bring in the court case of Furman v. Georgia which abolished the death penalty (Wolcott and Head, 2010, p. 230). Justice Potter Stewart spoke about death penalty stating, “Cruel and unusual in the same way that being struck by lightening is cruel and unusual,” (Wolcott and Head, 2010, p. 230). It’s evident that coming from a factual source, Wolcott and Head use Stewart to show that people made comments to why they don’t agree, plus it adds to evidence showing why it became …show more content…
Wolcott and Tom Head clearly comprehend how the criminal justice system worked and how it changed to what it is now. By the use of court cases, real life situations, acts, treaties and many more made the book factual, plus easier to fulfill a sense of pragmatism. In the back of the book, there’s an appendix explaining everything in depth (Wolcott and Head, 2010, p. 294). Reading this book made me understand the justice system more clearly, and to get a better understanding of it in a more complex way. I would recommend this book to anyone mainly because it’s beyond informative and not difficult to obtain the information because of all the evidence Wolcott and Head