Assess The View That Criminal Law Is More Than A Social Construction Of Crime

The notion that criminal law works alone, alongside no other influences or institutions, in determining which conduct is criminal is completely impossible. In this essay, references to criminal law will constitute statutory and judicial instruments. The first focus will be on the social factors that play a significant role in the creation of criminal law itself, and hence place subsequent criminal liability on certain conduct. As ‘law is no more than a social construction,’ were it not for these social factors, the conduct would not be viewed as criminal at all. This is particularly significant in the judicial role, which is inseparable from influences of social attitudes and temporal influences in the creation of common laws. The essay will

Particular outcomes may include severity of sentencing, utilised by the judicial sentencing discretion allowing harsher sentencing for more ‘socially-revulsive’ crimes. Magistrates in particular may use their ‘amateur’ position as a ‘popular legitimacy’ to apply public opinions, which subsequently may lead to a harsher view of this type of crime in society. Judicial focus on socially acceptable outcomes at the expense of strict application of legal principles, in a way that not only extends the criminal law but shapes the view of it, demonstrates the clear principle that criminal law is not the sole force at play in

For example, convicting someone of smoking with children in the car is not only difficult because it is so hard to determine if the person is smoking with a child in the car at all, let alone with possible exclusions such as vaping or convertible cars. Even if someone is caught, the police then face further problems as they are unable to impose fines, and in a year only one fine was ever given, according to a BBC Freedom of Information request. Further issues the police face regarding correspondence to local authorities, in this case the right to give a fine, show the further difficulties limiting determination of crime, ones that go past a ‘legal’ level. Funding is also a thorny issue, as the police cannot afford, for example, officers monitoring cars to better implement this law. Funding difficulties also means the ‘vast majority of law enforcement’ is started by people’s complaints, so conduct is much more likely to be conceived as criminal if people feel comfortable reporting it. This may lead to a disparity between the conduct determined as criminal by the police and the real crime in society where people are simply too afraid to report them. Finally, institutional capacity to focus on particular crimes may lead to an immoral approach which affects the determination of crime. For example, the close police-press relationship in the Leveson inquiry could be considered a conflict of