The Origins of Reasonable Doubt
by James Q. Whitman · first published 2008
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"To be convicted of a crime in the United States. a person must be proven guilty "beyond a reasonable doubt." But what is reasonable doubt? Even sophisticated legal experts find this fundamental doctrine difficult to explain. In this accessible book, James Q. Whitman digs deep into the history of the law and discovers that we have lost sight of the original purpose of "reasonable doubt." It was not originally a legal rule at all, he shows, but a theological one." "The rule as we understand it today is intended to protect the accused. But Whitman traces its history back through centuries of Chr
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The medieval origins of the legal profession: canonists, civilians, and courts by Brundage The origins of reasonable doubt: theological roots of the criminal trial by Whitman
on “Ask HN: What's the best book you read in 2021?” ↗…everyone—pauper to Pope—was afforded a fair shake at justice (due process in law) going back to (at least) the Middle Ages: * https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/M/bo562094... See also Whitman's The Origins of Reasonable Doubt: Theological Roots of the Criminal Trial for an interesting run-down on that topic: * https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2187985.The_Origins_of_R... > The ancient Greeks (so, significantly before Christianity…
on “Hospitals that make profits should pay taxes” ↗