JB/035/159/001

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25 May 1808

In England though Juries do not
Judges do under the name of fines allott compensation.

This being admitted, the extension indicated at firs view at least by analogy
and consistency appears to be this – wherever in whatever
case for the name purpose of punishment, forced disbursement
of a sum of money is thought proper to be
imposed, the Jury and not a Judge or bench of Judges
are compose constitute the sort of judicatory by which it ought to be
imposed.

In the cases in which the party inj wronged is
no other than the community at large, the nature of the
wrong not affording any individual in the character of
a special sufferer by it, the shape taken by the mischief being that of
danger of suffering upon an that extensive scale, and not
actual and determinate suffering upon any scale, in this case
howsoever the sympathy in the breast of the Juryman sympathy
might render him well qualified for judging by the f
what degree of suffering would in the breast of the wrongdoer
be produced by the forced disbursement of a sum of money
to a given amount, he would be but ill qualified for
determining what the degree of suffering is, which for
the several purposes of punishment is best adapted to the
nature of the offence.

In the case of smuggling for example, the act is
not deprived of its quality character of a wrong by the circumstance
which throws upon the public purse – upon all the members
of the community taken in the aggregate, in
their quality of joint-contributors – the burthen of the
loss. For judging what degree of suffering will in the breast
of his neighbour the smuggler be produced by a fine to a given
amount, the Juryman will may be expected to be to the full as well qualified as the
Judge. But the mischief done to the community by the wrong being
in this case not so apt to paint itself in its proper colours in the
conception of the Juryman
or in that of the Judge
the quantity of suffering
which the Juryman will
be disposed to apply for in
the character purpose of punishment
will be liable and
apt to be but ill suited
viz. to be inadequate;
insufficient to the purpose. And so in the case of exportation or importation of prohibited goods and other such offences concerning land
of which the supposed mischief, where it happens to be real, lies too deeply seated to be reached by ordinary eyes.

Identifier: | JB/035/159/001 "JB/" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 35.
Date_1	1808-05-25	Marginal Summary Numbering
Box	035	Main Headings	constitutional code; evidence; procedure code
Folio number	159	Info in main headings field
Image	001	Titles
Category	text sheet	Number of Pages	1
Recto/Verso	recto	Page Numbering	e9
Penner	jeremy bentham	Watermarks	th 1806
Marginals		Paper Producer	andre morellet
Corrections		Paper Produced in Year	1806
Notes public		ID Number	10752
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