JB/035/187/001

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28 May 1808

Setting aside the application made to the purposes of religious
prosecution – an application which for a long time has been altogether
at an end – in almost every point of view the application
made of torture in the case in question under English law to a class of judges is more indefensible than the application made of it upon the Continent under the Roman
law is more defensible than that to a class of criminals.

It is one error to suppose that under the Roman law
torture is or ever said to be applied to any persons the but
such as of whose guilt would under English law would be deemed be deemed already proved guilty.
Under Roman law torture was not applied but to persons
whose guiltiness had already been deposed to either by one
positive testimony or by circumstantial evidence: and under
English law a man can is convicted and punished capitally
either on one positive testimony or on circumstantial evidence.

Under Roman law When after a capital conviction, it was applied
to the convict to obtain an indication of his of his accomplices
what might was liable to happen was that it was applied with
too little consideration, and without any sufficient assurances that
he had accomplices, and that it was in his power to
make known who they were. But in this application as
well as in the other, still the object in view was beneficial,
conformable and conducive to the ends of justice.

In the application made of it under English law
the object in view is not simply useless and unconducive,
but hostile and diametrically opposite to the ends of
justice. Upon the verdict All the effect it can have, if it has any, is
to produce a false verdict: for this is one effect which it on
may every occasion it may happen to it to produce; and to the giving birth to a true verdict
it has no tendency in any case.

Identifier: | JB/035/187/001 "JB/" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 35.
Date_1	1808-05-18	Marginal Summary Numbering
Box	035	Main Headings	constitutional code; evidence; procedure code
Folio number	187	Info in main headings field
Image	001	Titles
Category	text sheet	Number of Pages	1
Recto/Verso	recto	Page Numbering	c1 / d21 / e1
Penner	jeremy bentham	Watermarks
Marginals		Paper Producer
Corrections		Paper Produced in Year
Notes public		ID Number	10780
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