JB/159/263/002

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102)

CRIT. JUR .CRIM.

Law must at all events be made, it may be true
that it is better it should be made by the House
of Lords, than by an inferior Court: but what is
best of all is that there should be no ex-post-facto
Law at all [should be made by any body.]
[For the purpose of prevention] An ex-post-facto
Law is of no use. The What is past can not be prevented:
and the what is future may as well be presented
by another Law that has no such retrospective
quality.

Nothing can be of greater importance than that the
provinces of the Judge and of the Legislator should be
kept distinct. Better the were it for Law remain as it is
at present, with all its numerous imperfections on its head,
than to receive amendment at their hands.

Not that a man by being a Judge is the less fit
for a Legislator: on the contrary no man so likely
to be fit as he. No man who has such good opportunities
of being acquainted with [the detail of] those
[defects] imperfections of the Law which want correcting.
Tis the provinces functions that should be distinct
and not the persons. The same person who acting
by establishing a rule in the character of a Judge Legislator shall do eminent
service, shall by establishing the same rule
in the character capacity of a Judge do infinite mischief. The
reason is that by establishing a new rule in the
of the old ones he shakes their authority, and therewith
that of his own. When so employ'd he is like the
strong man in scripture, important to do good, but
all

Identifier: | JB/159/263/002 "JB/" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 159.
Date_1		Marginal Summary Numbering
Box	159	Main Headings	punishment
Folio number	263	Info in main headings field	crit. jur. crim
Image	002	Titles	punishment - talio - where inapplicable / stare decisis
Category	text sheet	Number of Pages	4
Recto/Verso	recto	Page Numbering	d101 / d102 / d103 / d104
Penner	jeremy bentham	Watermarks	[[watermarks::[gr with crown] propatria [britannia motif]]]
Marginals		Paper Producer
Corrections		Paper Produced in Year
Notes public		ID Number	54086
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