Punishment

Crimes are more effectively prevented by certainty than by severity of punishment.

Recidivum effectuosius praevenit certitudo quam severitas poenae.

Source: Cf. Beccaria, Dei Delitti e delle Pene (1764); Blackstone, 4 Bl. Comm. 11; Weisman, 92b

Swift and certain enforcement deters more powerfully than occasional extreme punishment — a law that is reliably enforced is respected more than one that punishes harshly but rarely.

No one should be punished twice for the same offense.

Nemo debet bis puniri pro uno delicto.

Source: 4 Coke, 43; 11 Coke, 59b; Jackson, No. 632; Weisman, 77a; Weisman, 92e

Double punishment for a single wrong is itself a wrong — once a man has answered for his crime by the sentence of a competent tribunal, that matter is concluded forever.

No one is punished for the crime of another.

Nemo punitur pro alieno delicto.

Source: Wing. Max. 336; Weisman, 92hh

Criminal responsibility is individual — no man can be made to suffer punishment for wrongs committed by another without his knowledge, direction, or participation.

No one is punished unless for some wrong, act, or default.

Nemo punitur sine injuria, facto, seu defalta.

Source: 2 Inst. 287; Weisman, 92n

Punishment presupposes an offense actually committed — the law cannot punish status, condition, or mere association without a wrongful act or culpable omission.

Let the punishment reach the few, but the fear of it affect all.

Poena ad paucas, metus ad omnes perveniat.

Source: 4 Inst. 6; 4 Bl. Comm. 11; Weisman, 92p

The purpose of punishment is deterrence, not vengeance — it should be proportioned so that its certainty discourages all, even though only the guilty suffer it.

No one suffers punishment for his thoughts.

Cogitationis poenam nemo patitur.

Source: Dig. 48, 19, 18; Broom, Max. 279; Weisman, 92i

The law punishes acts, not ideas — a man's innermost thoughts, however wicked, are beyond the reach of earthly tribunals until they manifest in conduct.

Punishment ought not to precede the crime.

Poena non debet antecedere crimen.

Source: Halk. Max. 126; Weisman, 92cc

No person may be subjected to punitive measures in anticipation of wrongdoing — the law punishes what has been done, never what might be done.