I believe this is true, because in most cases, the perpetrator would be punished by fines. As stated earlier, Spencer was fined 5 pounds for breaking and entering, and also for escaping from jail. It was written under Colonial Law that fighting with, or assaulting someone up in public, (with the exception of masters beating their servants) was punishable anywhere from 10 shillings to 5 pounds, depending on severity. .
Laws such as this have obviously changed throughout time. Fighting in public for example, may only be punishable by either a simple warning or infraction, or a charge for breach of peace. In my personal opinion these laws have drastically changed, because society and the people of the community realized this way of life was not beneficial to them. .
With this quote taken into consideration:.
"Why bother to put people in an expensive institution that they can.
break out of? Picture a person who commits fornication. He's going.
to be whipped in front of his mother, his sister. He's going to have to.
live with these people. If you lock people up, why would there be shame? .
Nobody would see them.".
Punishments were not meant to benefit the criminals. Today, they are sent to prisons in hopes of rehabilitation. There are programs in prisons to help inmates change and hopefully they will turn out for the best. In colonial America they were punished publicly, resulting in setting an example for the other members of society. They were considered to be delinquents and unable to be rehabilitated, so they were used as examples. I believe that doing things this way really did reduce the rate of crime because others who even remotely thought about committing the same crime saw what the punishment would be, and was a large factor in changing their minds about committing a crime. .
After these criminals were taken to court for whatever crime they were convicted of, a verdict was formulated, and punishments were properly carried out.
