Comparing_Clark_And_Robinson

Comparing Clark And Robinson Comparing Clark and Robinson The juries and courtrooms of the nineteenth century United States were not, in principle, so unlike those of today. There were, however, unique circumstances, intense religious institutionalization and female discrimination, not found in courtroom justice today, tendencies toward which the collective will of the people moved to overthrow what would seemingly be true justice. Two such cases can be used as examples of this. One is that of Stephen Merill Clark, who was put on trial for arson in 1821 and was consequently hanged. The other is that of Richard. P. Robinson, aka Frank Rivers, who was accused of murdering Helen Jewitt, a celebratory New York prostitute, and setting fire to her room in 1836 and was ultimately found not guilty. Clark was a troubled lad who had been prone to acts considered to be mischievous acts in light of the standards of early nineteenth-century rural Massachusetts life. The crime of arson was explained by the judge and prosecution explained that arson, in the Puritan society of wooden housing, was a greater capital offense than robbery, murder and treason. According to Clark, he and his alleged both, clark, one, new, cases, against, york, trial, today, robinson, jewitt, evidence, downes, death, crime, arson, woman, said, robinson’s, prostitute, prosecution, nineteenth, murder, life, law, house, guilty, girls, clark’s, city, century, being, women, united, testified