Early American Crime

Note: This post is part of a series on Convict Transportation to the American colonies. With the passage of the Transportation Act in 1718, Britain became the only European country after 1700 to transport convicts as part of a major governmental policy. The sentence of transportation was popular among judges and quickly became the preferred […]

Note: This post is part of a series on Convict Transportation to the American colonies. Before 1718, England’s criminal justice system provided only two sentencing options for criminals convicted of capital crimes: “Benefit of Clergy” for first-time offenders, which sent criminals back out on the streets after receiving some form of corporal punishment, or death. […]

Note: This post is part of a series on Convict Transportation to the American colonies. Thief-Taker General Any discussion of the state of England’s criminal underworld in the early 18th century must include Jonathan Wild, the self-described “Thief-Taker General of Great Britain and Ireland.” Wild had his hand in almost every facet of England’s criminal […]