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Tag Archives: Robbery

In the Media: The Supreme Court and the Execution of Children

J. L. Bell, who writes the Boston 1775 blog, recently wrote a series of posts that breaks down the recent ruling by the Supreme Court on whether a life sentence for a seventeen-year-old convicted of two armed robberies–or for any juvenile offender who hasn’t committed murder–constitutes “cruel and unusual punishment” under the Eighth Amendment to […]

The American Malefactor’s Dictionary: badger and its variants

badger – 1. someone who robs a man after he has been caught in bed with a woman or in some other compromising position; 2. a panel thief; 3. to torment. badger-crib or badger’s crib, also badger house – a room that is fitted to carry out a badger game, usually with a sliding panel […]

Early American Crimes: Burglary, Part III

Note: This post continues Early American Crimes: Burglary, Part II. Outside of murder, burglary and robbery were considered the most egregious crimes in England and colonial America. Since burglars and robbers threaten the well-being and lives of victims while taking their property, they are generally regarded as worse than thieves, who try to steal without […]

Early American Crimes: Burglary, Part II

Note: This post continues Early American Crimes: Burglary, Part I. In the earliest days of colonial America, burglary was not considered much of a problem. Most people in the community knew each other, and strangers could be quickly identified. But as more people settled in America and cities grew bigger, burglary became a much more […]

The American Malefactor’s Dictionary: ackruffs

ackruffs – River thieves; river-pirates (obsolete by 1900). The word is an American variant of Ark Ruffians, who rob and murder on fresh water. One of their schemes is to pick an argument with a passenger on board the vessel and use the occasion to strip the passenger, throw him or her overboard, and then […]