Public Justice and the Criminal Trial in Late Medieval Italy: Reggio Emilia in the Visconti Age (Medieval Law and Its Practice, 20)

In Public Justice and the Criminal Trial in Late Medieval Italy, Joanna Carraway Vitiello considers the criminal trial at the end of the fourteenth century, and its function as a vehicle for dispute resolution and for prosecution in the public interest. Contents Acknowledgments Abbreviations Introduction Justice, Procedure, and Context Inquisition, Authority, and Adaptation Local Variations in Criminal Procedures Late Medieval Justice: A Case Study Chapter 1 Power, Jurisdiction, and Criminal Investigation The Signore and the Law at Reggio Emilia Municipal Statutes Foreign Rectors 1 Office of the Podestà at Reggio Emilia 2 The Criminal Judge 3 Notaries of the Criminal Court 4 Other Foreign Officials The Lords of the Contado and the Question of Jurisdiction Criminal Jurisdiction and the Reporting of Crime Apprehension of Malefactors Chapter 2 The Formation of a Criminal Inquisition The Use of Private Accusatio Procedure at Reggio Inquisitions ex officio Public Officials and the Initiation of Inquisition Trials Inquisitions Initiated by Private Parties Features of the Inquisitio ex querela The Narrative of the Crime Citation The Trial Process Chapter 3 Fama, Notoriety, and the Due Process of Law Fama, Public Knowledge, and Proof Semel malus, semper malus? The Presumption of Innocence and Mala Fama Ordinem iudiciarium non servare, est iuris ordinem servare: Notoriety and Due Process Chapter 4 Proofs, Defenses, and the Determination of Guilt or Innocence Full and Certain Proof: Confession and the Problem of Torture Testimony and Witnesses Medical Evidence and Expert Testimony Protections in Municipal Law and the Right to a Defense Responses: Confessions, Denials, and Exceptions Fama and the Defense Chapter 5 Resolutions: Conviction, Absolution, and Mitigation The Weighing of the Evidence: Statutory Proofs vs. Judicial Discretion Contumacy, Conviction in absentia, and the Criminal Ban Judicial Discretion in Punishment Pecuniary Punishments Shaming Punishments, Corporal Punishments and Capital Punishments Incarceration Capital Punishments Mitigation and Instrumenta Pacis Signorial Participation in the Administration of Justice: Instruction, Cancellations, and Pardons Gratia and the Cancellation of Proceedings Conclusion Bibliography Index of Names Index of Places Index of Subjects

This book examines the administration of justice in the small northern Italian town of Reggio Emilia at the end of the fourteenth century. Through an examination of material from the judicial archives from the period 1371–1409, this study investigates the development of public justice, inquisition procedure, and dispute resolution in late medieval Reggio Emilia, also incorporating comparative material, especially archival material from Bologna at the end of the fourteenth century. This study seeks to add to the discussion on dispute resolution and court processes in late medieval Europe, moving the discussion outside the major urban centers of late medieval Italy to the periphery of urban life.This title was made Open Access by libraries from around the world through Knowledge Unlatched.

In Public Justice and the Criminal Trial in Late Medieval Italy: Reggio Emilia in the Visconti Age, Joanna Carraway Vitiello examines the criminal trial at the end of the fourteenth century. Inquisition procedure, in which a powerful judge largely controlled the trial process, was in regular use in the criminal court at Reggio. Yet during the period considered in this study, technical procedural developments combined with the political realities of the town to create a system of justice that prosecuted crime but also encouraged dispute resolution. Following the stages of the process, including investigation, denunciation, the weighing of evidence, and the verdict, this study investigates the court's complex role as a vehicle for both personal justice and prosecution in the public interest This book examines the administration of justice in the small northern Italian town of Reggio Emilia at the end of the fourteenth century. Through an examination of material from the judicial archives from the period 1371-1409, this study investigates the development of public justice, inquisition procedure, and dispute resolution in late medieval Reggio Emilia, also incorporating comparative material, especially archival material from Bologna at the end of the fourteenth century. This study seeks to add to the discussion on dispute resolution and court processes in late medieval Europe, moving the discussion outside the major urban centers of late medieval Italy to the periphery of urban life. This title was made Open Access by libraries from around the world through Knowledge Unlatched