NCJ Number
150137
Date Published
1993
Length
149 pages
Annotation
These statistical series on French criminal justice cover the turbulent years before, during, and after World War II, which are frequently omitted from historical studies.
Abstract
The period studied in this collection is often neglected because the short and violent statistical fluctuations of war are considered irrelevant to long-term statistical series. In addition, statistics are usually studied for continuous political periods while the breaks between the periods receive little attention. The statistics presented here are derived from General Statistics, which was published annually by the French Department of Justice from 1825 to 1978. The first section presents statistics on the administration of criminal justice: activities of public prosecutors, actions of the examining magistrate, detention pending trial, sentencing statistics, and the sudden increase in prison sentences between 1940 and 1950. The second set of statistics is devoted to offenses including the great number of black market charges and thefts resulting from World War II, as well as other offenses which remained more stable. The percentage of foreigners involved in criminal activities is also presented. The appendix includes numerous charts and graphs.