Running head: LAW AS A LIVING BODY 1

Law as a Living Body

Christopher Hamer

CJS 220

August 22, 2010

Axia College
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Law as a Living Body

Laws are in place for our safely and to keep order in our communities and on our streets.

This essay will explain the difference of the law on books versus laws in action, the objectivity

of law and law as a living body. We will also go over the background and purpose of due process

and the rights of the accused, as well as the positives and negatives, and how each has changed

since the September 11th attacks.

The law on the books is the official rules and procedures specifying what should occur at

any given step in the legal process and law in action is how procedures are actually implemented.

The law on the book entitles everyone to a fair trial. I do not think that this nature is fair because

there are many innocent people whose lives are taken away from them because in some

courtrooms the suspect is already labeled as guilty before the process even began. In America,

one is considered innocent until proven guilty in the court of law and not the other way around.

With new technology many people are getting out of jail and prison for being wrongfully

accused. If there are guidelines, rules, or procedures written down, then everyone should follow

them to the "T" all of the time to ensure that everyone's rights in the sixth amendment are

guaranteed. The objectivity of law is so that everyone follows the same rules and guidelines so

the law can function as a whole. Law is like a living body because it is never static, it is always

changing. Law is a changing body of knowledge that reflects and shapes political, social and

economic processes. Laws need to be flexible because there are some laws that conflict with

other laws.

There is no universally agreed upon formal definition of due process. The evolution of

due process doctrine illustrates the distinction between law on the books and law in action, and

the importance of considering how courts interpret and apply legal principles. The concept of

due process of law embodies the idea of fairness and protection of the individual against the
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power of the state. Due process emphasizes the public nature of our legal system, the idea that

our government is accountable to us, and that public scrutiny of the legal process is not only

desirable but necessary to help ensure equality and justice. Due process is also important in the

sense that the perceived legitimacy of the law, the courts, and legal actors depends upon public

perceptions that the system is fair. Due process is intended to provide us with protection from

government infringement on our civil rights to life, liberty, and property without due process of

law. Since the September 11th terrorist attacks, there have been some changes in civilian

privileges. For example, when arriving at an airport to travel by plane, you have to make sure

you arrive a couple hours early because all subjects are searched for items that could be used in

an attack. This shows how laws can be changed and be manipulated in a way where it does not

seem like a person’s rights are being violated.

The rights of the accused is a class of civil and political rights that apply to a person who

is accused of a crime, from the time that the person is arrested and charged to when they are

convicted or acquitted. The rights of the accused are guaranteed by the Bill of Rights, which is

the first ten amendments in the United States Constitution. Supreme Court cases dealing with the

rights of the accused further illustrate the changing nature of the law, in what they teach us about

the court’s response to the individual: the right of a suspect, innocent until proven guilty, and to

procedural fairness versus the right of society to protect itself from guilty persons through

vigorous law enforcement. A negative is that sometimes the law punishes a person that did not

commit a crime. After September 11th, 2001 many people assume that if a person is of Middle

Eastern descent they are terrorists and bad people. In some instances, people have been

wrongfully accused.
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Laws are in place for our safely and to keep order in our communities and on our streets,

even though laws are not always carried out as they are suppose to. This essay explained the

difference of the law on books versus laws in action, the objectivity of law and law as a living

body. We also covered the background and purpose of due process and the rights of the accused,

as well as the positives and negatives, and how each has changed since the September 11th

attacks.
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References:

Meyer, J. & Grant, D. (2003). The courts in our criminal justice system. Upper Saddle River, NJ:

Prentice Hall.

Rights of the accused. (2008, June 23). Retrieved from

http://www.america.gov/st/democracyhr-

english/2008/June/20080630231256eaifas0.3084683.html