This is a question that could easily be debated one way or the other depending on how you look at it. This article will focus on early modern British justice, which appears to show favor towards the criminal. In order to make such a decision, one must examine both sides of the system and see which weighs more heavily. In some ways, the system seems very similar to today's idea of ​​innocence until proven guilty; even if in fact it wasn't that. One of the most important facts of the early British justice system is that a victim who wanted the criminal who wronged them charged or convicted had to pay the costs and even possibly have to find and provide the evidence themselves. or the evidence. This means that all responsibility for prosecuting a criminal fell on the victim who was also often the prosecutor and it was the victim's responsibility to file a complaint with the resident judge/magistrate and his responsibility to present the evidence. (Herrup 26, 88-89) Of course, the victim was not required to prosecute if she did not wish to do so; it was at his discretion. (Taylor 109-110) The victim had a few options; a police officer would actually collect evidence for the prosecution/victim if they were reimbursed for their time and expenses. A police officer usually only acted when called because he wasn't getting paid and usually had another full-time job to consider. (Gaskill chapter 7) There are exceptions to this, for example, a police officer might receive rewards for captured criminals. It must also be considered that almost all the constable's powers were derivative; because of this, it was a little more difficult to deal with crimes without an actual victim; which is in favor of the criminal (Crime and ...... middle of paper ...... Crime and society in England 1750-1900. 4th edition. Harlow: Longman, 2010.Gaskill, Malcolm. Crime and mentalities in Early Modern England. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. Godfrey, Barry and Paul Lawrence 1750-1950, United Kingdom: William Publishing, 2005. Herrup, Cynthia. Cambridge University Press, 1989.Mclynn, Frank. Crime and Punishment: in Eighteenth-Century England: Routledge, 1989.Taylor, David, 1750-1914.Sharpe, JA Judicial Punishment. in England London: Faber and Faber, 1990.Sharpe, JA Crime in Early Modern Europe 1550-1750 2nd edition., 1999.