The Violent Crime and Law Enforcement Act of 1994

Philosophical Basis
Two utilitarian philosophers of the 18th century, Cesare Beccaria and Jeremy Bentham,
formulated the deterrence theory as both an explanation of crime and a method for
reducing it. Beccaria argued that crime was not only an attack on an individual but on
society as well. That extended the issue of punishment beyond retribution and
restitution to aggrieved individuals. Society was cast as victim, not merely bystander,
and what had been seen as a dispute between individuals, expanded to an issue of
criminal law. For the utilitarians, the purpose of punishment became the protection of
society through the prevention of crime.
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