Chapter Three Social Class and the Differential Distribution of Immunity

The actions of the legal system are normally governed by the concept of equality before the law. This concept is, however, subject to many modifications in statute and in application. The most obvious example of the first is the immunity given to young children, and, of the second, the differential treatment of men and women. The concept of diminished responsibility and the application of the M’Naughten rules and arguments advanced in court in mitigation of offences likewise show the tendency to treat different groups, including social classes, of the population differently.