The Birth of a Criminal Code: The Evolution of Canada's Justice System

H. Graham Rawlinson teaches history at York University.

In 1893, after much debate, the federal government codified centuries of
written and unwritten criminal law into a national Criminal Code. This
reference work, published to mark the centenary of the proclamation of
the Criminal Code of Canada, provides an essential tool for research
into the history of this country’s criminal-justice system.

Composed chiefly of historical documents, and best read in conjunction
with Brown’s The Genesis of the 1892 Criminal Code, the book tells the
remarkable story of the vigorous public debate surrounding this major
reform of Canada’s criminal law. Politicians, lawyers, bureaucrats,
and members of the public all demanded alteration of a draft Code that
had been imported from England. The recommendations, and the extent to
which they were adopted, reveal much about late-Victorian morality in
the Canadian provinces. They also explain much of the substance of
contemporary criminal justice, since the old Code—much modified but
still intact—remains with us.

While Brown’s introductory chapter serves to establish a useful
context for the correspondence, memoranda, and political debates that
follow, this is not a book for novices. An excellent index and
biographical section, which sorts out personalities, issues, and acts,
makes the task of searching a simple one.