Justice by paperwork: a day in the life of a court scribe in Bourbon Mexico City. From: Journal of Social History | Date: June 22, 2003| Author: Scardaville, Michael C. | COPYRIGHT 2003 Journal of Social History. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan.  All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group.Copyright information

This essay describes a typical day for a court scribe in Bourbon Mexico City in order to evaluate the prevailing scholarly view of criminal judicial administration in the viceregal capital and the nature of the late colonial state. Historians and nineteenth century critics have asserted that the Bourbon state embraced oppressive criminal legal practices in Mexico City as a means of controlling popular groups and upholding public order. Based on an analysis of over 7,000 criminal cases, this...