Legal Literacy - Learn about the Principle of Legality, an essential principle of criminal law. Learn about its application, history, and relationship to other legal principles.

The principle of legality is a fundamental principle in the criminal justice system that guarantees legal certainty and protects individuals from arbitrariness. This principle affirms that an act cannot be criminalized if it is not clearly regulated in the criminal law that applies before the act is committed.

History and Development of the Principle of Legality

The principle of legality has been known since the time of Ancient Rome with the phrase "nullum crimen sine lege, nulla poena sine lege" which means no crime without law, no punishment without law. This principle then developed in Continental Europe and was adopted by various countries, including Indonesia.

Ancient Greece

  • Greek philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle discussed the concept of "legal certainty" and the importance of written rules.
  • During the Athenian democracy, written laws were carved on wooden boards and displayed in public places so that everyone could know them.

Ancient Rome

  • The phrase "nullum crimen sine lege, nulla poena sine legenullum crimen sine lege, nulla poena sine lege
  • " (no crime without law, no punishment without law) first appeared in Roman legal texts. This principle is enshrined in criminal law
  • Middle Ages
  • The application of the principle of legality declined due to the influence of church law and feudal law, which were not always written.

Magna Carta (1215) in England is one of the earliest examples of limiting the power of the king and affirming the principle that no one should be punished without due process of law.

  • Age of Enlightenment
  • Philosophers such as Montesquieu and Beccaria re-emphasized the importance of legal certainty and the principle of legality.
  • 19th and 20th Centuries
  • The principle of legality was formally adopted in various constitutions and criminal codes in European countries.
  • Dutch Colonial PeriodThe principle of legality was introduced in Indonesia through Dutch criminal law (Wetboek van Strafrecht voor Nederlandsch-Indië
  • ).

Its application was not always consistent and was still influenced by customary law and colonial law.