Law and Order in Anglo-Saxon England

Interesting video.

The idea of family responsibility is still quite common. I remember reading a book about colonial Africa where whenever anyone was accused of a crime, the courts would make the accused present witnesses to swear to his or her good character, a system that worked surprisingly well. As often as not the villain was short on friends, which meant that he had to bribe witnesses to swear to his good character which in turn meant that while he got off, he still had to pay a hefty fine