Laws and the judicial system have played an important role throughout history. The development of laws has an effect on every civilization, its people and even religion. Different sets and types of laws can be linked to different systems of government. For example, the laws of a democratic society are very different from those of a communist society. The ways in which each civilization has controlled people and carried out punishments over time are all very different, but in some ways the same. Many civilizations build on each other and extend from the laws of the past. Over the course of my project, I really enjoyed seeing how we got to where we are today. It all started somewhere and it was interesting to find the places where things began. I went back to 1 BC and before. I began my research in Mesopotamia, 1780 BC, where I delved into Hammurabi's code. King Hammurabi's code of laws is one of the first we remember today. The laws clearly distinguished the social system, where free and rich men were at the top, serfs in the middle, and the poor and slaves at the bottom. At this point crimes could be compensated with money. So this obviously meant that the rich had options that others didn't have. This code of laws envisaged an “eye for an eye” view of punishment. The punishment for the crime was equal to the crime committed. If something was stolen, it was returned, replaced, or paid for. The punishments for some things were quite harsh; as in law number 192. This law states that if a child disrespects his adoptive parents by saying, "you are not my real father/mother", his tongue will be cut out. These laws have been effective in scaring people, causing the crime rate to decrease. Code of Hammurabi... half of the sheet... from the United States of America, Great Britain, France and the Soviet Union. Twenty-four Nazis were tried, twelve of whom were sentenced to death. However, Hermann Goring committed suicide only hours before his execution. The Nazis' crimes included torture, deportation, persecution, and mass extermination. This trial demonstrated that in times of war, despite the principles of military law, basic standards continue to apply. During my project, I learned a lot about where today's laws come from. Going through history is effective because when you start at the beginning and get to the present day, you can connect things together in a way that makes sense. I learned a multitude of new things and expanded my knowledge on things I thought I already knew everything about. History can be a lot of fun when you discover things that interest you.