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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §47.17.1.pr

Limits on Punishing Night and Bathhouse Thieves

Passage 8084 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This section provisions the limits on punishing night and bathhouse thieves, and details the status-based penalties (labor in the mines or relegation) for thieves who resist with weapons.

[ULPIANUS libro octauo de officio proconsulis. ] §47.17.1.prFures nocturni extra ordinem audiendi sunt et causa cognita puniendi, dummodo sciamus in poena eorum operis publici temporarii modum non egrediendum.
[ULPIAN, in the eighth book on the office of the proconsul.] Night thieves are to be heard extraordinarily and punished after investigation of the case, provided we bear in mind that in their punishment the limit of temporary public work must not be exceeded.
idem et in balneariis furibus.
The same applies to bathhouse thieves.
sed si telo se fures defendunt uel effractores uel ceteri his similes nec quemquam percusserunt, metalli poena uel honestiores relegationis adficiendi erunt.
But if thieves, housebreakers, or others like them defend themselves with a weapon yet have not struck anyone, they shall be sentenced to labor in the mines, or, in the case of those of higher status, to relegation.

Notes

  1. §47.17.1.prextra ordinem — Meaning "extraordinarily" or "outside the ordinary course of trials." It refers to the procedure of cognitio extra ordinem (extraordinary cognitio) in classical Roman law, where the magistrate (such as a proconsul) investigates and judges the case directly under his official power, outside the traditional formulaic system or permanent jury courts.
  2. §47.17.1.prdummodo sciamus... non egrediendum — The conjunction dummodo (provided that) takes the subjunctive present sciamus, which in turn governs an accusative-with-infinitive construction (modum non egrediendum [esse]) as its object. The gerundive egrediendum expresses necessity or obligation (must not be exceeded).
  3. §47.17.1.prhonestiores relegationis — Contextually, the nominative honestiores (persons of higher social status) stands in contrast to the lower-class offenders subject to metalli poena (punishment of the mines). relegationis is a genitive modifying an implied poena (punishment), forming the construction relegationis [poena] adficiendi erunt (they shall be affected/sentenced [to the punishment] of relegation).

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §47.17.1.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:47.17.1.pr

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