During the 19th century, the criminal justice system in America and elsewhere began to evolve into a structure that more closely resembles today's institution. Prior to this period, the criminal justice system consisted of laws based on moral commandments, social precedents, and arbitrary punishments. The reform movement of the 1800s brought new perspectives on criminal acts and launched new methods of punishment that humanized and streamlined the criminal justice system. The ancient criminal justice system existed as law codes that were written copies of moral and social precedents carved into stone or clay tablets and displayed in public areas. In 1750 BC the Babylonian king Hammurabi had his code of law and his means of punishment engraved on a large stone tablet surmounted by an image depicting God giving him the law. Ancient codes of law did not rely on rational or scientific detention to determine whether the accused had committed the crime. The Babylonians believed that the river would be the judge of the crime and would test their power by throwing the accused individual into the Tigris or Euphrates River. If they knew how to swim they were free, but if they drowned they were guilty. Along with the irrational means of sentencing came harsh punishments that ignored the degree to which they corresponded to the crime. In the Justinianic code of Roman law there is an excellent example of an amplification of the ruling which states that "anyone who composes a defamatory song to the detriment of another" or some other form of publicly ridiculing another would be banished to "an island by the authority "of a decree of the Senate". This statement is representative of most of the rulings of the ancient codes of laws and later in history, although many verdicts... middle of paper... control of the department, mass corruption broke out in the city. The “Jacksonian” era created a procedure that allowed individuals the opportunity to be rewarded with an officer position after helping a politician win a campaign. Policemen were often paid a bribe to ignore criminal acts committed by gangs or brothels. The earnings were distributed within the department's hierarchy and many crimes went unpunished. The reform movement of the 19th century had a valuable impact on the future of the criminal justice system by streamlining laws, civilizing punishments, and introducing prevention and rehabilitation. However many of the developments had design flaws and were modified to meet growing needs. Today, many problems still exist within the criminal justice system, and reformers are still making efforts to reduce crime and improve rehabilitation.