On 21 October 1901, Rose Stapleton was charged with being drunk and disorderly. According to the London Weekly Dispatch, the prisoner was 28 years old, “decently dressed and powerfully built. On being ushered into the dock of Southwark Police Court, she quipped, ‘All right, I know my way’, adding, ‘Poor Rosa, always drunk!’ ” She was convicted and fined 40s. Stapleton was classified as a ‘habitual criminal’ due to her previous convictions. This was one of the judicial definitions introduced during the 19th century.
The criminal justice system in Britain has developed over centuries and the greatest changes took place during the Victorian era, with the establishment of professional police forces, the creation of largescale prisons,
