swift justice
Quick legal consequences
Swift justice is punishment or legal resolution delivered quickly after an offense.
The phrase often implies satisfaction that wrongdoers face immediate consequences: The vigilantes promised swift justice for cattle thieves.
It can suggest either efficient legal process or hasty judgment that bypasses due process, depending on context.
- death squadParamilitary killers targeting dissidents
- drumhead trialHasty military tribunal
- court-martialArmed forces judicial proceeding
- kangaroo courtIllegitimate proceeding ignoring procedure
- mob ruleDominance by unruly crowds
execution · lynching · proportionality · firing squad · deterrence · throw the book · fairness · verdict · day in court · vigilante · expedited · trials · accountability · long arm of the law · public trust · rush · social order · closure
justice outcome
swift justiceinjustice
Denial of fair treatment
impunity · miscarriage of justice · statute of limitations · cold case