Code of Hammurabi--Assignment

You are a reporter for the Sumerian Times, the oldest daily newspaper in the world!  Your editor calls you into his office and tells you with a glum expression that sales are down. The great construction boom in ziggurats created an economic bubble that has burst and is now causing a very serious recession.  He has a plan, however, to perk up sales and asks you to write an article about the new crime wave and upsurge in violence that seems to be sweeping the region.  Both of you know that these types of stories sell newspapers, and as you are his ace reporter, he expects you to write a suitably dramatic article.  To write this story you rush down to the royal ziggurat to inspect a new body of laws that King Hammurabi has just passed to regulate crime and violence in his lands.  Using the laws as your historical source, pull out your clay tablet and write a short essay (1-2 pages) about the issue of crime and violence in ancient Mesopotamia.  In your article you must cite at least three laws that reflect what is happening in this society.  Compose an appropriate headline to start your story.