Final answer:
Corporal punishments like branding and amputation were used in colonial America to mark the offender as a deterrent to crime.
Step-by-step explanation:
Corporal punishments like branding or amputation were commonly used in colonial America to mark the offender. These brutal practices were meant to serve as a visible and permanent reminder of an individual's transgressions, serving as a deterrent to others. For example, branding involved burning a mark onto a person's skin, while amputation involved the removal of a body part as punishment for crimes.
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