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utilitarianism
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the view that the rational choice in morality is whichever choice will maximize human happiness or well being.
purpose to avoid social harm not facilitate choice or morality
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positive morality
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the moral beliefs ACTUALLY held by a particular group of people
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critical morality
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the moral beliefs a particular group of people would hold after a process of rational evaluation and criticism
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moral theory
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a proposed standard for rational moral evaluation
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rule utilitarianism
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rules that typically maximize human happiness should be followed, rather than making individual utilitarian decisions for each moral choice
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kantianism
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the rational choice in ethics is that which respects the rights of autonomous persons, regardless of the impact to general happiness or well being
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sentience
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capacity to feel pleasure and pain - utilitarianism
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ensoulment
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basis of kantianishm - humans have an immortal soul that no other living thing has - humans are valuable because their soul is valuable and they have the capacity for rational choice
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aesthetic standards
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evaluate things based on how they effect our senses - change often for no reason - physical beauty changes
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rules of etiquette
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rules for courtesy, good and bad manners - more relevant to everyday life
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legal rules
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authoritative texts to be consulted
procedures for deliberate change
formal coercive sanctions - imprisonment / death
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moral rules
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most serious ones are also criminal/legal
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mala in se
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acts that are wrong in themselves (conventional morality)
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mala prohibita
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acts that are wrong because they are prohibitede by law - moral wrong is unnecessary
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consequentialist theory
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rightfullness/wrongfullness depends on good/badness of consequences
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Ethical Egoism
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an act is right if and only if it best promotes the actor’s own interests
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deontological theory
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some acts are right or wrong regardless of their consequences
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divine command theory
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act is right if and only if it is obedient to God's commands/will
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irrational
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failure to have morality
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Act Utilitarianism
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the act is right if it produces the maximum total happiness of any act available to the actor in this situation
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Rule Utilitarianism
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the act is right if it belongs to a set of rules, general adherence to which would produce at least as much total happiness as any other set.
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temporal concurrence
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intend to and then commit the act at that time (doing the crime)
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concurrence
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existence of both actus reaus and mens rea in a crime
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actus reus
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Identifies the requirement that there must be a voluntary act or an omission to act before criminal liability may attatch
The criminal action must be clearly formed and have proceeded well towards the accomplishment of the act
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mens rea
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Knowledge of circumstances plus the foresight of consequences
While there may not be a guilty mind, one must recognize that some unintentional voluntary acts can be reckless, negligent, and apply to strict-liability
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negligence
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Failure to take reasonable care - something more the careless person could have/should have done - blameworthy
absence of mens rea
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recklessness
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"conscious disregard of a substantial and unjustifiable risk”
unintentional action in which a person perceives that there is some risk that his action will result in certain harm, ignores the risk, and fails to exercise reasonable care in avoiding the harm, which ensues.
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role responsibility
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duties associated with a certain role in a legal, social, or moral institution (parents caring for their children)
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causal responsibility
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usage of responsibility to identify causal connection (identifying that a storm or a flood caused certain, specific damage)
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liability responsibility
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moral and legal issues which identify certain conduct as violating moral or legal standard (not helping out somebody in distress)
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capacity responsibility
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Includes those usages which identify the presence of normal capacities of choice and deliberation by virtue of which persons are found responsible, and the absence of which identifies the non-responsible (children and the insane)
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compulsion
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someone takes your body and physically moves it
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status crime
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3 strikes laws - after 3 strikes law punishes one not only for what they did but who they are (their record)
focuses on punishment rather than deterring measures
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Robinson vs. California
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law making drug addiction illegal was found unconstitutional
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Powell vs. Texas
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made public drunkenness illegal
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vicarious liability
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one person is held liable for the harms caused by others
employee/employer
responsible for ownership
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strict liability
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liability without fault (knowingly caused harm)
conflict with principle of guilt
denies excuses of accident/mistake / reasonable action within circumstances
**liability that does not depend on actual negligence or intent to harm, but that is based on the breach of an absolute duty to make something safe
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felony murder
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a criminal is charged with first degree murder for any death that occurs during the course of performing the felony - even if runs away from the scene of the crime
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US vs. dotterweich
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pharmaceutical drugs - mislabeled - wrong chemical analysis of drugs - found guilry based on strict product liability - overturned rule in court of appeals - SC charged D - vicarious liabilty
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legal justification
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did best you could do in the situation - what you did was necessary
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legal excuse
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mistake, ignorance, accident, duress
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mistake
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believing something that is false
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ignorance
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act done unintentionally (simply not knowing)
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accident
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mistake and accident allow someone acted unintentionally and Reasonably
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culpable mistake
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rent-a-cop misttok suspicious person at bank taking out pen and shot him
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insanity
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insane acts can be intentinoal or unintentional - mens rea exists!
1) A lack of capacity to appreciate the nature, quality or wrongness of the act, or
2) A lack of capacity to conform his conduct to the law.
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program of social hygiene
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treat offenders in way most likely to cure them of what caused them to act in that way - criminals are "sick"
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Wooton
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Insane shouldnt be treated different from anyone else - criminals are "sick"
the more trouble one is in the worse the problem that needs to be fixed
law should aim to deter crimes
should get rid of excusing factors because too many people get away with crimes
should focus on social dangerousness - guiltness doesnt matter - mens rea irrelevant
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wooton criticism
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does'nt give people opportunity for mistakes - people are socially ignorant and should be punished for such - should avoid conduct that could "accidentally" result in harm
worry about judge's ability to recognize socially dangerous criminals
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wasserton
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actually deter people from "claiming" to be insane and make people that are prone to accidents avoid certain acts that are bound by strict liability
strict liability should only be imposed in certain areas
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