The way Meursault intermingles with society and who he interacts with is the reason behind the court’s guilty verdict. According to the jury, Meursault appeared guilty because he is a person that is detached from his emotions and the prosecutor made a compelling case by linking him to his friend’s (Raymond) crime. Fletcher states, “The criminal law should punish only the guilty. If the "guilty" were those who could fairly be morally blamed for wrongdoing, then the principle of punishing the guilty, …show more content…
The prosecutor purposely bases the majority of Meursault’s trial on his mother’s death, which infuriates Meursault’s lawyer so he addresses the court by saying “Come now, is my client being on trial for burying his mother or for killing a man” (Camus, 96). Although Meursault’s lawyer had a point the prosecution on the other hand eruditely persuaded the jury to view Meursault as a cold-hearted