Law and Order: March 8

Identify: In this episode of Law and Order, the ethical issue was whether or not Alex should prosecute the murderer who was mentally disabled by Syphilis. While he killed many people in cold blood, he was mentally unable to separate fact from fantasy and followed the “voices” in his head. The stake-holders in this issue were the murderer and the citizens of New York. Either Alex could have chosen to go forward and prosecute the killer as a cold-blooded killer or she could have allowed to put him in a hospital and claim mental instability.

Analyze: From a consequentialist approach, regardless of his reasoning, the murderer killed more than one innocent civilian in cold blood. Not once was he threatened by any of his victims and he was a hazard to society. His actions and killings threw the city of New York into upheaval as civilians turned on one another and accused each other of committing the crimes. Because so many people were affected by the murder’s actions, he deserved to be prosecuted and sentenced to death. Using the deontological approach, while the killer was in fact a murderer, he was mentally unable to tell the difference between right and wrong. Unbeknownst to the murderer, he had contracted Syphilis years before and it was slowly eating away at his brain. His cerebral cortex (the area of the brain that makes judgment decisions) had been almost entirely destroyed, leaving him incapable of knowing right from wrong. Because he himself was a victim, the murderer deserves forgiveness for his actions and deserved to be admitted to a hospital. The aspiration tool is a bit trickier. Because this case, according the aspiration tool, could be used to set a precedent, the murderer should be forced to go to jail and serve whatever sentence the judge deemed appropriate. If this murderer was acquitted, many after him would also try and use brain damage or other sorts of medical claims to get out of a murder accusation. The man killed innocent people and deserved to serve whatever punishment his was given.

Justify and Decide: Two out of the three tools lead to the conclusion that the man should have been prosecuted and sent to jail. While his brain damage was unfortunate, the man still must be held responsible for the lives he took and the families he tore apart. Alex should have prosecuted the man to the fullest extent of the law. For the citizens of New York who were scared for those weeks when the man ran rampant throughout the city, they deserve to have their time and worries recognized by this man serving his punishment. The victims whose lives were lost deserve to have their lives considered and the man pay for ending their lives. The families whose loved ones were murdered deserved to see the killer put to death or at least die in prison. His health situation was terrible and unfortunately could have been avoided, but since it was not, the murderer deserved to serve out his punishment.

Kendall Headden