Choose your Ethics

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Apr 3, 2024

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Choose your Ethics Javelin Troy GSU CRJU 3060: Ethical Issues in Criminal Justice
Kant’s Deontological Ethical Formalism The weather was beautiful out. Things were in full swing and outside looked like a kickoff to an inviting Spring break. An officer was on his duty post when he sees a car speeding down the highway and pulls it over. As the officer is approaching the vehicle he notices the young man was frantic. He mention that he in route to the hospital because his wife is in labor, and it was very visible. The officer takes a step back, rubs his chin and precede to ask for license and registration. He give a friendly nod and notify him that he will return momentarily. As the officer is walking towards his vehicle, he ponder in deep thought because although he sympathetic of their circumstance he has also have broken the law. Should he give him a ticket, arrest him, or let him go? Dilemma & Explanation Ethical is to be morally right or morally acceptable. In this scenario the cop pulled over an individual for speeding. Once he spoke to the individual it turned out his wife was in labor. The officer now must decide rather to let him go, give him a ticket, or arrest him. According to Kant’s Deontological Ethical School, it does not focus on the consequences of individual actions meaning it does not look for the WHY you did what you did. If something is wrong, then it is wrong all the time and if something is right, then it is right all the time. It focuses on our duties rather than our ends, goals, or consequences. (H.J. Paton, pg.7). However, as claimed by Kant, the young man are acting on emotions rather than morals (Ibid., pg. 39) when it comes to speeding. At the end of the day others can be harmed as well as the induvial disobeying the law. Following the speed limit is the law and the officer has decided to ethically give him a ticket. What’s right is what’s right.
Situational Ethics Let’s say this scenario was approached from a different perspective or view. That view would be Situation Ethics school. This school was developed by Joseph Fletcher. He developed an ethical non- system which was not respected amongst the philosophical circles. Unlike Kant, his work is an attempt to show how acts can be morally acceptable even if it goes against “so-called” moral laws (J.F. Fletcher, Situation Ethic, pg.79 ). His work included four working principles: pragmatism, positivism, personalism and relativism. Legalism is someone who follows blindly the moral rules without being sensitive to the situation. In our scenario previously mentioned, his wife was in labor, and he was speeding but the officer pulled him over and still gave him a ticket because he was committed to his duty and focused on the “what’s right” at that present moment without the details coming into play. Fletcher would argue that the officer is following the system of legalism and may even identify the officer as simple-minded. Although this school seems law-less, it does follow one moral law. Which is “we ought to always act so as to bring about the most love for the most people.” This law then becomes a teleological theory. It looks at the details of the situation and the consequences is what will determine whether the action is either right or wrong. In this scenario the solution was the officer let his husband and wife go with just a warning and to make sure a police escort/ambulance follow to ensure the arrival and safety of the baby and others. The officer believed it was morally acceptable to break the law because the act was to bring or be surrounded by love. In conclusion, both schools had very different outcomes and after working through both I was able to gain insight on the depths of what both philosophers were expressing. Immanuel Kant school revolved around the concept of duty and the moral worth of actions. He believed the action is moral if it can be applied universally without being contradictive. To always treat others as you would like to be treated. On the other hand, situation ethics rejected the idea of universal rules. The actions were evaluated based on the ability to promote love and compassion in each context. Situation ethics
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