Rejecting Retributivism: Free Will, Punishment, and Criminal Justice (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781108484701)

Within the criminal justice system, one of the most prominent justifications for legal punishment is retributivism. The retributive justification of legal punishment maintains that wrongdoers are morally responsible for their actions and deserve to be punished in proportion to their wrongdoing. This book argues against retributivism and develops a viable alternative that is both ethically defensible and practical. Introducing six distinct reasons for rejecting retributivism, Gregg D. Caruso contends that it is unclear that agents possess the kind of free will and moral responsibility needed to justify this view of punishment. While a number of alternatives to retributivism exist - including consequentialist deterrence, educational, and communicative theories - they have ethical problems of their own. Moving beyond existing theories, Caruso presents a new non-retributive approach called the public health-quarantine model. In stark contrast to retributivism, the public health-quarantine model provides a more human, holistic, and effective approach to dealing with criminal behavior.

Author: Gregg D. Caruso
ISBN-10: 1108484700
ISBN-13: 9781108484701
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Language: English
Published: 04/29/2021
Pages: 280
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.55lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.88d

Review Citation(s):
Choice 10/01/2022