Making Punishment Safe for Democracy: A Reply to Professors Bowers, Cahill & Duff

Virginia Journal Criminal Law, Vol. 1, pp. 205-263, 2012

60 Pages Posted: 28 Oct 2011 Last revised: 19 Mar 2012

See all articles by Dan Markel

Dan Markel

Florida State University College of Law (Deceased)

Date Written: March 16, 2012

Abstract

Professors Josh Bowers, Michael Cahill, and Antony Duff have each penned subtle and thoughtful response essays to my article, Retributive Justice and the Demands of Democratic Citizenship (available at http://ssrn.com/abstract=1930443).

In this essay, I try to offer some initial thoughts that I hope will adequately address their separate challenges and queries. With respect to the challenges they offer, I should say that, in a few places, I offer some concessions. In most others, however, I decline their invitations to reconsider my arguments about our moral obligations to conform to or to enforce what I call permissibly dumb but not illiberal laws. This penultimate version of the paper also includes some efforts at addressing some challenges recently (and separately) raised by Professor Eugene Volokh.

Professor Bowers' essay can be found at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1945743

Professor Cahill's essay can be found at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1950660

Keywords: retributivism, retributive justice, punishment theory, criminal justice, legal moralism

Suggested Citation

Markel, Dan, Making Punishment Safe for Democracy: A Reply to Professors Bowers, Cahill & Duff (March 16, 2012). Virginia Journal Criminal Law, Vol. 1, pp. 205-263, 2012, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1950321

Dan Markel (Contact Author)

Florida State University College of Law (Deceased)

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