Limits of Criminal Law from Natural Law Theory Perspective. Can Mercy Be a Reason for a Lack of Penalization of Some Immoral Acts?

Paweł Boike48-64

Abstract: Limits of Criminal Law from Natural Law Theory Perspective. Can Mercy Be a Reason for a Lack of Penalization of Some Immoral Acts?

The question of which acts should be criminalized and which should not raises a lot of controversy in modern pluralistic societies. The theory of natural law understood as an ethical theory delineates a rather wide range of immoral acts compared to alternative directions, without assuming that the instrument for enforcing morality must be the criminal law. The author subjects Aquinas’ premises for criminalization to a deeper analysis considering also the arguments about mercy, recently discussed in the context of criminal law. Can the legislator narrow the scope of criminalized acts because of mercy?

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