Public, Private, and Extra-Judicial Killing

Over the past decade, U.S. officials have taken steps to institutionalize the practice of targeted killing of persons outside an identifiable war zone. In the past, such a policy would have been described as extra-judicial killings. Advocates of this policy claim that the practice is permissible bec...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Iffland, Craig (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: [publisher not identified] [2016]
In: Proceedings of the American Catholic Philosophical Association
Year: 2016, Volume: 90, Pages: 217-226
IxTheo Classification:KAE Church history 900-1300; high Middle Ages
KDB Roman Catholic Church
NCD Political ethics
Online Access: Volltext (Verlag)
Volltext (doi)
Description
Summary:Over the past decade, U.S. officials have taken steps to institutionalize the practice of targeted killing of persons outside an identifiable war zone. In the past, such a policy would have been described as extra-judicial killings. Advocates of this policy claim that the practice is permissible because the executive reviews and authorizes every targeted strike. I examine the tenability of this claim in light of Aquinas's understanding of the natural principles of justice and their implication for our definition of murder and the duties of a sovereign judge to those subject to his judgment. I conclude that Aquinas's understanding of murder is expansive enough to include the use of lethal force by public authorities when it proceeds from an act of judgment that disregards a presumption of innocence for the accused and her right to a fair trial.
ISSN:2153-7925
Contains:Enthalten in: American Catholic Philosophical Association, Proceedings of the American Catholic Philosophical Association
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.5840/acpaproc201822775