Criminal Justice, Ethics of: Aspects of Human Dignity

Abstract

Important ethical issues can be identified at many levels of crime control in the modern state, but one central issue is the difficulty of imposing limits on state power in the punishment of criminals. Because criminals are hated, their punishment is desired and more difficult to limit than state power in other areas of governance. The strategic importance of criminal punishment is thus in defining the minimum obligation of state to citizen. For this reason, prisoners' rights are always a necessary element in any human rights program to limit governmental power.