Doubting Free Will: Three Experiments

This moral presumption against infliction of suffering has particular relevance in the field of criminal law because, as a system of retribution, the criminal justice system is institutionally committed to the infliction of human suffering. Simply put, suffering is inflicted to make people “pay” for the crimes that they commit. Of course, the criminal justice system often has other goals as well (e.g., prevention of crime through deterrence, incapacitation or rehabilitation). Nonetheless, insofar as retribution remains a significant force shaping criminal justice policy, the intentional infliction of human suffering is the aim.