Introduction
Consider again the Gilligan’s Island scenario.
Assume that, following your ruling in the Professor’s case, the new society realized that it should enact some laws that embody the values of the people. The citizens elected a twenty-person legislative body and authorized that representative group to adopt any laws they believe to be fair and just. The legislative body quickly and without debate enacted the following statute:
Any person who kills another person shall be guilty of murder and shall be sentenced to death or life in prison.
Some months later, Mr. Thurston Howell, III injured his back while helping to build a new community center. To help relieve the pain, Mr. Howell took a powerful herbal pain reliever before going to sleep. The herbs not only help relieve Mr. Howell’s pain and allow him to sleep but make his dreams unusually vivid. During that particular night, Mr. Howell dreamed that he was being attacked by a lion. While still asleep, Mr. Howell believed that he was subduing the lion that was attacking him. In reality, Mr. Howell suffocated Mrs. Howell with a pillow, killing her.
You are the duly elected judge on the island. The island constable arrested Mr. Howell and brought him before you for trial on murder charges. Mr. Howell admitted he killed Mrs. Howell but claimed that the killing was not against the law because it was an accident and he certainly did not intend to kill his wife. As the judge, you must decide what the statute means.
For this assignment, first, write a decision for this case similar to what you wrote earlier in the course. Should you apply the plain meaning of the statute and find Mr. Howell guilty of murder? Or should you go beyond the plain meaning and conclude that the legislative body surely would have exempted killing under these circumstances had they thought of it?
Your decision paper should address the following:
What arguments support your decision?
What undesirable consequences could result from that decision?
