A communitarian strand of thought has
come to renewed prominence in criminal theory. Philosophically, under the
heading “reconstructivism,” the theory argues that criminal law’s organizing
end is not chiefly retribution or utility, but the reconstruction of a community’s
shared ethical life in the wake of a crime. Politically, under the heading
“democratization,” the theory argues that the United State’s
present crisis of criminal justice is rooted in a set of bureaucratic attitudes, structures,
and incentives divorced from the American public’s concerns and sense of
justice. The primary solution is to make criminal justice more community
focused and responsive to lay influences. This panel will discuss these
“reconstructive” and “democratizing” ideas. What should legal philosophers and
criminal lawyers make of them? Are they consistent with political liberalism,
and if not, is that a problem? What do
they imply for downstream issues of criminalization, sentencing, procedure,
policing, and related
considerations?
The Section Award ceremony will take place after the conclusion of Panel 1.