Ignorance of Law
Ignorance of Law

Author: Douglas Husak

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2016-07-21

Total Pages: 321

ISBN-13: 0190604700

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This book argues that ignorance of law should usually be a complete excuse from criminal liability. It defends this conclusion by invoking two presumptions: first, the content of criminal law should conform to morality; second, mistakes of fact and mistakes of law should be treated symmetrically. The author grounds his position in an underlying theory of moral and criminal responsibility according to which blameworthiness consists in a defective response to the moral reasons one has. Since persons cannot be faulted for failing to respond to reasons for criminal liability they do not believe they have, then ignorance should almost always excuse. But persons are somewhat responsible for their wrongs when their mistakes of law are reckless, that is, when they consciously disregard a substantial and unjustifiable risk that their conduct might be wrong. This book illustrates this with examples and critiques the arguments to the contrary offered by criminal theorists and moral philosophers. It assesses the real-world implications for the U.S. system of criminal justice. The author describes connections between the problem of ignorance of law and other topics in moral and legal theory.

Ignorance of the Law Is No Excuse
Ignorance of the Law Is No Excuse

Author: Brian J. Willett

Publisher:

Published: 2014-05-03

Total Pages: 314

ISBN-13: 9781478730149

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"Ignorance of the Law is No Excuse" is the insightful book written by Double Board Certified attorney Brian J. Willett. This book depicts a common sense approach to understanding the Texas Criminal Justice system. The book is written for the "non attorney" and is filled with astute examples which explain many of the common criminal laws and procedures in the State of Texas. It includes information on topics such as family assaults, drugs, DWIs, weapon charges, sexual offenses, driver's license suspensions, bonds, juvenile law and criminal record expunctions.

The Unknowers
The Unknowers

Author: Linsey McGoey

Publisher: Zed Books Ltd.

Published: 2019-09-15

Total Pages: 335

ISBN-13: 1780326386

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Deliberate ignorance has been known as the ‘Ostrich Instruction’ in law courts since the 1860s. It illustrates a recurring pattern in history in which figureheads for major companies, political leaders and industry bigwigs plead ignorance to avoid culpability. So why do so many figures at the top still get away with it when disasters on their watch damage so many people’s lives? Does the idea that knowledge is power still apply in today’s post-truth world? A bold, wide-ranging exploration of the relationship between ignorance and power in the modern age, from debates over colonial power and economic rent-seeking in the 18th and 19th centuries to the legal defences of today, The Unknowers shows that strategic ignorance has not only long been an inherent part of modern power and big business, but also that true power lies in the ability to convince others of where the boundary between ignorance and knowledge lies.

Deliberate Ignorance
Deliberate Ignorance

Author: Ralph Hertwig

Publisher: MIT Press

Published: 2021-03-02

Total Pages: 398

ISBN-13: 0262045591

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Psychologists, economists, historians, computer scientists, sociologists, philosophers, and legal scholars explore the conscious choice not to seek information. The history of intellectual thought abounds with claims that knowledge is valued and sought, yet individuals and groups often choose not to know. We call the conscious choice not to seek or use knowledge (or information) deliberate ignorance. When is this a virtue, when is it a vice, and what can be learned from formally modeling the underlying motives? On which normative grounds can it be judged? Which institutional interventions can promote or prevent it? In this book, psychologists, economists, historians, computer scientists, sociologists, philosophers, and legal scholars explore the scope of deliberate ignorance.

On the Commonwealth
On the Commonwealth

Author: Marcus Tullius Cicero

Publisher: Lulu.com

Published: 2017-11-02

Total Pages: 94

ISBN-13: 1387338471

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On the Commonwealth represents Cicero's first serious attempt to bring Greek theories of political life to the circumstances of the Roman Republic. While some passages have been lost or reduced to fragments, it remains an important work of political philosophy and essential reading for political science students.

Criminally Ignorant
Criminally Ignorant

Author: Alexander Sarch

Publisher:

Published: 2019

Total Pages: 297

ISBN-13: 0190056576

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The willful ignorance doctrine says defendants should sometimes be treated as if they know what they don't. This book provides a careful defense of this method of imputing mental states. Though the doctrine is only partly justified and requires reform, it also demonstrates that the criminal law needs more legal fictions of this kind. The resulting theory of when and why the criminal law can pretend we know what we don't has far-reaching implications for legal practice and reveals a pressing need for change.

Democracy and Political Ignorance
Democracy and Political Ignorance

Author: Ilya Somin

Publisher: Stanford University Press

Published: 2013-10-02

Total Pages: 277

ISBN-13: 0804789312

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One of the biggest problems with modern democracy is that most of the public is usually ignorant of politics and government. Often, many people understand that their votes are unlikely to change the outcome of an election and don't see the point in learning much about politics. This may be rational, but it creates a nation of people with little political knowledge and little ability to objectively evaluate what they do know. In Democracy and Political Ignorance, Ilya Somin mines the depths of ignorance in America and reveals the extent to which it is a major problem for democracy. Somin weighs various options for solving this problem, arguing that political ignorance is best mitigated and its effects lessened by decentralizing and limiting government. Somin provocatively argues that people make better decisions when they choose what to purchase in the market or which state or local government to live under, than when they vote at the ballot box, because they have stronger incentives to acquire relevant information and to use it wisely.