[SOLVED] Categorical Imperative or with Utilitarianism
You are the ethics advisor to the sheriff of a small town in the 1960s, which is experiencing extreme racial unrest. There is a murder of the civil rights leader, who did not advocate violence. You know that there will be many riots, and many innocent people, including children and elderly, will be killed, if the murderer is not found today. Furthermore, you know that the actual murderer is gone, and will never kill again, but you cannot prove this, and you cannot catch him (let us ignore for now how you can know this).A homeless person wanders into town that day. He has no family, no friends, no job, and no connections. You know that if the homeless man is framed for the crime, and he is immediately tried and executed, you can subvert the riots, and guarantee peace in the town. If you don’t, then you know that there will be riots, and many innocent people will die. These are your only two options, and you must act today.what would you advise that the sheriff do, and why? Is your decision consistent with the Categorical Imperative, or with Utilitarianism? Develop your answer as a defense of your choice, but also as a defense of one or the other of these moral theories.
