Ethics Of Killing

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“Murder is the unlawful killing of a human being with malice after thought… whoever is guilty of murder in the first degree shall be punished by death or imprisonment for life.( 18 U.S. Code 1111 - Murder)” There is a debate as to whether killing is or is not right. The first word that may come to one’s mind when the word killing is mentioned might be murder, which is illegal, but they are not the same. Murder is a type of killing but there are also many other types. One of the debates about killing is if killing in war should be legal. Another debate is on self defense and if killing is okay when the victim kills the criminal under the means of self defense. There are many types of killing some deembed ‘okay’ and some that are not. Killing …show more content…

In war, killing is not illegal due to the wording of the law. The law states that “Murder is the unlawful killing of a human being…( 18 U.S. Code 1111 - Murder)” According to the Department of Defense Law of War Manual, “killing, wounding, or other warlike acts are not individual crimes or offenses, if they are done under military authority and are not prohibited by the law of war. (Stephen W. Preston, 5)” This means that killing, under the means listed above, is legal which means that killing is not murder and therefore legal. Legal means ‘okay’ to many people. Killing in self defense is also technically legal depending on the situation. The rule about self defense is that a person should only use as much force as required to fend-off the attacker. You may only use a deadly force only is the case that the attacker is using a deadly force (Self Defence). If killing the other person is the only way to save yourself, and potentially other people,this mean that killing is ‘okay’ and legal in most situations. There are different types of murder such as first degree, second degree, manslaughter, justifiable homicide, and other homicides. The murder/ homicide that is considered ‘okay’ by law, and most people, is justifiable homicide. Justifiable homicide is not considered criminal at all and is not defined as murder (Murder Law). In the instances of war, self defence, and any type of justifiable homicide, killing is okay and not necessarily

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