Case Study: The Shootings at Columbine High
Discussion 1: Ethics of Taking a Life
Resources
Government authorizes the taking of a human life in some cases and does not sanction it in others. This long-standing debate about what is right and wrong and what public administration's response should be in these situations raises interesting ethical debates for public administrators. Consider the following examples:
• You are a prison warden, responsible for executing murderers on death row.
• You are a public health clinic doctor who can prescribe drugs for assisted suicides in a state that allows euthanasia for terminal patients.
• You are a legislator responsible for making budgetary decisions that will benefit one population by eliminating life-saving services for another.
• You are a soldier in battle who is ordered to kill non-combatants.
Select one of these examples, and using consequentialist and nonconsequentialist theories to support your analysis. Argue whether or not the public servant has the duty to perform their task, even if it violates their personal ethics. Please remember that there is no clear right or wrong answer here, but your analysis of each example must be supported by the text and by other peer-reviewed sources. Remember to cite all sources that you use in your analysis.
Discussion 2: Consequences and Government
The act of governing means that something will happen to the public as a result of a decision by a public administrator. The act could be viewed as positive by some and negative by others. As hindsight is 20/20, it is much easier to criticize acts and their resulting consequences after an event is over. Examine the importance of consequences in our public systems.
Use the presentation in this unit on the shootings at Columbine High School and the readings on this subject in the Stillman case book, along with the ethical theories on consequences from the Thiroux and Krasemann text to:
• Identify some of the consequences of decisions made by public administrators in this case.
• Relate any weaknesses in ethical approaches of those involved to your theory bases of consequentialism and nonconsequentialism.
• Develop recommendations about how some of these ethical failures could have been avoided.
• Consider the case through the lens of ethical issues that arise.