1. You are taking an essay exam in a college classroom. The test is closed book and closed notes, yet you look up and see that the person sitting next to you has hidden under his blue book a piece of paper filled with notes, which he is using to answer some questions. What would you do? Would you answer change if the test was graded on curve? What if the student were a friend? What would you do if the student was flunking the course and was going to lose the scholarship he needed to stay in school? What about a situation of plagiarism? Would you turn in a student if you knew he or she had turned in a plagiarized paper? Why or why not? If someone cheats in school, isn’t it likely that he or she will be less honest as a criminal justice professional?
2. You are selected for a jury in a trial of a 64-year-old mother who killed her two adult sons. The two men had Huntington’s disease, a degenerative brain disease, and were institutionalized. They were certain to die and would endure much pain and suffering before they expired. The defendant’s husband had died from this same disease, and she had nursed him throughout his illness until his death. The defendant took a gun into the nursing home, kissed her sons good-bye, and then shot them both through the head. She was arrested for first-degree murder. The prosecutor informs you that there is no “mercy killing” defense in the law as it is written. If you were on the jury, how would you decide this case? What punishment does she serve?
