The Right to an Occupational License - Research Paper Example

 This paper gives the personal opinions of this student on nine hypothetical case study questions. 1. The Right to Vote. (a) Citizen A should be allowed to vote while in prison if the general requirements to vote are met; namely, that the person is 18 years of age, is a US citizen, and meets the residency requirements of his or her state (Fact Monster). Hospitalized psychiatric patients and people with a low IQ (45 or lower) should be ineligible to vote even though these three requirements are met because of their inability to have a good understanding of the electoral system generally as well as with respect to the candidates running for various offices. Convicted felons with the same characteristics should also be exempt from voting. There might also be a residency issue because the prisoner may be serving time in an institution that is not in his or her home state and, therefore, may not meet the residency requirement. All that being said, this student believes that prisoners should be able to vote in that they are likely affected as much as any ordinary citizen by who wins. Furthermore, if felons could vote, perhaps an interest in the upcoming election could occur, thereby giving the prisoners a greater understanding and appreciation for the law. (b) This student’s answer for 1 (a) was not no, but I would just like to say that I can see no reason why a prisoner let out into the community should not be able to vote. This student wonders why after a prisoner has served his or her time he would not enjoy the same rights as all the eligible citizens who have not served time. The released individual should not have to apply to have his or her voting rights restored. SCENARIOS 3 (c) This student’s answer would be no different if Citizen A were an ordinary member of the community. 2. The Right to Hold Public Office. (a) Citizen B, basically, committed several offences; namely, sexual harassment per se; intimidation; and firing an employee who would not acquiesce to her demands. Although the question states that she successfully “served” her two years of probation, it gives no indication that she carried out appropriate community service and/or took counselling designed to help her to understand her behaviour and to refrain from it in the future. She did not serve jail time and, apparently, did not make restitution to the fired employee. Consequently, at this time, I do not believe that she should be allowed to hold public office. (b) I certainly would not vote for her at this time. I might reconsider ten years from now if she has done some community service, made restitution to the fired employee, undergone appropriate counselling, and led an exemplary life. 3. The Right to Public Employment (a) There is insufficient information in this question to give an intelligent answer. All we are told is that this man beat up his wife and served one year in jail. We do not know if he was prone to beating up people, what work he did prior to his incarceration, or obtained psychological help for his aggression. As a janitor in a community college he would come across situations that could result in a negative reaction, which could involve the students. I am, therefore, not in favour of hiring him. (b) I would definitely not hire him back as a professor in the community college. The students, faculty and administration would know the situation and SCENARIOS 4 could find the situation quite embarrassing. Certainly, he would make a poor role model for the students and could prove dangerous. (c) My answer would definitely be the same. 4. The Right to an Occupational License (a) D should definitely not be allowed to practice medicine while on probation. D, who is a medical doctor, was convicted of two things; namely, having an affair with a neighbour’s wife and, then, shooting the neighbour when the affair was discovered. An oath that most physicians take is, “First do no harm....” This student realizes that this is meant in the context of patient care; but also in that same context it says not to seduce women in a home one is entering for the purpose of caring for the ill. Personally, I could not trust a physician who has violated those vows and others without even going to jail, doing community service, or taking counselling. (b) Yes, D should be denied an occupational licence if he violates the terms of his probation and serves two years in prison for the offense. 5. The Wisdom of a Private Employer I will not hire this applicant. He admits to still using drugs occasionally and is in a rehabilitation program, not somebody with whom I would want my customers in contact. If he came back in a couple of years for a job and could prove that he has furthered his education, has finished his rehabilitation program, has not taken any drugs for a couple of years, and is involved in positive community activities, I would consider hiring him. 6. The Right to Own a Firearm. SCENARIOS 5 (a) No, I do not agree that Citizen E should be deprived of his right to own a firearm since prior to the incident he was an avid hunter and a member of a local gun club and may wish to continue these activities upon release. He has paid for his one breeching of the law with a very stiff sentence and been a model prisoner throughout. I would, however, make this conditional upon his having taken anger management courses. (b) Yes, my answer would be the same if he shot a burglar. (c) He should forfeit access to his firearms for two years during which time he should take anger management courses and carry out appropriate community service. 7. Provision for Sex Offender Registration and Notification. There should be no exceptions for offenders like F, regardless of whether or not I believe he is innocent. There must have been quite a bit of evidence against him for him to be in jail, and I do not believe that we should risk the well being of our children in case he is not innocent. 8. The Right to a Pardon Considering that the now nearly 100% reliable DNA test ruled out the convicted classmate of the crime and incriminated someone else at the party, Citizen G should be pardoned as soon as possible, all his rights reinstated, and his good name cleared. 9. The Decision to Expunge or Seal He was 15 when placed in a juvenile state institution for a string of offenses and is now 18. It does not say for how much of this three year period he was in the institution, nor about his activities since his release. I would neither seal nor expunge his record at this time. I would consider sealing his record after three years if he has been offence free until then. A sealed record still exists, an expunged one does not, therefore, it makes sense not to expunge a record that has been sealed. My decision would remain the same if his only offense was the burglary. SCENARIOS 6 References Fact Monster. Who Can Vote and Who Can be Elected. Retrieved on February 17, 2012, From http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/AO878573.html. Read More