ABSTRACT
The abundant literature dealing with concepts of responsibility, rather than clarifying, becloud the basic issues involved. Criminal responsibility, rather than being a quality inherent in the individual, has customarily been assessed by juries and the law as to the justice of punishing the person for his legally disapproved acts. A constant theme in the literature is a linking of responsibility to the efficacy and justice of punishment. The justice of this control lies not in abstract rationalizations but in the humanity and efficacy of the disposition. If Diamond is correct, and his viewpoint cannot be ignored, abstractly debating the "justice" and the "ought-to-be's" as to what behavior should be criminally accountable grows increasingly meaningless. The solution would seem to lie on the disposition of cases, and some emerging concept of strict accountability for behavior based on the need and the right of society to protect itself.
