ABSTRACT
The maximum amount of blameworthiness exists when the actor foresees that the harm will certainly ensue. When all other things are equal, the person who is practically certain that his act will cause the bad result is more blameworthy than the person who takes. The offence of causing the result with direct intention encompasses all cases in which the actor desires the result to ensue, including when there is only a little chance that the result will ensue. A possible explanation for the idea that the blameworthiness of the actor increases in proportion to the degree of probability of the result being caused concerns the character of the actor as manifested in the action. In proceeding to determine, from a utilitarian perspective, whether to take a certain course of action in order to achieve some good result, the actor has to take into consideration the bad side effects that his action may produce.
