Texas was the last state to hold corporations criminally responsible. Why have so few prosecutions of corporations occurred in the intervening four decades?
What will be an ideal response?
Answers will vary but students might argue that:
• Few prosecutions exist because corporations overwhelmingly do not violate traditional criminal offenses.
• Most wrongful behavior by corporations is kept in check by regulatory agencies using civil penalties.
• Little political motivation exists for elected district attorneys to aggressively scrutinize corporate conduct.
• Such investigations and prosecutions would be time-consuming and expensive; local prosecutors lack the resources to initiate such cases unless egregious conduct was involved.
• Major corporate criminal violations are likely to also violate federal law; due to its resources, the federal government is in a better position to pursue such prosecutions.
• Establishing which high managerial agent made the requisite decision may be difficult to prove in court.
• It is easier to pursue criminal prosecutions against the individuals who commit a crime than to attempt to establish that they engaged in the conduct primarily to benefit the corporation.
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The most common form of punishment for treason is:
a. death c. deportation b. life in prison d. probation