Whether the Judge Can Lawfully Remit the Punishment?
Objection 1: It would seem that the judge can lawfully remit the
punishment. For it is written (James 2:13): "Judgment without mercy"
shall be done "to him that hath not done mercy." Now no man is
punished for not doing what he cannot do lawfully. Therefore any
judge can lawfully do mercy by remitting the punishment.
Obj. 2: Further, human judgment should imitate the Divine judgment.
Now God remits the punishment to sinners, because He desires not the
death of the sinner, according to Ezech. 18:23. Therefore a human
judge also may lawfully remit the punishment to one who repents.
Obj. 3: Further, it is lawful for anyone to do what is profitable to
some one and harmful to none. Now the remission of his punishment
profits the guilty man and harms nobody. Therefore the judge can
lawfully loose a guilty man from his punishment.
_On the contrary,_ It is written (Deut. 13:8, 9) concerning anyone
who would persuade a man to serve strange gods: "Neither let thy eye
spare him to pity and conceal him, but thou shalt presently put him
to death": and of the murderer it is written (Deut. 19:12, 13): "He
shall die. Thou shalt not pity him."
_I answer that,_ As may be gathered from what has been said (AA. 2,
3), with regard to the question in point, two things may be observed
in connection with a judge. One is that he has to judge between
accuser and defendant, while the other is that he pronounces the
judicial sentence, in virtue of his power, not as a private
individual but as a public person. Accordingly on two counts a judge
is hindered from loosing a guilty person from his punishment. First
on the part of the accuser, whose right it sometimes is that the
guilty party should be punished--for instance on account of some
injury committed against the accuser--because it is not in the power
of a judge to remit such punishment, since every judge is bound to
give each man his right. Secondly, he finds a hindrance on the part
of the commonwealth, whose power he exercises, and to whose good it
belongs that evil-doers should be punished.
Nevertheless in this respect there is a difference between judges of
lower degree and the supreme judge, i.e. the sovereign, to whom the
entire public authority is entrusted. For the inferior judge has no
power to exempt a guilty man from punishment against the laws imposed
on him by his superior. Wherefore Augustine in commenting on John
19:11, "Thou shouldst not have any power against Me," says (Tract.
cxvi in Joan.): "The power which God gave Pilate was such that he was
under the power of Caesar, so that he was by no means free to acquit
the person accused." On the other hand the sovereign who has full
authority in the commonwealth, can lawfully remit the punishment to a
guilty person, provided the injured party consent to the remission,
and that this do not seem detrimental to the public good.
Reply Obj. 1: There is a place for the judge's mercy in matters that
are left to the judge's discretion, because in like matters a good
man is slow to punish as the Philosopher states (Ethic. v, 10). But
in matters that are determined in accordance with Divine or human
laws, it is not left to him to show mercy.
Reply Obj. 2: God has supreme power of judging, and it concerns Him
whatever is done sinfully against anyone. Therefore He is free to
remit the punishment, especially since punishment is due to sin
chiefly because it is done against Him. He does not, however, remit
the punishment, except in so far as it becomes His goodness, which is
the source of all laws.
Reply Obj. 3: If the judge were to remit punishment inordinately, he
would inflict an injury on the community, for whose good it behooves
ill-deeds to be punished, in order that men may avoid sin. Hence the
text, after appointing the punishment of the seducer, adds (Deut.
13:11): "That all Israel hearing may fear, and may do no more
anything like this." He would also inflict harm on the injured
person; who is compensated by having his honor restored in the
punishment of the man who has injured him.
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