PrepTest 152, Section 3, Question 19

Working the answers

• A

  This is a rule for parents about producing shame in their children. A proposes a change to criminal justice, not a general ban on every response that could make someone feel ashamed. The answer extends the recommendation into a different setting.

• B

  Excluding jurors because they refuse to assign blame protects blame's place in the process. That goes in the opposite direction from A's recommendation to remove it.

• C

  Strict guidelines for expert testimony don't tell us whether the testimony will be used to assign blame or assess future behavior. This procedural rule doesn't implement the policy distinction A makes.

• D

  A uses brain science as a reason to reconsider blame. It doesn't recommend distrusting science because scientists' own reasoning might be physically determined. This changes the subject to the credibility of the research.

• E
  Correct

  The court can examine motives to assess the risk of another offense, but not to decide how blameworthy the person is. That matches both halves of A's recommendation. Looking at facts about a past act isn't automatically backward looking in the objectionable sense; what matters is the purpose. Here the court uses the information to anticipate future conduct rather than assign culpability. B doesn't advocate excluding that latter use.