Introduction Living in a society means following the rules and principles established by it. However, in a range of cases, the necessity to depart from the black and white world of ethics appears to evaluate a certain dilemma. As a result, a person that has committed a crime may arouse more sympathy than their victim. At this point, the fact that there are laws of ethics and legal laws should be brought up. What is viewed as a crime (e.g., stealing medicine) may be viewed as redeemable from a certain ethical dimension (e.g., stealing medicine to save someone’s life)? Therefore, the question to be answered can be paraphrased as “is it impermissible to break a legal regulation even once committing a crime means following the laws of ethics?” This triggers an immediate question concerning the need to punish such a criminal. Thesis statement Since the very existence of the society is based on compliance with a specific set of regulations, breaking the law must never be regarded as a permissible action; however, the ethical implications that a certain crime may have should be used as extenuating circumstances. Literary Reference The issue of crime and punishment became a literary trope quite a while ago; as a result, a range of novels, poems and other types of literature feature the ethical dilemma in question, also known as the principle of double effect (Kelly, Magill and Have 108). Among the most famous literary characters, who were forced to step on the slippery road of crime for the greater good, Jean Valjean should be mentioned. While the punishment that he took was entirely out of proportion to what he had done, the fact is that he still was a criminal. Valjean’s severe punishment displays the failure of the judicial system of the time, yet it would be wrong to claim that Javert is a monster because he does not let the thief go. Quite on the contrary, Javert does exactly what he is supposed to do, i.e., he catches the thief. It could be argued that Javert’s attempts to bring logic and justice into the chaos of the French Revolution seem rather pathetic; however, he believes that his efforts keep the society from disintegrating completely (Kang 165). Real World Reference The principle of double effect is part and parcel of reality as well. The discussions around the issue of euthanasia are a graphic example of people fighting over the conflict between the ethics of justice and the laws that make its basis. On the one hand, killing another person or assisting someone with suicide is clearly against the basic regulations, which declare that human life is the greatest value of society. On the other hand, the suffering, which one may put a dying person through, may be truly torturous compared to a comparatively painless procedure of euthanasia. The problem becomes all the more difficult to address as soon as other people factor in, therefore, making a case for suspicions regarding them benefitting from the patient’s death (e.g., the patient leaving someone an impressive inheritance). Again, the healthcare professional, who agrees to carry out a euthanasia procedure, face the threat of becoming a criminal based on the legal principles, according to which the society works, i.e., committin