In criminal law, the state takes action against an individual who has committed an act so unacceptable that all of society is offended by it. Theft and assault are examples of crimes that harm all of society, not just their immediate victims. Reprehensible crimes such as these threaten to degrade the moral fiber of an entire society. Reaction to them is not left only to their immediate victims, but also society collectively reacts to crime because everyone is harmed by it.

After a crime has been committed, a prosecutor representing either a locality, the state, or the entire country files charges against the perpetrator. If found guilty, a convicted criminal will usually serve time in jail. Criminal law isolates a criminal who might otherwise continue to act unacceptably and harm others. It deters unacceptable conduct by others who prefer not to face the same consequences as the criminal who has been made an example. Criminal law also provides vengeance for a society that feels the need to strike back at a person who has broken wellestablished rules of conduct.

In the case presented here, a pharmacist has been charged with both manslaughter (a relatively serious crime) and misbranding (a relatively minor crime). As you read this case, ask yourself what the purpose of criminal law is and if that purpose is being met by this prosecution. Also, ask yourself what the consequences might be if pharmacists were to be held criminally liable for an error in order processing. If any pharmacist who makes a mistake in filling a prescription is a criminal, how many pharmacists are criminals at some point during their decades-long careers?