The Importance of Placing Blame: Criminal Law and the Stabilization of Norms

This article argues that the function of criminal law and of punishment consists in stabilizing norms by ascribing culpability. A theoretical and sociological examination of the mechanism of placing blame reveals that it consists of three elements. Blame is placed only if a capable addressee of norms is present (personhood), if this person was in the time of offending competent enough to question a norm (competence), and if this person actually communicated a negation of this norm (message). If these requirements are met, an act destabilizes the norm effectively, and punishment becomes necessary. The fault requirement therefore is crucial for fulfilling criminal law’s function, i.e. the stabilization of norms within society by means of punishment. In outlining the social importance of placing blame, this article establishes a basis for both a sociological approach to and a normative discussion regarding theories of punishment and of responsibility, and discloses that respecting the principle of culpability is not only an expression of justice but also one of social necessity.