Ethics and Legal Environment
The dilemma Garry faces first and foremost pertains to the public relations duties he possesses as CEO of the firm. He must consider how he frames Gabe's past actions to shareholders. Gabe was very young when he committed his past indiscretion and has paid his debt to society. People's negative views arise from their negative perceptions of criminals, not from the fact that Gabe has any legal issues he must resolve. Even in a court of law, however, there would be in most estimations a number of mitigating circumstances regarding Gabe's actions, including his desire to pay his tuition as well as the fact that Skeeter egged him on into participating. Gabe would not have likely have participated in his illegal actions without Skeeter's instigation. In this particular case the primary ethical norm at stake is one of justice or forgiveness when someone has paid his debt to society; Garry must keep this in mind when making his final decision (Kubasek, Brennan, & Browne 2015: 8).
The initial desire to forgive Gabe is not simply a reflection of Garry's gut instinct: it is also reflective of a very specific view sociological of the law which suggests that the law should be responsive to human needs and the dynamic nature of the environment, versus adhering to a rigid set of norms (Kubasek, Brennan, & Browne 2015: 19). Some critical (Marxist) legal theorists might point out a class-based argument for Gabe's indiscretion. Gabe's poverty and struggles through school seem to be the main motivator in his decision to engage in robbery. Gabe was pursuing a degree at the time and was struggling between keeping his scholarship...
The children of the wealthy do not need to make such a choice but rather are supported in their academic endeavors both financially and emotionally. They have less of an incentive to engage in illegal activities. Gabe did not have anyone to turn to for financial advice or psychological support. As a result, he (some might say inevitably) engaged in criminal behavior (Kubasek, Brennan, & Browne 2015: 20). Critical legal theorists stress that law is not a reflection of morality but rather of power interests. For example, someone who engaged in white collar crime such as transgressing the laws pertaining to buying and selling investments would very likely get a far lesser sentence than Gabe.
The problem which might arise is that Gabe is being asked to serve on the board of a firearms company. This could create a bad image for an already much-criticized industry, given that Gabe's crime took place with a firearm. Another issue is the question of disclosure. Gabe did not immediately disclose his previous criminal record to Garry when Garry made his initial decision and Gabe presumably should have had the knowledge that this might be a possible factor in Gerry's decision-making process.
As CEO Garry has a duty to the shareholders of the company to ensure that the company remains profitable. This means avoiding the consequences of negative public relations, even though he himself may believe that Gabe has put his past behind him. Even if on a personal, moral basis Garry believes that Gabe's past is irrelevant, he has legal obligations to uphold the integrity of the…
