Justice seems to be duty-based, so where does a utilitarian approach fit?
Example. You are the manager of a factory in a southern town. An outlaw has been terrorizing the town, committing a series of murders and workers are not showing up out of fear. The sheriff have been unable to track him down. Residents have taken matters into their own hands and have started rounding up innocent blacks in preparation for lynching. You have reason to believe that the outlaw has left town. The sheriff tells you that he recently captured a black man (homeless and friendless) on a charge of vagrancy. He is thinking of framing this man, and executing him, knowing that then the lynchings would stop, it would save the lives of many innocent people. A wink or a nod from you, and he will do it. Should you indicate your support? Utilitarians seem to be required to say yes, whereas duty-based ethicists would say no.
