Asklemmy

I know this is a few days old, but thinking about it again, I'm reminded of this clip I saw from Orange is the New Black. To summarize, the clip is a flashback to explain how Suzanne ("Crazy Eyes") wound up in prison. She's an autistic woman whose sister/caretaker leaves her alone for a weekend, without arranging alternative care, to go on a vacation. She befriends a child, who she seems to connect with easily as they are on a similar mental level, and the kid follows her home to hang out and play video games. After the child says it's time for him to go home, she becomes upset, blocking the front door to prevent him leaving. He attempts to call 911 and she grabs the phone and hangs up, confused, telling him that he should only call 911 for emergencies. Panicked, the child attempts to crawl out a window to escape, accidentally falling to his death.

What would you say is more important here, intention or perception? I think it depends on who you are. For the child's parents, perception matters more. Their child is dead. That Suzanne didn't intend for it to happen is of little consolation. For Suzanne, maybe intention matters the most. For the courts, both matter; she's proven herself unsafe to be around to the public, yet the fact she didn't intend to cause harm is supposed to be taken into account too, perhaps for lighter sentencing. In a better world, she would be given help instead of incarcerated because of her intention, and perhaps her caretaker would be held partially responsible.