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has been accused because of him need hand him over only if this is
accompanied by a declaration absolving himself of guilt.

“However [this is not so, for] even when writing in Darkei Moshe
the [Rema’s] intention is that there are others [who are innocent]
whom the authorities want to punish because of the forger, for this fits
the words ‘a person who harms the public.’ [i.e. because his misdeeds
will potentially take down other innocents], not [simply] owing to the
[monetary] damage they have sustained by mistakenly accepting his
forged coins and finding out that they have suffered financial loss…
[i.e. on its own, the financial loss that the forger’s activities cause oth-
ers does not permit handing him over to the authorities].

“At any rate in regard to a robber or a person who inflicts damage,
it is forbidden to hand them over to the authorities. No difficultly
is posed by the case of Rabbi Elazar ben Rabbi Shimon and Rabbi
Yishmael ben Rabbi Yosi in Bava Metzia (83b), for as Beis Yosef an-
swers (at the end of 388), since they were appointed by the ruler it is
different and he cites this from the Rashba.”

It appears that the Igros Moshe’s comments refer to a robber who
has transgressed in the past but who will no longer stumble. How-
ever, if he is a crook who steals from others constantly he should be
imprisoned for the additional goal of preventing him from sinning in
the future, as the Igros Moshe himself writes i.e. that before he steals
he can be beaten so that he refrains from future thievery5.

Moreover, in the response Eisan Ha’ezrachi (45) it is written: “I
constantly loudly protest against the leaders of the generation who
intervene on behalf of every robber or sinner who is imprisoned, to
obtain his freedom through bribes. This policy – among our many
sins – encourages the proliferation of crime and thievery. Every
person does what he wants and there are many sinners in our time,
almost to the point of our seeing – among our many sins – that most
robbers are Jews. Therefore, chas veshalom that we should pay even
a penny to exempt him from death. And if he abandons his religion

5. For further discussion of this idea see earlier, siman 54, ‘Response to Question
One.’

300 1 Medical-Halachic Responsa of Rav Zilberstein