Abstract In this article, I operationalize the classical retributive formulation of proportionality—lex talionis, or ``an eye for an eye''—to give some conservative estimates of what it might entail as a limit on the severity of permissible punishment. Respecting lex talionis would entail a radically lenient transformation of the criminal legal systems of the United States (and many other countries), reducing incarceration for nonhomicide offenses by at least an order of magnitude.
Christopher Lewis (Fri,) studied this question.