SMUGGLING

The clandestine importation or exportation of goods in violation of the civil law. Those who engage in it do so for the purpose of evading the payment of duty or customs charges, or of circumventing absolute prohibitions on the export or import of certain commodities. That smuggling is widespread cannot be doubted, although the secrecy with which the smuggler operates makes it impossible to obtain accurate statistics.

There is no difficulty for the moralist in the case of those products that are legally forbidden as harmful or dangerous, e.g., narcotics. Smuggling such goods is clearly sinful since the legal prohibition is, in most cases at any rate, declarative of natural law. But with regard to secret importation or exportation of goods to avoid the payment of taxes, moralists are not agreed. Some insist that all civil laws impose a true obligation in conscience (provided they are just laws), at least by reason of legal justice, or, as some would say, social justice. This opinion was at one time the general teaching of moralists, before the development of the theory of purely penal law and is still defended by many authorities. Others hold that many civil laws are purely penal—that is, they oblige in conscience only to the payment of the penalty if one is caught, and not to obedience to the law itself. All advocates of this opinion number indirect taxes, of which customs charges are a prime example, among those laws that are purely penal. These authors hold that smuggling itself does not involve moral fault. Apart from scandal, bribery, or some other immoral circumstances, one who evades the payment of these charges by smuggling is not guilty of sin. This more lenient opinion is probable enough to be used in practice.

Whatever their teaching on smuggling in general, however, moralists are agreed that one who engages in smuggling as a profession cannot be excused from moral fault. Great harm is done to civil society and to the common good by an attitude of habitual disregard for the law. Moreover, a professional smuggler places himself in danger of bringing harm upon himself and his dependents. And finally, professional smugglers are ordinarily so disposed that they are prepared to defend themselves, even by use of violence, against legitimate guardians of the law.

Nor is there any disagreement among moralists in stating that those who make use of bribery or fraud to evade customs taxes are guilty of sin against legal and also commutative justice.

Bibliography: r. brouillard, Catholicisme 3:146–148. m. t. crowe, The Moral Obligation of Paying Just Taxes (Catholic University of America Studies in Sacred Theology 84; Washington 1944). j. mccarthy, Problems in Theology, 2 v. (Westminster, MD 1956–60) v. 2 The Commandments, 308–311, 324–329, 400–403.

[j. p. browne]