Commentary Throughout the history of modern nations, most fair-minded people have agreed that equal treatment under the law is a categorical imperative for a just society. In the traditional Anglo-American justice system, it’s regarded as cruel and unusual to impose widely different sanctions for similar offenses. For several decades after the American Civil War, ongoing racial inequality weakened the credibility of a justice system that was intended to treat everyone fairly. Other countries have a history of similar disparities with regard to class or religious distinctions. The subsequent success and global influence of the American civil rights movement did much to discredit the practice of disproportionate justice and fortify the principle of equality before the law. Parallel Cases Produce Incongruent Outcomes For most citizens, returning to an era in which there was one set of rules for aristocrats and another for the common man would be unthinkable. And yet, this …