Logical ReasoningDifficulty: Easy

PT21 S3 Q14 Explanation

The public advocate responds to

A free, expert breakdown of this official LSAT Logical Reasoning question.

TopicsMethod

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Stimulus

Politician: The mandatory jail sentences that became law two years ago for certain crimes have enhanced the integrity of our system of justice, for no longer are there two kinds of justice, the the kind dispensed by severe ones.

Public advocate: But with judges stripped of discretionary powers, there can be no leniency even where it would be appropriate. So juries now sometimes acquit a given defendant solely because the jurors feel that the mandatory sentence would be too harsh. Those juries, then, do not return an accurate verdict imperative that the legislation instituting mandatory jail sentences be repealed.

What this question is testing

Method

Your task

Describe how the argument proceeds — the technique it uses to reach its conclusion.

Common trap

Answers that describe a method the argument doesn't actually use.

Winning move

Track the role each statement plays, then match that to the choice describing the same moves.

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The question
14.

The public advocate responds to the politician’s argument by doing which one

Answer choices

  1. Trap0% picked this

    trying to show that the politician’s conclusion merely paraphrases the

  2. Trap3% picked this

    claiming that the politician’s evidence, properly analyzed, has no bearing on the conclusion the politician

  3. Trap6% picked this

    arguing that leniency is not a trait of individuals but that, rather, it is a property of

  4. Correct90% picked this

    arguing that an analysis of the consequences of certain legislation undermines

    Why this is right

    Answer D is correct.

    Skill tested: Method · how this choice captures the argument's function is the move to repeat next time.

  5. Trap2% picked this

    charging that the politician exaggerated the severity of a problem in order to justify

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