Business Ethics 301 Case Study

Module 1 Case Assignment: Should Justin Ellsworth's Parents have been given access to his email?

By: Roger Waldo

Ethics 301

Professor: Dr. Johnny M. Vanneste

21 July 12

Waldo 1

Should Justin Ellsworth's Parents have been given access to his email?

As a service member, this article hits close to home. This is a tough situation for any family to endure. One can clearly see both sides of the argument and can draw clear conclusions to either side. The emotional answer is clearly yes, but one must look at not just the poignant aspect of it, but at the legal ramifications this could have in the future or with any other type of electronic medium of communications in the future.

According to this young Marine’s parents, all they wanted was to see their son’s last words, thoughts, pictures. Anything that might have given them an insight as to perhaps what frame of mind their son was in prior to his death. Was there something written on those emails that would ease their pain? Maybe or maybe not, but they felt as though they were entitled to “everything” that belonged to their son and that included his electronic correspondence. To their dismay, it was not going to be as easy as contacting Yahoo! asking for the password and Yahoo! complying with their request.

As one ponders the answer to this question, it makes one realize how personal privacy can be, it can also be a very sensitive and complex topic to discuss and or define. In many internet blogs there were numerous people ready to give their opinion on what should happen. One blogger wrote in the Christian Science Monitor: If the soldier had wanted his family to read his e-mail, then he would have CC'd or BCC'd them. This statement is very true, but how does one really know what a deceased person’s wishes were?

Waldo 2

Maybe Mr. Ellsworth didn’t mind or did want his parents to have the belongings of his emails. That question, if answered would have made this issue disappear. As...