intent matters when you judge a person, but not when you judge their actions. the bad parent is a good example. if someone tries hard to be a good parent, but c

intent matters when you judge a person, but not when you judge their actions. the bad parent is a good example. if someone tries hard to be a good parent, but can't actually take care of their child, it might be necessary to remove the child from that situation, but we might first see if there isn't a way to help that person fulfill their parental duties. on the other hand, if a parent harms their child through malice, not only would we want to place the child in a different home, but we might pursue additional punitive action against the parent. intent can't separate actions from their necessary consequences, but it is important to consider before imposing additional consequences on a person.