Why Doesn't Batman Kill?

[Agent Z]

He was a malevolent spirit possessing a body that wasn't his.

Is exorcism murder?

No. but the again I wasn't aware shooting someone who was being a danger to others counted as "murder". Seriously does that word mean different things to people on the Internet?

[Electricmastro]

Bruce helping kill Nazi soldiers in The Brave and the Bold #84 (June, 1969).

[Gotham citizen]

Why doesn't Batman kill?
I think this is one of the best answer we can have:

[Electricmastro]

Why doesn't Batman kill?
I think this is one of the best answer we can have:

Batman #420 (June, 1988).

[charliehustle415]

Batman #420 (June, 1988).

But he didn't kill him per se

It's the Batman Begins rule "I won't kill you, but I don't have to save you either."

But then again he did board him up; Batman was strait up killing peeps.


Nevertheless, I think modern Batman doesn't kill because it would be too easy. In this day and age it would be easy to justify any kind of killing with enough leaps in logic and if Batman did that he wouldn't be an exemplar of the people, a paragon of justice or an ideal to strive for.

Sometimes we want someone who follows the letter of the law to show us that said laws are just and fair; i.e. Thou Shalt Not Kill

[Korath]

It's not as clear cut as some examples, but it seems to be implied that Batman doesn't kill because he "protect" the child Bruce Wayne from his own anger and rage in the last issue of BatO :

[batnbreakfast]

The question is not why does Batman not kill its why does in-continuity Batman not kill? In-continuity Batman does not kill because its not his decision to make. He enforces the law, protects and takes out immediate threats. Everything else is decided by a judge or law enforcement. Movie Batman or out-of-continuity-Batman can kill to have an arc or a cool on-screen moment

[Electricmastro]

Another history lesson: Batman using an amulet which kills murderous cultists in Batman #271 (January, 1976):

[Frobisher]

Because he’s a hypocrite. The villains always get out of Arkham and kill more innocents, but at least little Bruce’s conscience is clear.

[Gotham citizen]

But he didn't kill him per se

It's the Batman Begins rule "I won't kill you, but I don't have to save you either."

But then again he did board him up; Batman was strait up killing peeps.


Nevertheless, I think modern Batman doesn't kill because it would be too easy. In this day and age it would be easy to justify any kind of killing with enough leaps in logic and if Batman did that he wouldn't be an exemplar of the people, a paragon of justice or an ideal to strive for.

Sometimes we want someone who follows the letter of the law to show us that said laws are just and fair; i.e. Thou Shalt Not Kill

If I remember well in "Batman: year three" it was revealed he called the Police in order to arrest KGBeast, so he didn't kill anybody; directly or indirectly.

Another history lesson: Batman using an amulet which kills murderous cultists in Batman #271 (January, 1976):

An history lesson to the history teacher: in that point of the story Batman had only two possibilities left: do what the cultists wanted: keep the amulet and explode with it or trow away the amulet and escape from the cultists; what would you have done in his place?
Anyway he didn't used the amulet to kill the cultists: like it was explained in the following page, he used the explosion of the amulet to trap the cultists in the basement of their base in order to (I quote): «…keep 'em safely coped up 'till the Gordon's brigade arrives.»

[Electricmastro]

Batman throwing Dugger into electrified cables, electrocuting him to his death (Batman #290, August 1977):

[Robanker]

Before any excuse, it's because he doesn't want to become the same thing that took his parents. He doesn't want to. It's for him. He moralizes it a lot, he often claims murder is a lot like Pringles, but deep down it's because Bruce can't bring himself to do it. He just doesn't want to be a killer.

[SiegePerilous02]

Batman #420 (June, 1988).

This one was retconned pretty much immediately though. KGBeast (dumb character) kept popping up throughout the post-Crisis canon, so clearly he did not die.

[Electricmastro]

This one was retconned pretty much immediately though. KGBeast (dumb character) kept popping up throughout the post-Crisis canon, so clearly he did not die.

That’s not quite the point, as what happened after is not quite relevant here.

Before any excuse, it's because he doesn't want to become the same thing that took his parents. He doesn't want to. It's for him. He moralizes it a lot, he often claims murder is a lot like Pringles, but deep down it's because Bruce can't bring himself to do it. He just doesn't want to be a killer.

Joe Chill killed to steal. If one unintentionally kills in defending one’s self or the society they want to protect, then is it really exactly the same?

[The Cool Thatguy]

The question is not why does Batman not kill its why does in-continuity Batman not kill? In-continuity Batman does not kill because its not his decision to make. He enforces the law, protects and takes out immediate threats. Everything else is decided by a judge or law enforcement. Movie Batman or out-of-continuity-Batman can kill to have an arc or a cool on-screen moment

Yeah, this.

Why isn't it the fault of law enforcement that criminals keep escaping?

I really wish writers would stop jumping up and down on the suspension of disbelief when it comes to escaping and killing. It's like watching the Wizard of Oz, only throughout the entire movie someone is yelling 'Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain'