Disclaimer - Not a tu quoque argument.
When (secular) governments punish criminals they too are invariably
also punishing the families of those criminals.
Capital punishment clearly deals a devastating blow, creating widows and orphans. Incarceration deprives many families of their sole bread winner. The legacy of a criminal record is an
albatross around the neck of more people than just the convict.
What is the secular rebuttal and justification for this modern version of
visiting the sins of the father on the sons? Its much the same as the theological apologetic rationalization.
Namely, that it is
the sins of the father, which are the primary and sole cause of what ensues, not the punishment itself. The courts and the legal system may very well warn potential criminals of such long term consequences, (as a deterrent,) but the legal system is not accused of being unjust or deliberately inflicting these consequences on the families of criminals.
There's many a 'deadbeat dad' whose sins get visited upon his children.
Frank Gallagher - Shameless (TV series)