Notes from a Class on al-Fāsī: On the Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Bava Kamma

It is taught [in a baraita]: He who enters the courtyard of a property owner without permission, [if the owner’s ox gores him and he dies, the ox is stoned, while the owner is exempt from paying ransom]. [b. Bava Kamma 23b]

Isaac al-Fāsī

Know that every beast that kills a person must be killed, in every case. It does not matter whether the owners are exempt from having to pay ransom or not. It does not matter whether it is a public area or the domain of the injured party.

Moses Maimonides

R. Moses justified it and said, “The reason [the ox is killed] is that it is a financial penalty for the owners, since for some people, property is like the breath of life. Consequently, if he knows that the damage caused by the ox will make him lose the ox completely—since the ox will fall under prohibition with regard to [any] benefit [originating from it] and consequently he will not be able to benefit from it at all—he will guard it as much as he can.”

One of the students asked our teacher Moses, “What shall we do with the ox if it has no owner, or it has been dedicated for religious purposes [hekdesh]? These oxen are [supposed to be] killed, although they have no owners, and according to the justification of our master, [killing the ox] is a financial penalty exclusive to the owner!”

He answered and said, “These are killed in order to avoid causing damage to [other] creatures, similar to [the practice of] killing dogs and other animals that cause damage.”