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The law of Oceania
THE LAW OF OCEANIA
Draft 0.28
by Eric Klien
Copyright 1993, 1994. All rights reserved.
Special thanks to Lee Crocker for his suggestions.
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AS A FREE SOCIETY of sovereign individuals, the Law of Oceania serves a
purpose very different from that of the laws of other societies. Rather
than imposing a structure upon the lives of citizens, it exists only to
ensure that citizens are free to run their own lives without interference
from others, including the Government. It also serves to regulate the
Government that the founders have created to serve the needs of individual
Oceanians.
The law is a means to ensure the rights of Oceanians, not to endanger them.
It is hoped that whatever problems arrive in the lives of Oceanians can be
resolved by peaceful, consensual means rather than by the force of law.
It should be noted as well, that an act which is considered legal in
Oceania is so because of our Constitution's dedication to the sanctity of
each individual's rights. In no way should it be construed that legality
equals moral judgment. It's not the Government's or its individual
representatives' place in society to determine morality for the people of
Oceania.
For example, while it is true that these laws allow an Oceanian
to have multiple wives in the tradition of King Solomon. It
should be noted that such an activity is neither criticized or
endorsed by the Constitution of Oceania.
CHAPTER ONE
Definitions and Introduction
The common law of England, so far as it is not repugnant to, or
inconsistent with the Constitution or laws of Oceania, shall be the rule of
decision in all Courts of Oceania.
The laws of Oceania, and all Contracts entered into by Oceanians, and all
treaties entered into by Oceania, exist within the context of the
Constitution of Oceania, and may not conflict with or alter it in any way.
Laws that impose upon the rights of individual Oceanians are
unconstitutional and void, even if passed by a clear majority. Any two laws
that conflict with each other shall both be considered void by the jury
trying them.
Words capitalized throughout this book of law are to be interpreted exactly
as defined here. The remaining text of this document should be interpreted
strictly and exactly as written in common English language usage at the
time of its adoption. Conflicts may be resolved by Webster's Third
International Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language.
While it is true that everything not declared illegal in these laws is
automatically legal, a few laws state that certain actions are legal to
help clarify some aspects of life in Oceania.
To make it clear that we are granting justice to all persons who love
liberty, regardless of sex, race, or beliefs, the pronouns in this document
are gender-neutral ones formed by removing the initial th from the plural
pronouns. That is, ey means he/she, eir means his/her, em means him/her,
and similarly for eirs and emself. It is recommended that ey be pronounced
to rhyme with he/she.
Shall , Must and Will indicate legal compulsion. Should indicates
suggestion. May indicates permission. Including always means "including but
not necessarily limited to". Recommendations do not have the force of law.
Commentary on or examples of certain laws will appear in boxes
like this. These notes help to clarify the intent of the authors
or the reasoning behind some of the decisions made here. These
commentaries bear the full force of law.
A Person is any born human being of either sex, and of any race, origin, or
beliefs. Other beings may be granted the status of Person by law as
necessary. The point of birth is defined as that point at which the
organism becomes detached from its mother's biological systems and can
function independently of that system.
In this document, this includes Persons not currently in Oceanian
territory, who are still responsible for Crimes and Debts incurred in
foreign territory. Of course, such Persons cannot be abducted by the
Government of Oceania to stand trial, but if they should appear in Oceania
by other means, they may be arrested and brought to trial.
An Entity is any corporation, club, foundation, charity, or other type of
organization, formed for any purpose. Business is a synonym for Entity.
Persons cannot evade responsibility for Crimes and Debts by forming
Entities. If an Entity commits a Crime, the jury trying the Crime may
decide which Person or Persons shall bear the consequences thereof.
Generally, Debts will be paid by the Entity itself and punishments will be
served by its officers or other Persons controlling it.
In the remainder of this text, we will describe acts committed by Persons.
It will be understood that Entities are also culpable for such actions, and
suffer the same consequences.
An Oceanian is a Person or Entity other than the Government currently
within the territory of Oceania.
A Child is a born human of age less than sixteen years old. Children are a
special case in many laws that otherwise apply to all Persons.
A Teen is a human at least sixteen years of age, and younger than eighteen.
An Adult is a human eighteen years of age or older. A Person may be
declared a Child, Teen, or Adult by a Court.
A Parent is a Teen or Adult who has assumed responsibility for the care of
a Child. This may or may not be the Child's biological Parents. A Child
does not have the right to be classified as a Parent.
A Spouse is one of two or more Oceanians who have signed a Marriage
Contract with each other.
The Nearest Relative of an Oceanian, to whom certain Rights and
Entitlements are granted under these laws, is the first living Person in
the following categories: Spouse, Child, sibling, grandchild, Parent, any
blood relative, any Oceanian. If the Right or Entitlement sought applies
only to Adults (such as the Right to bring suit), then only Adults on this
list will be considered. If more than one Person is eligible in the first
category eligible, then all Persons eligible in that category share equally
the Rights and Entitlements of Nearest Relative under these laws. An
exception to this is when someone from the "any blood relative" or "any
Oceanian" categories claims proceeds from a deceased's estate or other
Entitlements, in which case only the first Person successful in such a suit
is granted such Entitlements in their entirety. Of course, an Oceanian has
the right to sign a contract otherwise defining who is eir Nearest
Relative. Such contract could define someone who is not at all blood
related as the Nearest Relative.
A Right is a freedom guaranteed to every Oceanian. These include Life,
Liberty, Property, and Privacy. Rights extend not only to Persons in
Oceania, but to Entities as well. All Rights of Entities are derived from
personal Rights, therefore Entities can have no Rights that Persons do not
also have.
A Privilege is an action that can only be done with a License from the
Government.
A License is the granting of a Privilege by the Government to an Oceanian.
Oceanians do NOT need Licenses for anything that is a Right. A Permit is a
synonym for this word.
Life is the biological state of animation. Persons who are unconscious, in
cryonic suspension, or otherwise supported by technology are still
considered alive and have all the Rights of conscious Persons.
As technology advances, it is expected that precise definitions
of Life and Death will be set by law.
Liberty is a condition that exists when Persons have control over their
individual lives and Property and where all Rights are protected. Liberty
also applies to Entities.
Property is the material and intellectual belongings of an Oceanian.
Material belongings include Land, pets, livestock, Contracts, and personal
effects. Intellectual belongings include patents and copyrights.
Privacy is the expectation of a Person not to be subject to public scrutiny
of eir personal affairs.
Force is a physical act by one or more Oceanians that is destructive to the
Rights of others. A believable threat to carry out such an action also
constitutes Force.
Fraud is the intentional deceit of another Oceanian to induce em to part
with Property or to surrender a Right.
A Voter is a Person allowed to vote in Oceania.
A Permanent Oceanian is a Person who has lived a total of twelve months in
Oceania, or an Oceanian under the age of twelve months.
The Government (under the Constitution of Oceania) is a restricted Entity
that protects Oceanians against external and internal Force and Fraud.
Unlike other Entities, the Government has had most of its Rights restricted
by laws and regulations.
Land is an area composed of dirt, concrete, steel, or other substances that
people are able to live on for extended periods of time.
A Housing Development is a voluntary private association of Land owners and
residents formed for the purpose of maintaining the infrastructure of a
parcel of Land. A Housing Development may not contain more than 5,000
Persons, and can contain as few as one.
The reason the size of a Housing Development is limited by law is
that it is allowed to take on many of the traditional functions
of Government. Of course, a Housing Development is not bound by
the restrictions that Government agencies normally must follow
such as not discriminating against others.
A Locality is a Government level that does not encompass more than 100
square kilometers.
A County is a Government level that does not encompass more than 10,000
square kilometers.
A City is a grouping of population with a geographical border. A City MAY
NOT possess a Governmental structure. It may have one mayor to act as its
ambassador for ceremonial purposes.
A Court is a forum in which Oceanians resolve conflicts, establish
liability for wrongdoing, and assign penalties for such liability.
A Valuable is any money, Property, bonds, promissory notes, bank notes,
bills of exchange, or other bills, orders, drafts, checks, receipts or
certificates, or warrants concerning money or Property, due, or to become
due, or to be delivered, any public security issued by any country, and any
deed or writing containing a conveyance of Land or other Property, or
valuable Contract in force, or any release or defeasance, or any other
instrument of value, or which, by some contingency, may become valuable.
The value, for the purposes of these laws, of an item that is to become
valuable at some future time is the mathematical net present value of that
item at a fair rate of interest set by the jury trying the case. The value
of an item which is valuable only in certain contingencies, such as lottery
tickets or other gambling instruments, is the mathematical expected value
of the item. In general, it is expected that items will be valued as
whatever a reasonable and fully informed person would pay for such an item
at the time of the suit.
A Debt is an obligation upon one Person to transfer some Valuable to
another.
A Crime is an act of Force or Fraud, either intentionally or by gross
negligence, committed by one Person against another.
A Felony is a Crime subject to Punishment of six months in jail or greater.
A Misdemeanor is any other Crime.
A Plaintiff is an injured party, or an agent of the injured party, who
initiates a Court suit. Ey is also what other legal systems call a
"prosecutor", in that ey controls the prosecution of the case at all times.
A Defendant is a party who is accused of a Crime or Debt. The ancient
custom of declaring an animal to be the Defendant will not be allowed in
the Court of Oceania.
A Convict is an Oceanian who has been convicted in Court of some Crime or
Debt and who is subject to the penalties thereof.
Court Costs are costs incurred by the Court administering a suit, e.g., the
room rental, fees of the judge and jurors, and costs of punishment.
A Fine is money or other Valuable that a Convict is ordered to pay a
Plaintiff to compensate em for damages suffered. This does not in any way
affect a Convict's liability for actual damages incurred.
Punishment is the prevention of the exercise of certain Rights of the
Convict for the purpose of preventing em from committing further Crimes,
and as a deterrent.
A Gram of Gold is a standard unit of money used in this document for Fines
and other uses. At the time of this document's adoption, this is the
equivalent value of one gram of gold. This value, for the purposes of the
Fines and definitions in this document, may be changed by law.
For example, if some technological discovery makes gold
considerably less valuable, a law may be passed by referendum
specifying that "Gram of Gold" be defined as 1,000 grams of gold,
or 100 kilowatts of electricity, or 20 Swiss Francs.
A Contract is a binding agreement to which there is evidence of between
two or more Oceanians, written or oral. The creation of a valid Contract
requires the unanimous free and informed consent of all parties subject to
its terms. In Oceania, there being no distinction between Contract, civil
and criminal law, all terms of a Contract freely entered are valid and
enforceable, including physical Punishments.
An Implied Contract is one created implicitly by the actions or words of a
Person. While explicit consent is not required for such a Contract, some
physical act on the part of the bound party is required to establish the
Contractual obligation. "Status law", whereby an individual's status or
circumstance is sufficient to create obligations, is not recognized in
Oceania.
A Newspaper is a newspaper printed in the nearest county available or
whichever form of media has the highest circulation at that time.
Justice in Oceania is achieved by one Oceanian, called the Plaintiff,
filing suit in a Court against another Oceanian, called the Defendant, who
is accused of some act of Force or Fraud against the Plaintiff (or an
injured party on whose behalf the Plaintiff is suing).
If both the Plaintiff and Defendant agree, any Entity in Oceania may serve
as a Court to settle their dispute. Whatever the private Court finds,
including physical punishments, is valid and enforceable as long as both
parties freely consented to give the private Court that power.
Where the Defendant does not agree to appear in any private Court, a
Plaintiff Licensed to do so may bring suit in the Court of Oceania, which
has the power to subpoena the Defendant for trial. Judgments of the Court
of Oceania will be carried out regardless of the consent of the Convict.
Because this is a dangerous power, many protections are granted to
Defendants and Convicts, as detailed in the Constitution of Oceania.
Punishment levied by the Court of Oceania is in the form of imprisonment. A
Convict sentenced to jail time will be imprisoned for that amount of time
in a privately run prison hired by the Court or the Plaintiff, the costs of
which will be levied against the Convict. Court Costs and jail costs that
cannot be collected are paid by donations to the Court of Oceania. It is
recommended that each local Court establish a budget for that purpose. If
the Court of Oceania has no money to hold prisoners, those prisoners not
being held by other funds (such as the Plaintiff's or the prison's) may be
released after three months notice has been given to the general media.
Prison time Must be served while the Convict is consciously aware of the
passage of time, i.e., not in cryonic suspension or other state of
biological inactivity.
While the primary purpose of imprisonment is to prevent the
Convict from committing Crimes for a time, it is also hoped that
fear of it will act as a deterrent. If prison time could be
served painlessly, this purpose would be defeated.
The maximum amount of time a prisoner may serve is 100 years. Longer
sentences may be levied, but no prisoner may be physically held for longer
than 100 years at one time. Sentences for Crimes committed while in prison
shall be added to the prisoner's current sentence and are not subject to
this limit. Sentences for Crimes committed while out of prison but tried
and levied while imprisoned are subject to this limit. A prisoner who has
served eir time and is released may be imprisoned for up to another 100
years if ey commits more Crimes.
Fines levied by the Court of Oceania are a Debt owed to the Plaintiff by
the Convict. Court Costs are a Debt owed to the Court by the Convict.
Time limits for prosecuting certain Crimes are generally measured from the
time the Crime was discovered. For example, Burglary Must be prosecuted
within six months of the time the Property owner discovers the fact, even
though it may have been committed much earlier while the victim was away
from home. The ten year limit listed in the Constitution under the Right to
Forgiveness is absolute and is measured from the time the Crime was
committed. For example, if one discovers that a safety deposit box has been
burglarized, one has six months to investigate and bring charges, but if it
is found to have been burglarized more than ten years ago, the charges will
be dropped.
CHAPTER TWO
Crimes
The constitutional authority for these laws is Article 2, Section 3.
This chapter will define many Crimes and the standard Fines and Punishments
for them. In addition, any new methods of Force or Fraud that are developed
in the future may be added to this list of Crimes and Punishments by
referendum. All Courts are legally bound to these definitions, and the
Court of Oceania is legally bound to these Fines and Punishments. Private
Courts may specify alternate Fines and Punishments.
The Fines and Punishments listed here are solely for the act of the Crime
itself, and are not to be interpreted as interfering with any suit in
equity for actual damages stemming from the same acts.
For example, if the act of Murder specifies a Fine of 20,000
Grams of Gold, this Fine is in addition to any suit the victim's
family may bring for loss of consortium, income or Child care, or
losses suffered by businesses in which the deceased was involved,
etc. Similarly, A Fine for the Crime of Battery is in addition to
any suits for medical bills, etc.
All imprisonments may be replaced with exile for the amount of time in
question if the jury so decides.
1. Criminal Culpability
In every Crime there Must be a union or joint operation of act and
intention, or criminal negligence. Intention is manifested by the
circumstances connected with the perpetration of the offense, and
discretion of the Entity accused.
Oceanians Must take responsibility for their actions. It is
assumed that Adults who live in Oceania do not wish to be treated
as Children. For example, if a Person drinks too much at a bar
and then gets into an accident, the drunk will be at fault, not
the seller or manufacturer of the drink. Or, if a Person kills
someone with a gun, the murderer will be at fault, not the seller
or manufacturer of the gun. Or, if a Person forgets to ask the
dangers of an operation, they will take responsibility for this,
not eir Doctor.
Children, the mentally ill or retarded, and others with diminished capacity
for rational judgment are no less culpable for their Crimes than the sound
of mind, and are still responsible for Fines, but may be given more lenient
Punishments than specified here, and may at the Court's option have their
criminal records expunged after a specified amount of time.
Intoxication shall not be an excuse for any Crime, unless such intoxication
is occasioned by the Force or Fraud of some other Entity for the purpose
of causing the perpetration of an offense, in which case the Entity so
causing said intoxication for such malignant purpose shall be considered
principal, and suffer the same Punishment as would have been inflicted on
the Entity committing the offense if ey had been of sound reason.
All acts committed by misfortune or accident shall not be deemed criminal,
where it satisfactorily appears that there was no evil design or intention,
or culpable negligence. Of course, compensatory damages could still be
collected.
A Person committing a Crime, under threats or menaces, which sufficiently
shows that eir life was in danger, or that ey had reasonable cause to
believe, and did believe, that eir life was in danger, shall not be
culpable. In such cases the Entity who did the threatening shall suffer
the same punishment as if ey had perpetrated the offense.
An Entity ordered or directed to commit an offense by an employer, military
superior, or other figure of authority to the perpetrator shall not be
excused from such Crime. The Entity giving such order shall be tried as an
Accessory to the crime.
When a Crime is committed by a business or other Entity, the jury shall
determine what Person or Persons bear the responsibility for the Entity's
Crimes and shall apportion Fines and assign Punishment appropriately. In
cases of shared culpability, Fines will be split, but whole Punishments
will be levied to each.
2. Derivative Crimes
An Accessory to a Crime is ey who stands by and aids, abets, or assists; or
who, not being present, aids, abets, assists, advises or encourages the
perpetration of the Crime. Ey who thus aids, abets, assists, advises, or
encourages shall be considered as principal and punished accordingly.
Accessories to a Crime may have the responsibility for Fines divided among
them. The excuse of being related to the Person who actually committed the
crime will not be accepted in Court.
An Accessory After the Fact is an Entity who, after full knowledge that a
Crime has been committed, conceals it, or harbors and protects the Entity
charged with or found guilty of the Crime. Accessories After the Fact are
not responsible for Fines, but may be given up to half the Punishment
appropriate for the Crime they conceal. The excuse of being related to the
Person who actually committed the crime will not be accepted in Court.
An Attempted Crime is committed when an Entity commits acts clearly
intended to result in a Crime, but fails, as when an assassin fires eir
weapon but misses. Those who thus attempt a Crime are not liable for Fines,
but may be Punished exactly as those who carry out said Crime.
Conspiracy to Commit a Crime is the advance discussion and planning of
criminal acts among two or more Persons. If such criminal acts are actually
carried out, all those involved in the Conspiracy will treated as principal
and share culpability. If such criminal acts are not actually carried out
but a Court decides that those involved actually intended to commit the
act, the Defendants may be given up to one quarter the Punishment
appropriate for the Crime they intended to commit.
Assault is a believable threat to commit a Crime, and may result in Fines
and Punishments up to one quarter of those for the actual commission of
that Crime.
Extortion consists of a Person threatening to commit a Crime against the
Person or Property of another, with intent thereby to extort Valuables, or
to compel the Person so threatened to perform some act against eir will.
Fines and Punishments for Extortion shall be one half of those for the
Crime threatened. In addition, ey shall suffer the penalties of an
Accessory to any Crimes committed at eir request.
An exception to the above is when the Extortion victim owes the perpetrator
the Valuables requested by em, in which case such threats are only Assault,
for which there will be no Punishment, and the Fine for which will be
deducted from the victim's Debt.
Fraudulent Encouragement to commit a Crime is the inducement by fraudulent
means of an Entity of sound judgment, or the encouragement of a Child or
mentally incompetent Person, to commit a Crime. Such Entity shall be
prosecuted for the offense and shall suffer the same penalties ey committed
the offense directly.
3. Crimes Against Life
If the injury was inflicted in one county, and the party die within another
county, the accused shall be tried in the county where the act was done, or
the cause of death administered.
A.Murder is the killing of a Person, with malice aforethought, either
express or implied. Performing a brain autopsy on a Person who is about
to undergo cryonic suspension is considered murder. The same applies to
those who unnecessarily delay a cryonic suspension.
Express malice is that deliberate intention to take away the life of a
Person which is manifested by external circumstances capable of proof.
Malice shall be implied when no considerable provocation appears, or
when all the circumstances of the killing show an abandoned and
malignant heart. All murder perpetrated by means of poison, lying in
wait, torture, or by any other kind of willful, deliberate, and
premeditated killing, shall be deemed murder in the first degree. All
other kinds of murder shall be deemed murder in the second degree.
The Fine for murder in the first degree shall be 20,000 Grams of Gold,
and the Punishment shall be not less than ten years nor more than 100.
The Fine for murder in the second degree shall be 10,000 Grams of Gold
and the Punishment not less than five years nor more than 100. The time
limit for prosecuting Murder is ten years from the death of the victim.
B.Manslaughter is the killing of a Person, without malice express or
implied, and without any mixture of deliberation. It Must be voluntary,
upon a sudden heat of passion, caused by a provocation apparently
sufficient to make the passion irresistible; or involuntary, with
reckless disregard for the lives affected.
The Fine for Manslaughter shall be 10,000 Grams of Gold. Punishment
shall be not less than four nor more than forty years. The time limit
for prosecuting Manslaughter is ten years from the death of the victim.
In order to make the killing either murder or manslaughter, it is
necessary that the party die within a year and a day after the cause of
death is administered. The day on which the act was done shall be
reckoned the first.
An agreement to duel between two Persons Must be written and clearly
consented to by all involved, or any death resulting therefrom shall be
prosecuted as Manslaughter.
Justifiable Homicide is the killing of a Person in necessary self-
defense, or in defense of habitation, Property, or person, against one
who manifestly intends, or endeavors, by violence or surprise, to commit
a Felony, or against any person or persons who manifestly intend and
endeavor, in a violent, riotous, or tumultuous manner, to enter the
habitation of another, for the purpose of assaulting or offering
personal violence to any Person dwelling or being therein.
Justifiable Homicide may also consist in unavoidable necessity, without
any will or desire, and without any inadvertence or negligence in the
party killing. An arresting party who, in the execution of said arrest,
puts a person to death to defend eirself or to prevent escape, shall be
justified.
Excusable Homicide by misadventure, is when a person is doing a lawful
act, without any intention of killing, yet unfortunately kills another,
as where a man is at work with an ax, and the head flies off and kills a
bystander.
C.Assault with Intent is the threatening or intimidation of a Person,
coupled with that Person's reasonable belief that the perpetrator is
capable and intends to harm em physically or financially.
The Fine for Assault with Intent shall be not less than 10 nor more than
100 Grams of Gold, in addition to the Fine for simple Assault.
Punishment shall be not more than 90 days in addition to that for
Assault. The time limit for prosecuting Assault is one year.
D.Battery is the willful or negligent injuring of a Person, causing
physical pain or injury, but no permanent loss of function or
disfigurement.
Having sexual contact with another knowing that you have a sexually
transmitted disease and not informing your partner of that fact is
considered Battery. Actually transmitting such disease would be Mayhem
if it is a permanent condition, or Manslaughter if it is fatal.
The Fine for Battery shall be not less than twenty nor more than 200
Grams of Gold. Punishment shall be not more than one year. The time
limit for prosecuting Battery is one year.
E.Mayhem consists of depriving a Person of a member of eir body, or
disfiguring or rendering it useless. If any Entity shall cut out or
disable the tongue, put out an eye, slit the nose, ear, or lip, or
disable any limb or member of a Person, ey shall be guilty of Mayhem.
Any Person who shall cause a woman to lose her unborn Child shall be
guilty of Mayhem, with the exception that no physician shall be affected
by this clause who, in the discharge of eir professional duty, produces
the miscarriage of any woman.
The Fine for Mayhem shall be 2,000 Grams of Gold. Punishment shall be
not less than three years nor more than 30 years. The time limit for
prosecuting Mayhem is two years.
F.Rape in the first degree is the carnal knowledge or sodomy of a Person,
forcibly and against eir will. Rape in the second degree shall consist
of the carnal knowledge or sodomy of a Person who is either unable to
consent by reason of intoxication, or other state of impaired judgment;
or who is defrauded by the perpetrator into consenting to such acts.
The Fine for Rape in the first degree shall be 1,000 Grams of Gold.
Punishment shall be not less than two years nor more than twenty. The
Fine for Rape in the second degree shall be 500 Grams of Gold.
Punishment shall be the same as for Rape in the first degree. The time
limit for prosecuting Rape is ten years.
Assault, Battery, or Mayhem committed in the process of Rape shall incur
their penalties as well.
G.Torture. Any Murder, Manslaughter, Battery, Mayhem, or Rape committed
upon a restrained victim with malicious deliberation and sadistic
methods, shall incur double the penalty for the aforementioned Crime in
addition to any penalty for such restraint.
For example, if a jailer maliciously and sadistically removes a
prisoner's ear, ey shall suffer double the penalty for Mayhem, in
addition to the penalty for False Imprisonment, if applicable.
H.Reckless Endangerment is to engage in behavior that endangers the lives
of others. For example, shooting a gun up into the air to celebrate a
wedding could be considered Reckless Endangerment. The Fine for Reckless
Endangerment shall be not less than twenty nor more than 200 Grams of
Gold. Punishment shall be not more than six months. The time limit for
prosecuting this Crime is six months.
I.Bad Food: If any Person knowingly sells any flesh of any diseased
animal, or other unwholesome provisions, or any poisonous or adulterated
drink or liquors, the Person so offending shall be Punished not more
than six months and be Fined not more than 200 Grams of Gold. The time
limit for prosecuting this Crime is one year from the time it is
discovered.
No penalties will be assessed if the purchaser is told that the items
are poisonous or otherwise tainted.
J.Biological Warfare: Any Person who shall knowingly take any clothing or
other substance contaminated with smallpox or other contagious disease
into any neighborhood or locality shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. Ey
shall be Fined not more than twenty Grams of Gold and be imprisoned not
exceeding six months.
Any Person guilty of violating the provisions of this act, in addition
to the penalties herein prescribed, shall be liable in a civil action,
in damages, to any and all Persons who may become infected with such
contagious disease; said damages shall be so assessed as to include, in
addition to their damages, all expenses incurred by reason of such
sickness, loss of time, medical and burial expenses; and such action may
also be maintained by the legal representative of any deceased Person.
Any Person who shall knowingly partake in an act, sexually or otherwise,
which may result in the transmission of any communicable disease which
ey has and has not informed eir sexual partner, shall be guilty of a
misdemeanor. Ey shall be Fined not more than 300 Grams of Gold and be
imprisoned not exceeding six months. If the disease is actually
transmitted, ey shall be guilty of a Felony. Ey shall be imprisoned for
not less than one year and not more twenty. The time limit for
prosecuting this Crime is one year from the date such infection is
discovered.
4. Crimes Against Liberty
A.False Imprisonment is an unlawful violation of the personal liberty of
another, and consists in confinement or detention without sufficient
legal authority.
The Fine for False Imprisonment may not exceed 200 Grams of Gold.
Punishment shall not be less than 30 days nor more than one year. The
time limit for prosecuting this Crime is six months from the time the
victim was released from such illegal detention.
Kidnapping is the forcible abduction or stealing away of a Person.
Any Person who shall maliciously, forcibly, or fraudulently lead, take,
carry away, decoy, or entice away any Child, with intent to detain and
conceal such Child from eir Parent, shall be guilty of Kidnapping.
Any Person who shall hire, persuade, entice, decoy, or seduce, by false
promises, misrepresentation, and the like, any Person to go out of
Oceania, or to be taken or removed therefrom, for the purpose and with
the intent to sell such Person into slavery or involuntary servitude, or
otherwise to employ em for eir own use, or to the use of another,
without the free will and consent of such Person, shall be guilty of
Kidnapping.
The Fine for Kidnapping shall be no less than 200 nor more than 2,000
Grams of Gold. Punishment shall be not less than one nor more than ten
years. The time limit for prosecuting Kidnapping is five years from the
time the victim was released.
B.Miranda Violation is the failure to inform a detained suspect of eir
rights. The arresting person must repeat the following, or a similar
equivalent, to a suspect: 1) You have the right to remain silent and
refuse to answer questions. 2) Anything you say may be used against you
in a court of law. 3) You have the right to consult an attorney before
speaking to an interrogator and to have an attorney present during any
questioning now and in the future. 4) If you do not have an attorney
available, you have the right to remain silent until you have had an
opportunity to consult with one. 5) Now that I have advised you of your
rights, are you willing to answer questions without an attorney present?
The Fine for Miranda Violation may not exceed 100 Grams of Gold.
Punishment shall not be less than 5 days nor more than thirty. The time
limit for prosecuting the Crime is six months.
C.Perjury is the act of a Person, having taken a lawful oath in any
judicial proceeding, or in any other matter where an oath is required,
who shall swear willfully, corruptly, and falsely, in a matter material
to the issue or point in question.
Any public official who makes false statements in the execution of eir
duties or under color of eir authority, such as at public hearings or in
official correspondence with citizens, shall be guilty of Perjury.
The Fine for Perjury shall be not exceed 100 Grams of Gold. Punishment
shall not be less than 14 days nor more than six months. The time limit
for prosecuting the Crime is six months.
Any Person who, by willful and corrupt Perjury, shall procure the
conviction and Punishment of any innocent Person, shall be deemed and
adjudged guilty of False Imprisonment, and in addition suffer the same
penalties suffered by above said innocent Person.
D.Fraudulent Impersonation: Any Person who shall falsely represent or
impersonate another, and, in such assumed character, shall marry
another, become bail or surety for any party, in any proceeding, before
any Court or officer authorized to take such bail or surety, or confess
any judgment, or acknowledge to execution of any conveyance of Property,
or any other act in the course of any suit or proceeding, whereby the
Person so represented or impersonated may be made liable, in any event,
to the payment of any Debt, shall be Punished not less than one year nor
more than two years, and shall be Fined not exceeding 500 Grams of Gold.
The time limit for prosecuting this Crime is six months from the time
such impersonation is discovered.
Impersonation that is done for purposes other than fraudulent gain, such
as for entertainment or experiment, shall not be punished. In
particular, temporarily impersonating someone to determine whether that
Person is recognized by another, for example, a trial witness, is a
legitimate investigative technique.
E.Posse. Every Person who shall neglect or refuse to join the posse
comitatus, or power of the county, by neglecting or refusing to aid and
assist in taking or arresting any Person or Persons against whom there
may be issued any process, or by neglecting to aid and assist in
retaking any Person or Persons who, after being arrested or confined,
may have escaped from such arrest or imprisonment, or by neglecting or
refusing to aid and assist in preventing any breach of the peace, or the
commission of any criminal offense, shall be guilty of no crime.
5. Crimes Against Property
When theft is committed upon a railroad train or airplane, in motion or in
rest, that travels through Oceania and it cannot with reasonable certainty
be ascertained in what county said crime was committed, the offender may be
arrested and tried in any county through which said railroad train or
airplane may have run or flown.
As mentioned earlier, all Fines and penalties listed here are in addition
to any suits for actual damages brought against those committing these
crimes. A Conviction for Larceny, for example, is sufficient evidence for a
Court to rule that the victim is owed restitution in the amount taken in
addition to any criminal Fines.
A.Grand Larceny is the theft of Valuables worth 100 Grams of Gold or more.
Petit Larceny is the theft of Valuables worth less than 100 Grams of
Gold.
The Fine for Grand Larceny shall be no less than 100 and no more than
500 Grams of Gold. Punishment shall be no less than six months and no
more five years. The Fine for Petit Larceny shall be no less than ten
and no more than 100 Grams of Gold. Punishment shall be no more than six
months. The time limit for prosecuting Larceny is six months from the
time the Crime is discovered.
Embezzlement is treated as Grand or Petit Larceny depending on the value
of the Property embezzled.
Any Person who, for eir own gain, or to prevent the owner from again
possessing eir Valuables, shall buy or receive stolen Valuables, or
Property obtained by robbery, burglary, or embezzlement, knowing the
same so to have been obtained, shall be guilty of receiving stolen
Property, the penalties for which shall be the same as for Petit
Larceny.
Larceny shall include the transfer of Property or any Valuables by any
means, physical or electronic, by transfer or relabeling or
misrepresenting ownership, forging or counterfeiting or deceiving the
owner thereof into transferring or authorizing the transfer of such
Property.
Every Person who shall mark or brand, alter or deface the mark or brand
of any animal not eir own Property, but belonging to some other person,
or cause the same to be done, with intent thereby to steal the same, or
to prevent identification thereof by the true owner shall be guilty of
larceny equal to the value of the Property involved.
If any bailee of any money, goods, or Property shall convert the same to
eir own use, with intent to steal the same, ey shall be deemed guilty of
grand or petit larceny, according to the amount of the money or the
value of the goods, or Property so converted.
If any lodger shall take away, with intent to steal, embezzle, or
purloin, any bedding, furniture goods, or Property, which ey is to use
in or with lodging, ey shall be deemed to be guilty of grand or petit
larceny, according to the value of the Property so taken.
Breaking into a computer and taking data is considered grand or petit
larceny, according to the value of the Property so taken.
B.Robbery is the violent taking of money, goods, or other valuable thing,
from the Person of another by Force or intimidation.
The Fine for Robbery shall be the same as for Larceny of the degree
appropriate to the amount stolen. Punishment shall be no less than two
nor more than twenty years. The time limit for prosecuting Robbery is
three years.
C.Burglary is breaking and entry, with or without force, entering into any
dwelling, building, vessel, or vehicle with intent to commit murder,
robbery, rape, mayhem, grand larceny, petit larceny, or any Felony. The
Fine for Burglary shall be the same as for Larceny of the degree
appropriate for the amount of Property stolen or damaged. Punishment
shall be not less than one nor more than ten years. The time limit for
prosecuting Burglary is six months.
D.Counterfeiting is the act of any Person who shall knowingly and
willfully forge or counterfeit, or cause or procure to be forged or
counterfeited, any currency or other notes, merchandise, the private
stamps or labels of any manufacturer, or try to sell this counterfeit
merchandise knowing it to be counterfeit. This law does not apply if the
item being sold is labled as a copy and the manufacturer of the original
item being copied does not object.
The Fine shall be not less than 100 nor more than 500 Grams of Gold.
Punishment shall be no less than 90 days and no more than two years. The
time limit for prosecuting Counterfeiting is six months.
This may seem lenient, so an example is in order. If a
counterfeiter distributes 1,000 Grams worth of counterfeit
currency to twenty other Persons, each Person who suffered a loss
thereby may demand that actual damages be paid in addition to
fines levied for the crime, so that the counterfeiter in question
could suffer both restitution and the above fines and jail time
for each offense committed, so eir total penalty could be as high
as 30,000 Grams of Gold and 40 years.
E.Forgery is the act of a Person to fraudulently forge or counterfeit the
seal of Oceania, or the seal of any Court or public officer by law
entitled to have and use a seal, or seal of any corporation, and make
use of the same, or forge or counterfeit the signature of any public
officer, or seal of any corporation, or unlawfully and corruptly, affix
any of the said true seals to any commission, deed, warrant, pardon,
certificate, or other writing, or who have in eir possession or custody
any such counterfeit seal, and willfully conceal the same, knowing it to
be so.
The Fine shall be not less than 100 nor more than 500 Grams of Gold.
Punishment no less than 90 days and no more than two years. The time
limit for prosecuting forgery is six months.
Every person who shall falsely make, alter, forge, or counterfeit any
record, or other authentic matter of a public nature, shall be deemed
guilty of forgery in the first degree. The Fine shall be not less than
100 nor more than 1,000 Grams of Gold. Punishment shall be no less than
six months and no more than five years.
F.Arson is the willful and malicious burning of the Property of another.
Any Entity who shall willfully and maliciously burn, or cause to be
burned, any dwelling house in which there is at the time some Person,
shall be deemed guilty of Arson in the first degree.
The Fine for Arson in the first degree shall be 3,000 Grams of Gold.
Punishment shall be not less than two years nor more than 100. The time
limit for prosecuting Arson is five years.
Any Entity who shall willfully and maliciously burn, or cause to be
burned, any dwelling house or building owned by emself, or the Property
of another, or at any time willfully burn or cause to be burned, any
building, or stacks of grain, or standing crops, the Property of any
other Entity, or any water craft, or any bridge erected across any of
the waters of Oceania, such Person shall be deemed guilty of Arson in
the second degree.
The Fine for Arson in the second degree shall be not less than 100 nor
more than 1,000 Grams of Gold. Punishment shall be not less than one
year nor more than ten years.
Should the life of any Person be lost in consequence of such burning,
such offender shall be deemed guilty of Murder, and shall be penalized
accordingly.
Any Entity who shall willfully burn, or cause to be burned, any building
or personal Property which shall be at the time insured against loss or
damage by fire, with intent to injure or defraud such insurer, whether
the same be the Property of such Person, or of any other, shall be
adjudged guilty of Arson in the second degree, and penalized
accordingly.
G Destruction: Any Person who shall willfully and maliciously break,
destroy, or injure any goods, or Property of any description belonging
to another, or set adrift any vessel, shall be punished as if ey had
stolen the amount of money equal to the value of the damage caused.
If any Person shall, willfully and intentionally, destroy or injure, in
whole or in part, any data on a computer, every Person so offending
shall be penalized as if the amount of injury suffered had been stolen.
Every Person who shall fraudulently or maliciously tear, burn, efface,
cut or in any other way destroy any Valuable shall be punished as if ey
had stolen the amount of money equal to the value of the damage caused.
The time limit for prosecuting this Crime is six months.
H.Trespassing is entering or infringing upon the Property of another
without eir consent. Every Person so offending shall pay a Fine not
exceeding 100 Grams of Gold on the first and subsequent offenses, and
may be Punished on the second and subsequent offenses as much as six
months per offense. The time limit for prosecuting this Crime is six
months.
Anyone who is asked to leave another's Property for any reason, and who
refuses to do so, or who resists attempts to physically remove em from
the Property, may be prosecuted for trespassing, even if the Property is
normally open to all. For example, if a prospective restaurant patron is
asked to leave because of eir behavior or style of dress, and refuses to
do so, ey may be prosecuted for trespassing, even if the restaurant is
open to the public, and even if the restaurant admits others with the
same behavior or style of dress, or has admitted that same person in the
past.
A Vagrant who begs or otherwise annoys others may be declared to be a
trespasser by the Property owner and prosecuted as such.
Breaking into a computer without taking or destroying any data is
considered trespassing.
I.Unlawful Detainer. In the absence of an explicit written lease or
rental Contract for a piece of Property, rental payments shall be made
monthly, in advance, and shall entitle renter to the use of said
Property for the month paid. The Property owner Must notify the renter
at least three days before a payment is due if ey intends to reclaim the
Property, in which case the renter shall have three days after the
expiration of eir paid rental period to vacate the Property or be
adjudged guilty of Unlawful Detainer.
Such Unlawful Detainer shall be punished as Larceny of the potential
rental value of the Property lost by the owner due to the Property's
occupation. Offers of further rent payments by the renter who has been
asked to vacate the Property may be refused by the Property owner and
will not diminish any penalties faced by the renter for eir actions.
The time limit for prosecuting this Crime is six months from the date
such Property is released or returned to its owner. Of course, it may be
prosecuted while the Property is still being retained.
J.Trademarks. Any Person who has first adopted and used a trademark or
name, whether within or beyond the limits of Oceania, shall be
considered its original owner, which ownership may be transferred in the
same manner as personal Property, and shall be entitled to the same
protection by suits at law as other personal Property. Foreign
trademarks will be recognized by Oceania.
Trademarks are Property only for as long as they are being actively used
for some business activity, and exist only in the context of that
business activity. Any trademark that falls out of use by its owner may
be reclaimed by another. Trademarks that become generic terms of the
language (e.g., "Aspirin") are still entitled to legal protection in
their original use.
Names of individuals cannot be trademarked, nor can an individual be
punished for having a name that is a trademark, but such Persons may not
use the trademarked name to compete with its original owner.
Persons guilty of trademark infringement may be Fined up to 500 Grams of
Gold. The time limit for prosecuting trademark infringement is six
months from the date such infringement is discovered.
For example, Apple Records, being the first record company with
that name, may be granted a trademark on the name, and no other
record company may use it while they are using it. Apple
Computer, which is an entirely different business, may use their
name in their business with the same protection. If Apple
Computer should venture into the music business, then Apple
Records would have cause to sue. Chris Apple may name eir
Children after emself without consequence, but neither ey nor eir
Children may create another Apple Records while the first exists.
Note that while companies like Bayer have already had their
trademarks taken from them, Oceania will protect the trademarks
of other foreign businesses even if their country of origin does
not, so even if other countries allow Cokes not made by Coca-Cola
or Xerox machines not made by Xerox, such products may not be
sold in Oceania.
K.Lodging. In the absence of an explicit written Contract with a hotel or
lodging house, the following will apply:
Whenever any Person shall leave a hotel or lodging house, indebted to
the proprietor or proprietors thereof, and shall remain absent for the
period of three months, it shall be lawful for such proprietor or
proprietors to sell or cause to be sold, at public auction, any baggage
or Property of such Person indebted, or so much thereof as may be
necessary to pay such indebtedness, expenses, and charges of sale, which
may have been left at such hotel or lodging house by such Person.
All baggage or Property, of whatever description, left at a hotel or
lodging house for the period of six months, may be sold at public
auction by the proprietor or proprietors thereof, and the proceeds
arising from such sale, after deducting the expenses and charges of sale
and storage, shall be kept by the proprietor.
L.Harassment is the repeated irritation of a Person against eir wishes.
Initial contact in Person or by mail or other means cannot be considered
Harassment, but repeated advances after the Plaintiff has clearly
communicated that such are not welcome are considered Harassment.
Of course this includes phone soliciting and door-to-door
soliciting.
The Fine for Harassment shall be not less than 10 nor more than 100
Grams of Gold. Punishment shall be not more than 90 days. The time limit
for prosecuting Harassment is six months.
M.Piracy on the high seas is treated as one of two classes.
Class one is piracy not endorsed by particular nations. This class will
be treated as Robbery or Murder as is appropriate.
Class two is piracy endorsed by a particular nation. This will be
treated as an act of war and will call for military action.
6. Crimes Against Privacy
A.Unlawful Search: Any Person who shall search the person or Property of
another, or seize any Property therefrom, without a warrant for such
search issued by the Court of Oceania, or the full knowledge and consent
of the Person being searched, shall be guilty of an Unlawful Search.
Any Person who shall willfully open or read, or cause to be read, any
communication not addressed to emself, without being authorized to do so
by one of the parties to such communication or by a warrant duly issued
by the Court of Oceania, shall be guilty of an Unlawful Search.
Communications with foreign Entities are subject to the same protection.
Unlawful Search may result in Fines not more than 100 Grams of Gold and
imprisonment of not less than 30 days nor more than six months. The time
limit for prosecuting an Illegal Search is six months.
In particular, any agent of a foreign government who intercepts
private communications between one of its citizens and an
Oceanian shall be guilty of unlawful search against the Oceanian
notwithstanding any foreign warrants allowing such interception.
B.Publishing Secrets: Anyone knowingly and maliciously publishing
information gained in an illegal search shall be Punished with not less
than 90 days nor more than one year, and Fined no less than 20 nor more
than 200 Grams of Gold. The time limit for prosecuting this Crime is six
months.
C.Professional Confidences such as Attorney-Client, Banker-Client,
Clergy/Priest-Confessor or Doctor-Patient relationships Must be
explicitly specified in the Contract for such professional work, lest
such confidence violate the professional's Right to Knowledge. Penalties
for breach of such confidence shall be specified by Contract as well.
7. Crimes Against Children
A.Child Molestation is intercourse or the sexually fondling of a Child.
Child Molestation is illegal, even if the Child consents or if both
participants are Children. Juries may be lenient when both participants
in a sex act are Children or the Child is thirteen years or older.
Punishment for Child Molestation is the same as for Rape in the first
degree. The time limit for prosecuting Child Molestation is ten years.
B.Child Pornography is the filming or photographing of Child Molestation.
All money made from Child Pornography will be confiscated in addition to
any Fines levied for the act itself. This is the solution by these laws
to the problem of Child Pornography.
C.Incest. Parents may not have sex with their natural children or adopted
children unless their children are more than 21 years of age and have
not been declared mentally deficient by a jury. Penalties for incest are
the same as Rape in the first degree. Only the child involved (if ey is
a Teen or Adult) has standing to sue, and ey has ten years from the date
of the last act of incest to bring suit. Where the child involved is in
fact a Child, any Oceanian may bring suit on eir behalf.
Note that the age of 21 is well above the normal age of sixteen for
sexual consent. The reason for this is the large influence Parents have
over their Children.
With the exception of the previous two paragraphs, persons being within
the degrees of consanguinity within which marriages are normally
declared to be incestuous and void, who shall intermarry with each
other, or who shall commit fornication with each other, have committed
no crime.
Marriage contracts which explicitly disallow sexual relations, but grant
other spousal Rights such as inheritance or standing to sue, may be
drawn between a Parent and child without committing any Crime.
8. Crimes Against Teens
There are no specific crimes against Teens.
9. Crimes against Animals and Other Beings
A.Cruelty to Animals: Every Person who shall overdrive, overload, torture,
or unmercifully or cruelly beat or mutilate any animal, whether
belonging to emself or to any other Person, shall be deemed guilty of a
misdemeanor. Ey shall be imprisoned not exceeding six months.
Every person who shall willfully administer any poison to any cattle or
domestic animal, or maliciously expose any poisonous substance with the
intent that the same shall be taken or swallowed by any cattle or
domestic animal, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor. Ey shall be
Fined 10 to one hundred Grams of Gold and imprisoned not exceeding six
months.
In the case of sex with an animal, no crime shall be considered
committed unless the animal was forcibly restrained or was physically
injured. If either of these cases occurs than ey shall be imprisoned
not exceeding six months.
Every person who shall injure or kill an animal by negligence shall be
deemed guilty of a misdemeanor. Ey shall be Fined not more than fifty
Grams of Gold and imprisoned not exceeding three months. The time limit
for prosecuting this Crime is six months.
Of course, scientific research is legal in Oceania with the
provision that the animals are not unnecessarily tortured,
maimed, or killed. And it is not illegal for abandoned dogs and
other pets to be used in scientific experiments.
10. Frauds
A.False Credit. If any Person, by false representations of eir own wealth
or credit history, shall obtain a credit thereby, and thereby
fraudulently get into the possession of goods, wares, or merchandise, or
other valuable thing, every such offender shall be deemed a swindler if
the credit is not paid off as promised. The Penalties will be the same
as if the swindler had stolen the Property in question. The time limit
for prosecuting this Crime is six months.
B.False Pretenses. If any Person shall, knowingly and designedly, by any
false pretense, obtain from any other Person any piece of personal
Property, money, goods, wares, or other valuable thing, with intent to
cheat or defraud em of the same, every Person so offending shall be
deemed a cheat, and shall pay a Fine not less than twenty Grams of Gold
nor more than 200, and be Punished not less than 30 days nor more six
months. The time limit for prosecuting this Crime is six months.
C.Selling Property Twice. Any Person, after once selling, bartering, or
disposing of any tract of Land, or executing any bond or agreement for
the sale of any Lands, who shall again, knowingly and fraudulently,
sell, barter, or dispose of the same tract of Land, to any other Person
for a valuable consideration, every such offender shall pay a Fine not
exceeding 500 Grams of Gold and be Punished not less than one year or
more than five years. The time limit for prosecuting this Crime is six
months.
D.False Weight. If any Person shall knowingly sell any goods, wares, or
merchandise, or any valuable thing, by false weight or measure, ey shall
be deemed a common cheat, and shall be Punished not less than one year
or more than five years. The time limit for prosecuting this Crime is
six months.
E.Fraudulent Conveyance. If any debtor shall fraudulently remove eir
Property or effects out of Oceania, or shall fraudulently sell, convey,
or assign, or conceal eir Property or effects, with intent to defraud,
hinder, or delay eir creditors of their just Rights, claims, or demands,
ey shall be punished not exceeding one year. The time limit for
prosecuting this Crime is two years.
F. Removing Marker. Every person who shall willfully or maliciously
remove any marker of any time, erected or kept for the purpose of
designating the corner, or any other point, in the boundary of any lot
or tract of Land shall be punished not less than thirty days and not
exceeding one year. The time limit for prosecuting this Crime is six
months.
G.A Libel is a Malicious, untrue, defamatory statement. True statements,
and statements presented as opinion or satire, are immune from
prosecution as Libel. Actual malice need not be proven if it can be
shown that the party making such statements did so with full knowledge
that they would like cause harm, and with reckless disregard for their
truth.
The Fine for Libel shall not exceed 500 Grams of Gold. Punishment shall
not exceed 90 days. The time limit for prosecuting this Crime is six
months.
11. Miscellaneous Crimes
A.Jail Break. Any Convict who escapes from eir confinement and is
recaptured shall serve additional time not less than one year nor more
than ten. Convicts who reenter Oceania before their exile is over shall
have their time increased by not less than one year nor more than ten
and in addition their sentence may be converted from exile to
imprisonment.
If any Person shall set at liberty any imprisoned Convict unless funds
have run out at the prison in question, such Person shall be Punished
the amount of time remaining to be served by the prisoner ey released,
not to exceed ten years, and shall Compensate the Plaintiff (who will be
the same or one of the same Plaintiffs for whom the released Convict was
serving eir time) not less than 100 nor more than 500 Grams of Gold.
If any Person shall convey, or cause to be delivered, to an imprisoned
Convict, any disguise, instrument, or arms, proper to facilitate the
escape of such prisoner (although no escape, or attempt to escape, is
actually made), ey shall be Punished not less than six months nor more
than five years and shall by Fined not more than 200 Grams of Gold. The
time limit for prosecuting this Crime is six months. If such delivered
instrument is used in the performance of another crime, the deliverer
may also be tried as an accessory to that crime.
B.Unauthorized Office. If any Person shall willfully take upon emself to
exercise or officiate in any office or place of another, without being
lawfully authorized thereto, ey shall be Punished not less than 30 days.
If any Government official presumes an authority ey does not have, tells
an Oceanian that ey needs a License for something that is a Right, or
otherwise defrauds an Oceanian about the power of eir office, ey shall
Compensate such Plaintiff 20 Grams of Gold and be Punished not less than
30 days. The time limit for prosecuting this Crime is six months.
C.Embracery is an attempt to influence a juror or jurors corruptly to one
side, by threats or menaces, or by promises, persuasions, entreaties,
money, and the like.
Educating a jury about law or their rights as ju
rors will not be
considered Embracery.
An embracer shall be Punished not less than one year, nor exceeding five
years, and shall be Fined not exceeding 500 Grams of Gold. Any juror
convicted of taking any money, present, reward, or any other Valuable,
or corruptly being influenced, as aforesaid, shall suffer like
penalties, and be disqualified to act as a juror for one century. This
law applies to grand as well as trial jurors.
The Court of Oceania shall not appoint judges who have been convicted of
Embracery or being influenced as a juror. Such Persons may still be
hired by private Courts or elected to office. The time limit for
prosecuting this Crime is one year.
D.Treason is a threat to the security of Oceania against external threats
or an internal attempt to wage war against the Constitution of Oceania.
Exporting mind altering drugs to nations where they are illegal is
considered Treason of the first degree.
Waging war upon the territory and people of Oceania is considered
Treason of the second degree. Giving military aid or supplies to its
declared enemies, engaging in election Fraud or defrauding of the people
by Government agencies is also considered Treason of the second degree.
Election Fraud includes voting more than once, voting on behalf of
another Person, denying ballot access to legitimate candidates or
referendums, bribing or intimidating Voters, accepting ballots not
delivered in Person, misrepresenting the content of a ballot, and breach
of specific written promises made by candidates to Voters.
Suspending the Right to a Writ of Habeas Corpus, passing a bill of
attainder, ex post facto law, pre facto law (law declaring all future
actions of a Person or Entity to be legal) or passing a law impairing
the obligation of Contracts is considered Treason of the second degree.
Transferring money between Government budgets, authorizing Government
borrowing, or traveling into Oceania without permission during war is
considered Treason of the second degree.
Creating fake Oceania passports or committing fraud in the registration
of airplanes or ships under the flag of Oceania is considered Treason of
the third degree.
Persons who are convicted of Treason of the first degree shall be
Punished not less than ten years nor more than 100 and shall be Fined
not more than 10,000,000 Grams of Gold.
Persons who are convicted of Treason of the second degree shall be
Punished not less than ten years nor more than 100 and shall be Fined
not more than 100,000 Grams of Gold.
Persons who are convicted of Treason of the third degree shall be
Punished not less than five years nor more than 20 and shall be Fined
not more than 10,000 Grams of Gold.
All Fines in the case of Treason are to be given to the Department of
War Budget. If the Convicted traitor owns a frequency band, the
frequency may be collected as an additional Fine (if so ordered by the
jury) and sold at auction by the Department of War. The time limit for
prosecuting Treason is ten years.
E.Destroying Public Notices. If any Person shall intentionally deface,
obliterate, tear down, or destroy, in whole or in part, any copy or
transcript, or extract from or of any law of Oceania, or any
proclamation, advertisement, or notification, set up at any public place
in Oceania, such Person shall be Fined not less than ten Grams of Gold
nor more than 100, and shall be Punished not more than 30 days. This law
shall not extend to defacing, tearing down, obliterating, or destroying
any law, proclamation, publication, notification, advertisement, or
order, after the time for which the same was by law to remain up shall
have expired, or to notices posted without sufficient authority. The
time limit for prosecuting this Crime is six months.
F.Disturbing the Peace by public affray or other means shall be defined by
the standards of each Housing Development and prosecuted as specified in
the laws thereof. Extreme cases may be prosecuted as Harassment.
G.No Dispersal Upon Command is when two or more persons assemble for the
purpose of violating a Housing Development's rules. Prosecution will be
according to the Housing Development Contract.
H.Traffic Laws. Will be developed and enforced by the private owners of
roads. If such owners wished to prosecute in the Court of Oceania, the
crimes of Murder, Manslaughter, and Reckless Endangerment could be used
to prosecute violators of these laws.
I.Spitting On The Sidewalk and other "public" crimes will be regulated by
the owners of the private Property in question.
CHAPTER THREE
Contracts
The constitutional authority for these laws is Article 2, Section 3.
When there are no specific Punishments listed in a Contract for violating
its terms, the Court of Oceania may only order financial compensation in an
amount sufficient to render the injured parties whole for their loss, and
may not further punish the violator. Of course, evasion of these Debts
constitutes a separate offense for which the debtor may me sued and
subjected to the standard criminal Punishments for Larceny.
A Court may determine what constitutes free and informed consent for a
particular Contract. The signature of a party, when required to a written
instrument, shall be equally valid if the party cannot write, provided the
Person make eir mark, the name of the Person making the mark being written
near it, and the mark being witnessed by a Person who writes eir own name
as a witness.
If an Oceanian signs a note stating that ey is going to pay an amount of
money then ey is obligated to pay it. If the Debt isn't paid then the
penalty is in accordance with the Contract. If no penalty is mentioned,
then there will be no penalty.
Notice of non-payment may be directed to the address where the debtor lived
at the time ey signed the note, unless the debtor specified a different
address in the note.
These laws apply to videotaped Contracts, written Contracts, and those
recorded by any other means.
1. Marriage
Marriage is a private Contract among consenting Adults, and the Government
will take no part in defining its terms or methods or standards. The Courts
will enforce the terms of any Contract entered.
It is expected that boilerplate Contracts will be used for most
marriages.
Also, the legal standing of Spouse is defined by a Marriage Contract.
Anyone claiming the Rights of a Spouse (e.g., inheritance or Nearest
Relative status) Must present a Marriage Contract to the Court.
Bigamy and adultery are not Crimes unless explicitly disallowed by the
Marriage Contracts signed by the parties involved. If the Contract(s) do
not allow this, then the penalty will be as described in the Contract(s).
If a person has broken more than one Contract, then ey will receive the
worst of the penalties described in the Contracts involved.
Upon the dissolution of a Marriage Contract, or in the absence thereof, no
claims on the Property of a Spouse will be recognized by a Court without a
Contract explicitly specifying such transfer of Property. This means that
if someone lives with a Person for twelve years without a Marriage
Contract, they do NOT have any Spousal rights.
2. Implied Contracts
Following is a list of known Implied Contracts:
A.Advertisements and labels are an Implied Contract between the seller and
the customer.
B.The act of sexual intercourse binds the participants to an Implied
Contract to provide care for any Children resulting from that act. When
that Contractual obligation is terminated, either by the Child's
reaching teenhood or by a reassignment of Parental care by Explicit
Contract, the status of being a Child's biological Parent can confer no
further obligations to the Child.
C. Marrying a new partner implicitly transfers Parental responsibility of
all Children under eir control from the old partner to the new partner.
Explicit Contracts limiting or absolving the obligations of Implied
Contracts, to which all interested parties have consented, are legal.
Because a Child is an interested party in the Implied Contract obligating
eir care, and cannot consent to its absolution, the Implied Contract of
Child care may not be absolved in this way, though it may be transferred.
A jury may determine what Implied Contracts exist in a particular case.
3. Bankruptcy
The constitutional authority for these laws is Article 1, Section 3,
Subsection H.
Bankruptcy may be declared once every hundred years, at which time the
debtor may keep eir homestead and is required by law to pay two sevenths of
eir income for the seven years following the bankruptcy. If ey is caught
not paying this money, it will be considered theft of the amount not paid,
i.e., a petit larceny or grand larceny depending on the amount of money not
paid. Of course, if the Debt is paid off before the seven years are up, no
more money needs to be paid. And if any Debt remains after seven years,
the remaining Debt will never be paid.
A business may not declare bankruptcy and continue to operate. It must
liquidate all its assets at the time of bankruptcy and never operate again.
If any Debts are accumulated when the debtor may no longer declare
bankruptcy and these Debts fall into arrears, such Debts will be treated as
theft, i.e., petit larceny or grand larceny depending on the amount owed.
Trying to declare bankruptcy a second time within a fiscal century is
considered Fraud and is punishable by up to six months of jail time.
In bankruptcy, the homestead, consisting of a quantity of Land, together
with the dwelling of no more than one house thereon, and personal Property
therein, not exceeding in value 10,000 Grams of Gold, to be selected by the
head of the household, shall not be subject to forced sale on execution, or
any final process from any Court, for any Debt or liability.
Such exemption shall not extend to any loans that were backed by the value,
or part of the value, of the homestead. It also shall not extend to
avoidance of payment of Fines for committing felonies.
If the value of the Property is over 10,000 Grams of Gold then the owner
may choose to divide it or auction it off. Ey will get to keep the 10,000
Grams of Gold raised at the auction. If the auction raises 10,000 Grams of
Gold or less then the auction is declared null and void and the owner gets
to keep the Property. In the situation where the Court and the owner cannot
agree on the value of the Property, the owner of the Property may either
hire three disinterested appraisers to value eir Property or call for an
auction to determine the value of the Property.
4. Protection of the Wages of Labor
In all bankruptcies of employers, the wages of employees shall be paid
before any other Debts provided that the amount of money owed shall not
exceed 500 Grams of Gold, and the services shall have been rendered within
ninety days before the bankruptcy was declared.
In the case of the death of an employer, the same applies with the
exception that first the funeral expenses Must be paid. This act shall in
no way affect the homestead or other Property exempted by law from forced
sale, or any mortgage or lien lawfully obtained on the Property of the
deceased Person before eir death.
Such claims Must be filed by the employee in Court within ten days of
notice delivered to the employee of the bankruptcy or death of employer. If
the claim is not filed on time, the employee will no longer get
preferential treatment on eir claim.
If there is not enough money to pay employee claims, all employees will be
paid a percentage of money owed them.
5. The Formation of Corporations
The constitutional authority for these laws is Article 2, Section 3.
The formation of corporations can in no way be construed to be a privilege
granted by the Government or by any other outside Entities.
Corporations may be formed according to the provisions of this act, such
corporations, and the members thereof, being subject to all the conditions
and liabilities herein imposed, and to none others. This includes the
formation of banking Corporations for the purpose of issuing or circulating
money or currency within Oceania.
Any Person or Persons Must file (th)eir incorporation papers in the office
of a private company that stores such records. These papers Must include
the principal place of business, the corporate name of the company, the
object for which the same shall be formed, the amount of its capital stock,
the time of its existence, the number of shares of which the capital stock
shall consist, the number of trustees and their names, who shall manage the
concerns of the company for the first six months, and the name of the city,
town, or locality, and county in which the principal place of business of
the company is to be located.
When the certificate shall have been filed, the Persons who shall have
signed it and their successors shall have the power to enact corporate
bylaws which may not be inconsistent with these laws. From that point on,
the bylaws shall dictate internal procedures and dictate power of attorney
for external affairs.
Corporations organized under this act are deemed to possess the same rights
and powers of any Oceanian to issue bills, notes, or other evidences of
Debt, for circulation as money. Corporations possess the same powers of any
Oceanian to engage in any act of business. In the case of Fines or
imprisonment for Crimes committed in the name of the corporation, the
corporation will pay the Fines, and the Person(s) who actually committed
the Crime will serve the jail time.
Any Person or Persons who shall act as the agent of any such corporation in
conducting or carrying on any business of such corporation, in any of the
counties of Oceania, without any such certificate having been filed as
required, as provided in this act herein, shall be deemed guilty of a
misdemeanor if they have claimed to others that they are registered, and on
conviction, shall be Fined not exceeding 1,000 Grams of Gold, to which may
be added imprisonment not exceeding six months.
6. Limited Partnerships
The constitutional authority for these laws is Article 2, Section 3.
The formation of limited partnerships can in no way be construed to be a
privilege granted by the Government or by any other outside Entities.
Limited partnerships within Oceania may be formed by two or more Persons
upon the terms and subject to the conditions and liabilities prescribed in
this act, and nothing contained in this act shall be construed to forbid
such partnerships from the purpose of banking or insurance.
The said partnerships may consist of one or more Persons who shall be
called general partners, who shall be jointly and severally responsible as
general partners. They are, by these laws, prescribed to enact the bylaws
of said limited partnership, thus creating the powers and responsibilities,
and the limits thereof, of their limited partners.
The Persons forming such partnerships shall sign a certificate, which shall
contain the name under which said partnership is to be conducted, the names
and respective places of residence of all the general partners, the general
nature of the business to be transacted, and the time when the partnership
is to commence and when it is to terminate. This certificate is to be filed
with a private record keeping company.
The business of the partnership shall be conducted under a firm in which
the names of the general partners only shall be inserted, and the general
partners and those they give power of attorney to shall only transact the
business.
In case of dissolution or insolvency of the partnership, notice Must be
given to the creditors, by certified delivery and public notice. And at the
same time they Must give notice to the private company that they filed
partnership papers with.
Any Person or Persons who shall act as the agent of any such partnership in
conducting or carrying on any business of such corporation, in any of the
counties of Oceania, without any such certificate having been filed as
required, as provided in this act herein, shall be deemed guilty of a
misdemeanor if they have claimed to others that they have registered, and
on conviction, shall be Fined not exceeding 1,000 Grams of Gold, to which
may be added imprisonment not exceeding six months.
7. Joint Debtors
If one Person pays off eir portion of a joint Debt, this may or may not
release em from the remainder of eir Debt with the other joint debtors
depending on the terms of the Contract ey has signed with them. If the
Contract does not cover this matter, ey will be released from the remainder
of the Debt.
CHAPTER FOUR
Property Disputes
The constitutional authority for these laws is Article 2, Section 3.
When Land, bank accounts, or other Property is unclaimed for five years, it
will be auctioned off and the proceeds put into the Department of War
Budget. Of course, cash will not need to be auctioned off.
Land ownership in Oceania will originate with the person who created the
Land, and shall include the airspace up to one hundred kilometers above the
highest point of ground within 500 meters horizontally as well as all
matter below the Land to the center of the planet. For the purpose of this
clause, "Land" shall be defined as habitable or arable space at a
permanently fixed location with respect to the planet's surface, whether
such Land is at the surface, below, or above. If this "Land" should move,
the owner of this "Land" would not retain Rights to the airspace above the
former location of this "Land" or the matter below this "Land".
A Land owner has the Right to use its surface soil, surface, and subsurface
water and minerals. A Land owner may separately sell off eir water Rights,
mineral Rights, or airspace Rights while still retaining eir other Land
Rights.
A parcel bordering an ocean or sizable lake, shall extend to a distance of
1/4 kilometer or less from the edge between water and Land. A parcel
bordering a river shall control the water within 75 meters or less from
said edge.
In neither case shall the Land owner have a Right to block navigation. A
dam or other obstruction may be constructed on the water only if a
convenient alternate route is provided. The exception being if an Entity
buys travel rights from all Entities bordering the river or lake. All
owners of parcels bordering a river or lake are owners of these travel
Rights. If the obstruction will reduce or stop water flow, then water
Rights as well Must be bought from all Entities bordering the river or
lake. All owners of parcels bordering a river or lake are owners of these
water Rights. If the obstruction will reduce or stop fish or other useful
floating items in the water, then fishing Rights as well Must be bought
from all Entities bordering the river or lake. All owners of parcels
bordering a river or lake are owners of these fishing Rights.
Travel, water, and fishing rights will be apportioned based on the linear
amount of riverbank an owner has on eir Property bordering the river or
lake, measured to the nearest meter at a time in between high and low
tides.
Control of travel, water, and fishing rights in a river or lake more than
75 meters from its edges will be controlled by a development composed of
all the owners of such rights. If such a development does not exist, then
travel will be unrestricted, water will not be allowed to be siphoned off
in this area, and fishing will be limited to fishing for pleasure.
In situations where a river is less than 150 meters wide, then the owners
of properties bordering the river may not obstruct travel beyond half the
distance from their border to the center of the river. So if a river was
100 meters wide, each Land owner could only obstruct 25 meters.
A bay will be treated as a lake up to the opening of the bay.
CHAPTER FIVE
Frequency Rights
The constitutional authority for this law is Article 1, Section 1,
Subsection D.
It is a complex process to assign rights to the frequencies that make up
the electromagnetic spectrum. When Oceania is first created, all
frequencies will be given away by lottery. As additional Land is added to
Oceania this process will be repeated when possible. Note that many
frequencies such as TV frequencies normally occupy over a hundred
kilometers of broadcastable space. So additional Land added to Oceania that
does not cause the total to exceed the range of a TV transmitter will not
give the Land owner money from the "sale" of eir rights to broadcast TV.
Of course, Oceanian broadcasters may not interfere with the
existing frequency rights of foreign broadcasters.
CHAPTER SIX
Wills and Property of the Deceased
The constitutional authority for the above laws is Article 2, Section 3.
Will is defined as a will or codicil.
All Wills either handwritten or witnessed by two or more people are
automatically legal. Anything else must be determined by a jury as to
whether or not the Will is valid.
If, after the making of any Will, the testator shall duly make and execute
a second Will, the canceling of the second Will shall not revive the first
Will. The two exceptions to this are that:
It appears by the terms of such revocation it was the intention to
revive and give effect to the first Will or
after such canceling the first Will was duly reexecuted.
Wills shall be processed in the Court specified by the Will or in the
closest Court to the place specified in the Will. If no place is specified
then it Will be processed in the closest Court in Oceania to the place of
death. Any Person having the custody of any Will, shall, within thirty days
after ey shall have knowledge of the death of the deceased, deliver it into
the Court which has jurisdiction of the case.
If the executor intends to decline the trust, ey shall file eir
renunciation in writing. In the event that the executor declines eir
appointment, then it falls upon the backup executor. If there is no backup
named, at that time the Court shall be named executor and carry out the
duties of an executor. In any event, whomever is appointed as the
executor, it Will be eir duty to inventory of all the deceased's belongings
and to carry out he provisions and directions in the Will.
The executor Must notify the general public that the Will is being
processed. The time in which this shall be carried out shall be no more
than thirty days of date of death or thirty days after the executor
receives the Will, which ever is later. This shall be done by publication
in a Newspaper. Also, any Persons named in the Will shall be notified via
certified mail that the Will is being processed.
Every Person who shall neglect to perform any of the duties required in the
preceding paragraphs, without reasonable cause, shall be liable to every
Person interested in the Will for the damages they may sustain in
consequence of such neglect. It is the executor's responsibility to sue
parties who have harmed the estate and ey may be sued by others if ey harms
the estate.
If the executor is found to not be performing eir duties as prescribed,
then ey may be removed by the Court and the back up executor or the Court
shall take over as executor. In the event that the court is the executor
and believed by the interested parties to be incompetent, then the
interested parties may petition the next higher Court to have the Will
probated.
Any Person, having an interest in the Will, may present a petition. An
interest being defined as any Person who could present a valid copy of a
Will with eir name in it or be able to allege that someone has a valid copy
of a Will with eir name on it. If a Person has possession of a Will, and
neglects or refuses to produce it in obedience to an order, decided on by
the court hearing the Will, ey may, by warrant from the Court, be committed
to jail, and be kept in close confinement for up to five years.
If the Will is contested, the Court shall direct subpoenas to the witnesses
of the Will to establish the validity of it. The witnesses shall testify
as to whether the deceased was of sound mind at the time the Will was
signed and whether or not ey signed it. If no one contests the Will, only
one witness is needed to initiate its probate.
Any Person interested (interested being defined as above), may appear and
contest the Will. If it appears that there are Children then their
guardian shall see to their representation. If a child has no relatives
willing to be eir guardian and no relatives willing to appoint eir
guardian, then a Court should be charged with the goal of finding a
guardian for em.
In addition to the witnesses of the signing of the Will, the Court may
admit the testimony of other witnesses to prove the sanity of the deceased,
and the execution of the Will; and, as evidence of the execution, it may
admit proof of the handwriting of the deceased.
The executor or administrator may apply to the Court for an order to sell
the perishable Property of the estate, and any other Property as may be
necessary to be sold. If there be a delay in obtaining such order, such
Property may be sold without an order of sale; provided that the executor
shall be held responsible for such Property, unless, the Court decides that
the executor acted in good faith in the best interests of the estate. If
claims against the estate have been allowed, and a sale of Property shall
be necessary for their payment, or of the expenses of the administration,
the executor may also apply for an order to sell so much of the personal
Property as shall be necessary. Ey may make a similar application, from
time to time, as long as the sale thereof is again necessary.
No executor or administrator shall be accountable for any Debts due to the
deceased, if it shall appear that they remain uncollected without eir
fault.
The executor shall be allowed all necessary expenses in the care,
management, and settlement of the estate, and for eir services such fees as
the law provides; but when the deceased shall, by eir Will, make some other
provision for the compensation of eir executors, that shall be deemed a
full compensation for the executor's services, unless ey shall, by a
written instrument, filed in the Court, renounce all claim for compensation
provided by the Will.
The Debts of the estate shall be paid in the following order: Funeral
expenses; The expenses of the last sickness; Judgments rendered against the
deceased in eir lifetime, and mortgages in the order of their date; All
other demands against the estate.
The preference given in the preceding paragraph to a mortgage shall only
extend to the proceeds of the Property mortgaged. If the proceeds of such
Property be insufficient to pay the mortgage, the part remaining
unsatisfied shall be classed with other demands against the estate.
If any Person shall die and leave no heirs to inherit eir estate, then the
Person able to convince a jury that the Person would have wished that they
have received the money, shall get the money. If no Person is able to
convince a jury within a year, then the Department of War will auction off
such Property and keep the proceeds.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Regulation of Government Agencies
The few Government agencies allowed by the Constitution of Oceania are
subject to regulation by the people as stated in the constitution Article
2, Section 3. Each department has an elected director who may run the
agency and its budget as ey sees fit, provided that ey abides by these
regulations.
It shall be unlawful for any Government agency, or any Government officer,
to authorize, allow, or contract for any expenditure unless the money for
the payment thereof is in the treasury and specially set aside for such
payment. Any Government officer or officers violating this law shall be
convicted of Treason of the second degree and penalized accordingly.
In case of great necessity or emergency, any Government agency by unanimous
vote, by resolution reciting the character and nature of such necessity or
emergency, may NOT authorize a temporary loan for the purpose of meeting
such necessity or emergency.
1. The Office of the President
A.The President will be elected every four years on the tenth of June. Ey
has the responsibility and authority to run eir office and budget as ey
sees fit consistent with the laws here and in the Constitution.
B.The Vice President will be elected every four years on the tenth of
June. Ey has the responsibility to replace the President if the
President is no longer able to carry out eir duties.
2. The War Department
A.The Commander in Chief will be elected every four years on the tenth of
June. Ey has the responsibility and authority to run the Department of
War and its budget as ey sees fit consistent with the laws here and in
the Constitution.
B.The Air and Space Force Commander is elected on the tenth of June, the
year following the election of the Commander-in--Chief. Ey has the
responsibility and authority to run the Air and Space Force and its
budget as ey sees fit consistent with the laws here and in the
Constitution.
C.The Army Commander is elected on the tenth of June, the year following
the election of the Air and Space Force Commander. Ey has the
responsibility and authority to run the Army and its budget as ey sees
fit consistent with the laws here and in the Constitution.
D.The Navy Commander is elected on the tenth of June, the year following
the election of the Army Commander. Ey has the responsibility and
authority to run the Navy and its budget as ey sees fit consistent with
the laws here and in the Constitution.
Initially, the Commander in Chief, the Air and Space Force Commander, the
Army Commander, and the Navy Commander will be elected in the same year and
will serve terms of 1 year, two years, three years, and four years
respectively.
Military discipline is absolutely necessary, but under normal, non combat
conditions it is only necessary to remind military personnel that
noncompliance shall result in dismissal and loss of pay and benefits.
During national crisis, a soldier or officer may no less abandon the
military than a civilian ship captain may abandon passengers during a
possible shipwreck. The Contract between military personnel and the
militias they serve shall include provisions to cover such events
adequately.
To reduce the chance of unfairness, it is highly recommended that the
private Courts that these militias Contract with allow appeal to the Court
of Oceania.
3. The Anti-Law Department
A.The Chief Director of the Anti-Law Department will be elected every four
years on the tenth of June. Ey has the responsibility and authority to
run the Anti-Law Department as ey sees fit consistent with the laws here
and in the Constitution.
4. The Court of Oceania
A.The Chief Director of the Court of Oceania will be elected every four
years on the tenth of June. Ey has the responsibility and authority to
run the Court as ey sees fit consistent with the laws here and in the
Constitution. This includes the responsibility of appointing judges to
the levels of the Court of Oceania.
B.The Court of Oceania may not follow admiralty law or any other system of
laws that violates the Constitution of Oceania.
The corrupt practice of allowing a court to fly a flag that is
different that the national flag and to use laws that are
different from the national laws will not be allowed in the Court
of Oceania. For example, the use of Admiralty law and the
corresponding Admiralty flag in the U.S. would not be allowed in
the Court of Oceania. Admiralty law removes certain rights from
the Defendant such as the right to a jury.
C.Levels of Court. There are three levels of court: The Supreme Court,
County Courts, and Local Courts. Each Court will have one Judge and at
least twelve jurors. Each Court will have the responsibility to
determine if a law is constitutional. All cases Must begin in the Local
Court, from where they may be appealed to the County Court, and then to
the Supreme Court.
Cases that are tried in private Courts and are then appealed begin at
the Local Court level in the Court of Oceania. Private Courts do not
have to allow appeal.
D.Local Grand Juries. An Oceanian is Entitled to immediately ask for a
standing Grand Jury to decide whether ey has had eir rights violated by
the Government or others. There Must be a Grand Jury within two hours
travel time 24 hours a day. Grand Jury proceedings are to be secret.
The Grand Jury Must inquire into the case of every person imprisoned in
the jail of a County, and not indicted; into the condition and
management of all prisons hired by the County; and into the willful and
corrupt misconduct in office of public officers of every description
within the County.
The Grand Jury shall be entitled to free access, at all reasonable
times, to all prisons under its jurisdiction, and to the examination
without charge, of all public records within its County.
An Indictment cannot be found without the concurrence of at least twelve
grand jurors. When so found it shall be endorsed: "A true bill", and
the endorsement shall be signed by the foreman of the grand jury.
If twelve grand jurors do not concur in finding an indictment against a
Defendant who has been held to answer, the deposition and statement, if
any, transmitted to them shall be returned to the Court with the
indorsement signed by the foreman to the effect that the charge is
dismissed. Only Grand Juries may issue warrants for arrest and warrants
for searches of Property.
An Indictment Must contain the title of the action, specifying the name
of the Court to which the Indictment is presented and the names of the
parties, and a statement of the acts constituting the offense, in
ordinary and concise language and in such manner as to enable a person
of common understanding to know what is intended.
E.Trial Juries are selected at random from a list of jury volunteers.
Prospective jurors volunteer their services by giving the Court their
names, contact information, a list of fields in which they have
expertise, and the salary for which they are willing to work. The Court
may not require any personal or other information from prospective
jurors, though it may decline to call for duty those that cannot be
reached with the contact information given,
It is a Felony to bribe, threaten, or intimidate a juror in an attempt
to alter the outcome of a trial. Educating em about law or eir Rights as
a juror will not be considered bribing, threatening, or intimidating the
juror.
It is illegal to selectively withhold evidence and testimony from the
jury. Evidence that was illegally obtained IS considered evidence
although the party who uncovered the evidence will be convicted of an
Unlawful Search as described in the Crimes Against Privacy.
Juries shall not only decide whether or not the Defendant is guilty, but
they shall decide eir punishment within the limits prescribed by law.
All actions done by a Court are voted upon by the jury. This includes
deciding the maximum amount of money from the budget of the Court of
Oceania that will be spent on a trial. The judge is just an
administrator and referee to uphold court procedure, not the one who
decides the outcome of a trial. Decisions made by the jury during trial
will require majority vote, except the judgment itself, which Must be
unanimous. Ties in voting will cause decisions to fail.
Unanimity is necessary for judgment. Cases that end in two consecutive
hung juries will be considered acquittals.
To be proven guilty takes a unanimous decision by a jury that the
Defendant is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. And when an offense is
proven against the Defendant and there exists a reasonable doubt as to
which of the two or more degrees ey is guilty, ey shall be convicted
only of the lowest.
F.Witnesses. The Party injured shall in all cases be a competent witness.
The credibility of all such witnesses shall be left to the jury, as in
other cases. In all cases where two or more Persons are jointly or
otherwise concerned in the commission of any Crime, either may be sworn
as a witness against another, in relation to such Crime, but the
testimony given by such witness shall in no instance be used against
emself in any criminal prosecution.
The solemn oath of witnesses shall be deemed sufficient. A false or
corrupt oath shall subject the witness to all the penalties of willful
and corrupt perjury.
No Person shall be compelled to be a witness against eirself, nor shall
a Person charged with a Crime be subjected, before conviction, to any
more restraint than is necessary for eir detention to answer the charge.
Nothing herein contained shall be construed as compelling any such
Person to testify; and in all cases wherein the Defendant declines to
testify, the judge shall specially instruct the jury that no inference
of guilt is to be drawn against em for that cause.
It is a Felony to bribe, threaten, or intimidate a witness, in an
attempt to alter the outcome of a trial. Punishment will be the same as
for the Crime Embracery in the Miscellaneous Crimes section.
G.Records of all decisions Must be stored by the Courts who made them and
be available at cost to all who ask for them. Records may be deleted one
century after the last action made in the Court on the matter in
question. Clerical or other errors found in these records may be
appended to these records as corrections, but the original records may
not be altered. To alter them would be considered Treason of the third
degree.
H.Attorneys. Anyone can declare emself an attorney. Of course, private
groups could certify or blackball attorneys whom they think are capable
or not capable of doing the job.
I.Arrest. A private Person may arrest another:
for a Crime committed, or attempted, in eir presence.
when the Person arrested has committed a Felony, although not in eir
presence.
when a Felony has been in fact committed, and ey has reasonable
evidence in believing the Person arrested to have committed it.
If the Person to be arrested has committed a Felony, and the arrestor,
after notice of eir intention to make the arrest, is refused admittance;
ey may break open any outer or inner door or window of a dwelling for
the purpose of making the arrest.
The use of force to resist an arrest or search is justified:
If, before the accused offers any resistance, the officer (or Person
acting at eir direction) uses or attempts to use greater force than
necessary to make the arrest or search.
When and to the degree the accused reasonably believes the force is
immediately necessary to protect emself against the officer's (or
other Person's) use or attempted use of greater force than necessary.
J.The amount of Bail shall be set by the jury. Excessive bail shall not be
required, nor excessive Fines imposed. Bail and Fines may not be imposed
without informing the accused of the nature and cause of the accusation.
A bail hearing can be requested with one hour notice. Bails and all
other requests for money by the Court of Oceania will be accepted in all
convertible currencies.
If the Defendant neglects or refuses to pay the judgment against em
within ten days after eir conviction, that amount may be subtracted from
the Bail.
If the Defendant shall die, be acquitted or be imprisoned, eir Bail Must
be refunded. Ey Must receive all of eir bail money back in exactly the
same form in which it was posted when ey appears at eir Court date as
promised. If the Person who posted bail for an Oceanian fails to pick up
eir bail money after the accused has attended eir Court date, then bail
money Must be mailed to the Person who posted bail within 24 hours.
K.Bench Warrant. If the Defendant has been discharged on bail, or has
deposited money instead thereof, and does not appear to be arraigned
when eir personal attendance is necessary, the Court, in addition to the
forfeiture of the recognizance, or of the money deposited, may direct
the clerk to issue a bench warrant for eir arrest if the original Crime
the Defendant was being tried for could have given em a jail sentence.
L.Contempt of Court. If any one but the Defendant or Plaintiff is
convicted of Contempt of Court by a jury they shall be fined no more
than 100 grams of gold on their first offense and be removed permanently
from the trial on their second offense along with a fine of no more than
100 grams of gold.
If the Defendant or Plaintiff is convicted of Contempt of Court by a
jury they shall be fined no more than 100 grams of gold on their first
offense and be convicted of no more than 200 grams of gold on any
additional offenses.
In both cases, the jury may not convict someone of Contempt of Court
without first being asked to by the Defendant or Plaintiff.
M.Proceedings. All actions done by a Court are to be voted upon by a jury.
The judge is just an administrator and referee to uphold court
procedure; not the one who decides the outcome of a trial. Even the
charge of contempt of Court may only be given by a jury.
The Defendant is entitled: First, to a speedy and public trial; Second,
to appear and defend in Person or with counsel; and, Third, to produce
witnesses on eir behalf, and to be confronted with the witnesses against
em in the presence of the Court. Witnesses may be disguised, and their
testimony may be considered by the jury.
No Person can be convicted of a Crime unless by verdict of a jury,
accepted and recorded by the Court, or upon a plea of guilty.
A jury may not issue a warrant for someone's arrest for failing to
appear in defense of a civil or criminal Crime that does not carry a
penalty of imprisonment. The jury may simply issue a monetary judgment.
These judgments may be secured by liens on the offender's Property.
Disputes that were supposed to be handled with Courts that have gone out
of business will be processed in the Court of Oceania unless the
Contract between the two parties says otherwise.
No Person can be punished for a Crime except upon legal conviction in a
Court having jurisdiction.
No Person shall be subject to a second prosecution for a public offense
for which ey has once been prosecuted and duly acquitted. This includes
the practice of having different levels of the Government prosecute one
Person for similar Crimes.
The time between accusation and trial may not be more than 30 days
unless both the Plaintiff and Defendant agree otherwise. The same
applies to time between appeals.
There may not be more than one hour between the time of appearance set
by the Court and the time that the trial or hearing begins. Those
responsible for such a delay will be sentenced to not less than 30 days
nor more than six months plus fined not more than 100 grams of gold.
N.Questions of Authentication for documents or other evidence may be
decided by a jury. Using seals, notaries, and affidavits are some of the
many ways a document may be authenticated. It is recognized that as
technology advances, the accepted methods of authentication will change.
O.Insanity. The plea of innocence by reason of insanity is not accepted in
the Court Of Oceania. If someone convicted is truly insane, ey may be
put in a mental hospital for the duration of eir jail sentence. It take
a unanimous vote by a jury to declare someone to be insane.
The defense of pleading insanity due to eating a twinkee is
particularly abhorred.
A person shall be considered of sound mind who is neither an idiot or
lunatic, or affected with insanity.
P.Media. All decisions of the Court of Oceania Must be released to the
media within 24 hours of being made.
If both the Defendant and Plaintiff wish, a trial can be closed to the
public entirely with the exception of the transcripts of the trial. If
both the Defendant and Plaintiff wish, a trial can be both open to the
public and put on camera. In any other cases, the trial is open to the
public but not to the camera. A television or other media company may
pay these parties to encourage them to allow cameras or other devices in
the Court.
If the Government is the Plaintiff, then it is declared to want a
trail open to the media so the trial will either be open to the
public or open to the media and the public based on what the
Defendant wishes.
Q.Money. If the accused does not have the money to pay eir Fines the Court
can negotiate with the accused for schedule of payments.
There is no specified money of account in Oceania. In all judgments and
decrees, rendered by any Court, for any Debt, damages, Fines, or costs,
the amount shall be computed in any currency or commodity that the Court
selects.
If a prison runs out of money to keep a prisoner in jail, it must give
two week notice before releasing such prisoner. This will give time for
other parties to raise such money.
R.Arresting Property. While an item may not arrested, such as a car used
in a hit-and-run, its owner may be declared to be partially or wholly
responsible for the Crime committed by the item. It is up to a jury to
decide how responsible the owner was for the Crime committed by the
item.
S.Board of Parole. A Board of Parole determines whether a Convict has
engaged in "good behavior" and therefore should be released early. Under
the Constitution of Oceania, a Convict may not be released early for
"good behavior". Therefore there are no Boards of Parole in Oceania.
At the Plaintiff's option, a Convict may be allowed to work while in
prison to reduce eir jail time. A prisoner may earn three hours off eir
sentence for every hour worked. Wages earned by prisoners will first be
used to pay the prisoner's Court Costs (including prison costs),
secondly Fines, and are thereafter the Property of the prisoner.
Also at the Plaintiff's option, the Convict may be allowed to pay a Fine
to the Court in place of serving jail time. The Court may not levy Fines
except at the Plaintiff's request, and the amount of the Fine will be
fixed at one Gram of Gold for every day the Convict would have spent in
jail.
At any time while a Convict is serving time, the Plaintiff may release
em from eir obligation for jail time, or may give explicit instructions
forbidding such release, to be binding em and eir successors as
Plaintiff. Of course, a Plaintiff may not release a prisoner serving
time for Crimes against a different Plaintiff.
T.Conviction. Every person sentenced to imprisonment in any penal
institution shall be under the protection of the law, and any
unauthorized injury to eir person shall be punished in the same manner
as if ey were not so convicted or sentenced. A conviction of crime shall
not work a forfeiture of any Property, real or personal, or any right or
interest therein. All forfeitures in the name of deodands, or in case of
suicide or where a person flees from justice, are abolished.
The selection of the jail that the Convict shall reside in, shall be
done by the trial jury. It will be considered Fraud if the jail does not
live up to the terms presented by it to the trial jury. In addition, any
prison that violates rights of a Convict not expressly repressed by the
terms of eir conviction shall be guilty of the relevant Crime.
Writs
A. Writ of Habeas Corpus. Every Person committed, detained, confined,
or restrained of eir liberty, under any pretense whatever, may prosecute
a writ of Habeas Corpus to inquire into the cause of such imprisonment
or restraint. Application for such writ shall be made by petition,
signed either by the party for whose relief it is intended, or by some
Person in eir behalf, and shall specify:
who is being imprisoned, who is imprisoning em, and the place. If
names of people or places are not known then descriptions of people or
places will be accepted.
If the imprisonment be alleged to be illegal, the petition Must also
state why this is believed.
The petition Must be verified by the oath of the party making the
application.
Such writ of Habeas Corpus may be processed by any Court and Must be
done without delay. A delay longer than one hour is considered to be
False Imprisonment and will be published accordingly.
The writ Must be served to those holding said Person by an officer of
the Court. The writ will include the time that the Court would like both
the jailer and the prisoner to be brought before the Court. If the
jailer to whom such writ is directed cannot be found or refuses to speak
to the officer of the Court, the writ may be delivered by leaving it at
the home of the jailer, or at the place where the prisoner is being
held. If the jailer does not comply with the writ within one hour ey
shall be sentenced to at least thirty days in jail, and the prisoner in
eir custody shall be brought before the Court.
The jailer should respond to the writ with the following sworn
statement:
Whether ey has or does not have the party in eir custody, or under eir
power or restraint.
If ey has the party in eir custody or power, or under eir restraint,
ey shall state the authority and cause of such imprisonment or
restraint.
If the jailer upon whom such writ has been served does not have the
prisoner in eir custody but transferred the prisoner to someone else's
custody ey shall state when, where, and why the transfer took place.
If the writ of Habeas Corpus is served, the Person or officer to whom
the same is directed shall also bring prisoner in eir custody, according
to the command of the writ, except in the cases specified in the next
paragraph.
If the prisoner is too sick or too weak to be transferred the jailer
Must state this in eir response to the writ. If the Court does not
believe the prisoner is too sick or weak to be transferred, it may order
someone to pick em up.
The Court before whom a writ of Habeas Corpus shall be returned shall,
immediately after the return thereof, proceed to hear and examine the
return. Such Court shall have full power and authority to require and
compel the attendance of witnesses by process of subpoena and
attachment, and to do and perform all other acts and things necessary to
a full and fair hearing and determination of the case. If no legal cause
be shown for such imprisonment or restraint, or for the continuation
thereof, such Court shall discharge such party from the custody or
restraint under which ey is held.
If the prisoner can show the Court no reason why ey should be released
ey will be remanded by the Court. If it appears on the return of the
writ of Habeas Corpus that the prisoner is in custody by a Court
decision, such prisoner may be discharged in any one of the following
cases, subject to the restrictions of the preceding paragraph:
when the jurisdiction of such Court has been exceeded.
when the imprisonment was at first lawful, yet by some act, omission,
or event, which has taken place afterwards, the party has been
entitled to be discharged.
when the process is defective in some matter of substance required by
law, rendering such process void.
when the process, though proper in form, has been issued in a case not
allowed by law.
when the Person having the custody of the prisoner is not the Person
allowed by law to retain em.
where the process is not authorized by any judgment, order, or decree
of any Court, nor by any provision of law.
where a party has been committed on a criminal charge without
reasonable or probable cause.
If any Person is committed to prison, or is in custody of any office on
any criminal charge, by virtue of any warrant, such Person shall not be
discharged from such imprisonment or custody on the ground of any defect
of form in such warrant or commitment. No writ of Habeas Corpus shall be
disobeyed for defect or form.
No Person who has been discharged by the order of the Court upon a writ
of Habeas Corpus issued pursuant to the provisions of this act, shall be
again imprisoned, restrained, or kept in custody for the same cause,
except in the following cases:
If ey shall have been discharged from custody on a criminal charge,
and be afterwards committed for the same offense by legal order or
process.
If after a discharge for defect of proof, or for any defect of the
process, warrant, or commitment, in a criminal case, the prisoner be
again arrested on sufficient proof, and committed by legal process for
the same offense.
If any Judge, after a proper application is made, shall refuse to grant
an order for a writ of Habeas Corpus, or if the officer or Person to
whom such writ may be directed shall refuse obedience to the command
thereof, ey shall forfeit and pay to the Person aggrieved a sum not
exceeding 500 Grams of Gold, to be recovered by an action of Debt in any
Court having cognizance thereof.
Any Person having in eir custody a Person for whom a writ of Habeas
Corpus has been issued for eir relief, and who then tries to elude this
writ by transferring control of this Person or by concealing the place
of eir confinement or restraint, shall be deemed guilty of Kidnapping as
defined in Crimes Against Liberty..
Every Person who shall knowingly aid or assist in any offense specified
in the preceding paragraph, shall be guilty of Kidnapping or Accessory
to Kidnapping and shall be punished appropriately.
B.Writ of Mandamus may be issued by any Court or Grand Jury to request the
performance of an act which the law especially enjoins as a duty
resulting from an office. A Person who has reason to suspect that a
mandatory act of public duty will not be performed, may ask the Court to
grant such a Writ. While such a Writ has no actual legal force, it is
hoped that a Person presented with such a Writ would be more likely to
follow its recommendations than those of an ordinary Oceanian.
C.Writ of Prohibition is the counterpart of the Writ of Madamus. It
requests the halt of proceedings of any tribunal, corporation, board, or
Person, whether exercising functions judicial or ministerial, when such
proceedings are without or in excess of the jurisdiction of such
tribunal, corporation, board or Person. A Person who has reason to
suspect that a Crime will be committed, may ask the Court to grant such
a Writ. While such a Writ has no actual legal force, it is hoped that a
Person presented with such a Writ would be more likely to follow its
recommendations than those of an ordinary Oceanian.
D.Writ of Quo Warranto is a writ ordering a Person to show by what Right
ey exercises an office, franchise, or privilege.
A lawsuit may be filed in a Local Court against any Person unlawfully
holding or exercising any public office within Oceania; or when any
public officer has done any act which works a forfeiture of eir office.
If the Defendant loses the case, ey shall pay up to 200 Grams of Gold
and/or suffer six months' imprisonment. At that time, the correct
Person will be given the office as determined by the Court.
E Writ of Attachment. The Plaintiff, at the time of issuing the summons,
or at any time afterwards, may have the Property of the Defendant
attached, as security for the satisfaction of any judgment that may be
recovered, unless the Defendant gives security to pay such judgment, as
hereinafter provided in the following cases:
In an action upon a Contract for the direct payment of money, made, or
by the terms thereof, payable in Oceania, which is not secured by
mortgage, or pledge upon real or personal Property situated in
Oceania. If so secured, when such secured has been rendered worthless
by the act of the Defendant.
In an action upon a Contract against a Defendant not residing in
Oceania.
F.Writ of Garnishment. At the time of issuing a writ of Attachment in an
action, or at any time thereafter, the Plaintiff may have a writ of
Garnishment issued, and thereupon attach the credits, effects, Debt, and
other personal Property of the Defendant in the possession or under the
control of any third person, as garnishee, for the security of any
judgment the Plaintiff may recover in such action against the Defendant
G.Writ of Restitution. This writ is issued by the Court after conviction
and entitles the Plaintiff to receive restitution from the Defendant.
The amount of this restitution may not be larger than the amount of
damage caused by the crime.
H.Writ of Assistance is an order authorizing a Person to compel the aid of
others, as by police compelling assistance in a search. Such Writs will
not be issued by the Court of Oceania and those issued by other Courts
will subject such Courts to prosecution for Fraud.
I.Writ of Error operates as a supersedeas. It has the effect of a request
to stay, on good cause shown, some ordinary proceedings which ought
otherwise to have proceeded. It has the same legal effect and power as a
Writ of Prohibition.
J.Writ of Execution shall be issued by the Court of Oceania by the
unanimous vote of a jury. It shall contain the Court where the judgment
was filed, the names of the parties, the judgment, and if it be for
money, the amount thereof and the amount actually due thereon. And if
made payable in a specific kind of money or currency, the execution
shall also state the kind of money or currency in which the judgment is
payable.
The Court may hire an Entity to use this Writ of Execution to put liens
on property, seize property, or sell property in order to fulfill the
judgment in the Writ of Execution. If not enough property shall be
found, the Court may imprison the convicted instead according to the
laws involving petit or grand larceny.
K.Writ of Certiorari shall never be issued by the Court of Oceania as all
Courts in it have equal jurisdictional power and therefore it is never
necessary to remove a case from one court and transfer it to a higher
one because the lower one does not have the jurisdiction to handle such
a case.
L.Writ of Injunction is a writ requiring a Person to refrain from a
particular act. The writ may be granted by the Court in which the
action is brought and when made may be enforced on the order of the
Court.
An Injunction may be granted in the following cases:
When it shall appear by the complaint that the plaintiff is entitled
to the relief demanded, and such relief or any part thereof consists
in restraining the commission or continuance of the act complained of,
either for a limited period or perpetually
When it shall appear by the complaint or affidavit that the commission
or continuance of some act, during the litigation, would produce great
or immeasurable injury to the Plaintiff.
When it shall appear, during the litigation, that the Defendant is
doing or threatening, or is about to do, or is procuring or suffering
to be done, some act in violation of the Plaintiff's rights respecting
the subject of the action, and tending to render the judgment
ineffectual.
Outline of a Trial
I.Formal allegations. Pleadings are the formal allegations by the parties
of their respective claims. Neither a departure from the form or mode
prescribed by law, in respect to any pleadings or proceedings, nor an
error or mistake therein, shall render the same invalid.
The Complaint shall contain:
The title of the action, specifying the name of the Court and the name
of the county in which the action is brought, and the names of the
parties to the action, Plaintiff and Defendant.
A statement of the facts constituting the cause of action, in ordinary
and concise language.
A demand for the relief which the Plaintiff claims. If the recovery
of money or damages be demanded, the amount thereof shall be stated.
The default venue for the trial is the closest Court to the crime scene.
Crime's without a known scene shall be tried in the closest Court to the
Defendant's home.
Joinder of Causes of Action. A Plaintiff may ask the Court to unite
several causes of action into one trial. The Court Must ask the
Defendant(s) if (th)ey will consent to this, but the jury will make the
decision. Such trials may be used to unite several causes of action upon
one Defendant, or as class-action complaints.
The Defendant may Demur to the complaint within the time required in the
summons to answer, when it appears upon the face thereof, either:
that the Court has no jurisdiction over the person of the Defendant,
or the subject of the action
that the Plaintiff has not legal standing to sue
that there is another action pending between the same parties for the
same cause
that there is a defect or misjoinder of parties, Plaintiff or
Defendant
that several causes of action have been improperly united
that the complaint does not state facts sufficient to constitute a
cause of action
that the complaint is ambiguous, unintelligible, or uncertain
The Court may accept or reject such demurrer. If it is accepted, no
trial will be held on the complaint, though a complaint may be filed at
a later time under different circumstances. If the demurrer is rejected
by the Court, trial will begin within the time prescribed.
Instead of Demurring, the Defendant may plead guilty at this time and
accept eir Punishment.
II. Pretrial Discovery
Before a trial begins, the Plaintiff and Defendant Must each prepare eir
case for presentation to the Court. The Defendant has the Right to
demand that trial begin no more than 30 days after eir arrest if ey
wishes. If the Defendant wants time to prepare eir defense, ey may
demand as much additional time as the time elapsed between the
commission of the Crime in question and eir arrest up to a total of 120
days. A trial may begin at a sooner or later time if the litigants
agree.
The Plaintiff and Defendant Must each give to the other, and to the
Court, a list of witnesses and physical evidence that ey intends to
subpoena. Any such evidence that comes to light during the progress of a
trial will be admitted, as long as the opposing litigant is given 24
hours to prepare for its rebuttal.
III. Jury Selection
Trial Juries are selected at random from a list of jury volunteers.
Prospective jurors volunteer their services by giving the Court their
names, a list of fields in which they have expertise, and the salary for
which they are willing to work.
The Defendant may request either a random jury or a jury randomly
selected from a those with expertise in certain fields. Ey may also
request a certain number of random jurors plus a certain number of
jurors with some expertise. If
enough jurors are not available with the
required expertise, ey Must either select a different expertise for the
remaining jurors, or request random jurors, or request less jurors in
the Jury. Juries are convened for one day or for one case, whichever
amount of time is longer. The Court may pay juries for their time to
increase the amount of volunteers given, and may pay jurors for specific
cases or specific hours of operation, such as night shifts, but may not
under any circumstances pay them based on judgments or results. The
Defendant and the Plaintiff may specify the maximum amount jurors will
be paid, and only jurors willing to work for the lesser of these amounts
will be selected.
Either the Defendant or the Plaintiff may ask prospective jurors "Is
there any reason in this case that you cannot give a fair and unbiased
judgment?" and "Are you capable of understanding the evidence?" Jurors
may excuse themselves at this time if they feel that they are biased or
lack the necessary expertise. Under no circumstances may the Court or
either litigant excuse a prospective juror who is willing and able to
serve.
A Jury Must have a least twelve jurors at the start of a trial. If
jurors are unable to stay throughout the duration of the trial, or
choose to excuse themselves because of bias or lack of understanding,
the trial will still be considered valid if at least nine stay
throughout the duration of the trial. It is expected that the litigants
will estimate the expected length of a trial and empanel enough extra
jurors to ensure sufficient number for judgment.
People may be removed from the jury for three reasons:
they don't wish to participate in the case
a grand jury or the juror determines that there is a conflict of
interest between the potential juror and the case
a grand jury or the juror determines that the juror is unable to
understand the evidence
Trial by jury may be waived by the Defendant in the manner following:
By failing to appear at the trial.
By written consent, in person or by attorney, filed with the Clerk.
By oral consent in open Court, entered in the minutes.
A Defendant may also request a jury composed of less than twelve members
if ey wants to save on court costs. In such cases, ey may also set the
minimum number of jurors needed to make a valid decision.
The power of the Court to discharge a jury without the consent of the
Defendant, in accordance with established legal rules and a sound legal
discretion is impossible because such laws or rules would be
unconstitutional.
IV. Changes of Venue
The Defendant may ask the jury for a change of venue. For example, to
better suit the needs of the witnesses. The jury may change venue at
the Defendant's request if it so wishes. No one but the Defendant may
ask the jury for a change of venue.
V.Opening Statements and Motion for Dismissal
The Plaintiff first makes eir opening statement by describing the Crime
and the nature of the evidence against the Defendant. The Defendant
responds by either pleading guilty or by rebutting these arguments. Time
limits for these arguments may be set by the jury if it desires (and
Must be equal for the two litigants).
After the Defendant's opening statement, ey may move for immediate
dismissal of the action. Such dismissal Must be unanimously decided by
the jury, and serves as an acquittal.
VI. Arguments and Witnesses
A. Instructions to the Jury.
The judge Must notify the jury of its common law Right and duty to
decide if a law is fair and just as it applies to the specific case they
are judging. The jury Must also be informed that laws in violation of
the Constitution are invalid.
The jury Must be instructed that every witness is potentially biased,
that all eyewitness testimony is potentially fraudulent, and that it
Must decide the credibility of the witnesses and evidence presented.
The judge may, from time to time during the trial, inform the jury that
certain pieces of evidence being presented to it are irrelevant,
inflammatory, or otherwise inappropriate. Ey may not prevent the jury
from hearing such evidence or prevent the litigants from presenting it.
Eir instruction to the jury is purely a recommendation. Ey may also
instruct the jury about points of law, but the jury is free to make its
judgment in direct conflict with eir instruction.
B. Direct Examinations
The Plaintiff and Defendant alternate in presenting witnesses,
depositions, and other evidence with the Plaintiff calling eir first
witness first. Each litigant may, when eir turn to present a witness
comes up, decline to do so, passing eir turn to the other litigant.
After the opposing litigant has used eir turn, ey Must once again give a
turn to eir opponent. If both Litigants pass their turns consecutively,
the witness phase of the trial is over and the litigants Must present
closing arguments.
In each turn, a litigant will directly examine the witness, after which
the opposing litigant will cross examine. Redirects may be allowed by
the jury upon request, and of course will be followed by another cross
examination. After the litigants have sufficiently examined a witness,
the jury may ask questions of the witness. Each litigant may then
perform one last cross-examination of the witness, after which ey will
be dismissed. Note that under these rules, witnesses for the prosecution
will be examined last by the Defendant, and vice versa.
Any time limits the jury has placed upon the litigants apply to its
questioning as well.
C. Cross Examinations
Cross examinations should only cover areas of evidence already
introduced by the direct examination. If issues are raised in cross
examination that were not raised in direct examination, the judge should
notify the jury of this so that it will allow a Redirect for this
witness. If a witness refuses to answer a question in cross examination
that is directly related to eir direct testimony, the judge should
notify the jury that this witness's direct testimony is unreliable.
D. Objections. If one of the litigants raises an objection during eir
opponent's examinations, the judge may inform the jury of the cause for
such objection (for example, a question assuming facts not in evidence,
or an irrelevant question) and his opinion on its validity, but may not
strike such testimony from the record or prevent such questions from
being asked.
E. Continuance.
When an application is made for a continuance on the ground of the
absence of a witness, it is up to the discretion of the jury, after
hearing arguments for and against why the witness is necessary, to
either grant or deny the continuance.
F. Deposition.
In the case of witnesses that cannot appear in Court, depositions of any
form including signed statements, video tape, or audio tape are allowed
to be submitted as evidence to the jury. The opposing side should be
allowed to access the names and addresses of all persons being
depositioned so that they can be questioned and redepositoned by that
side. Depositions that do not meet these requirements should be weighed
less heavily by the jury.
Affidavits are considered depositions.
G. Without Prejudice.
At any time during the trial, the Defendant and the Plaintiff may agree
to request that the lawsuit be dismissed without prejudice. This means
that the suit can be refiled if the dispute is not resolved.
VII. Closing Statements
Closing statements are made by first the Plaintiff and then by the
Defendant. These statements can be of any form chosen by the parties
making them. If statements are made in closing arguments that are
outside of, or conflict with, evidence presented during the trial, the
judge should inform the jury of this, but make no attempt to prevent the
argument.
VIII. Judgment
After closing statements are made, the jury will retire to a private
chamber to discuss the case and make a judgment. The speaker for the
jury announces their judgment to the Plaintiff and Defendant.
IX. Appeals and Countersuits
Appeal may be made from a Local Court to a County Court and from a
County Court to the Supreme Court.
A Defendant acquitted of a crime may immediately countersue the
Plaintiff for false arrest and have eir case tried in the same Court by
the same jury. A Defendant either acquitted or convicted may immediately
countersue for the use of unnecessary Force in eir arrest. Witnesses
subpoenaed to testify in the case may sue for false arrest at this time
as well.
If a jury finds a suit to be frivolous and unjustified, it may return a
harassment judgment against the Plaintiff.
The judge and the Court itself are also subject to immediate countersuit
to be heard by the same jury and different judge if either litigant
wishes to sue for bias or illegal procedure. Only the litigants have
this standing to sue, but others in the courtroom, including public
audience members, may serve at witnesses. Jurors who fail in their
responsibilities may be sued in a different Court.
It is desired that the same Court that has heard all of the
evidence of a case should decide whether the arrests were
justified, whether unnecessary Force was used, and whether the
Court itself was biased. The use of unnecessary Force in an
arrest may be prosecuted as assault and battery or murder, as
appropriate.
5.Elections
While Elections are run by private entities, there is a significant threat
of tyranny from certain acts of these Entities. Therefore the Constitution
allows the people of Oceania to regulate them by passing laws through
referendum.
The actual method of voting is up to the private Entities hired to
administer voting, but the method Must allow Voters to vote in secret, that
is, without the possibility of anyone else influencing or discovering how a
particular Voter decides. No votes may be made by absentee ballot, because
they cannot guarantee secrecy. Votes may be done electronically or by any
other methods that referendums have not banned with the exception of
absentee ballots. Voters who will not be in Oceania during election day may
vote in person during the 30 days before election day.
Election Fraud is prosecutable as Treason against Oceania. This includes
voting more than once, voting on behalf of another Person, denying ballot
access to legitimate candidates or referendums, bribing or intimidating
Voters, accepting ballots not delivered in person, misrepresenting the
content of a ballot, and breach of specific written promises made by
candidates to Voters. See the Miscellaneous Crimes section for more
details.
The media Must be notified at least thirty days before any general or
special election using a notice like the following:
"Notice is hereby given that on the first Tuesday, the ------ day of ------
next, at the house of ------ (in city, town, district, or precinct) of ----
--, in the County of ------, an election will be held for State, county,
district, town, or township offices (naming the offices to be filled, as
the case may be), which election shall be opened not later than six o'clock
A.M. and shall continue until eight o'clock P.M. the same day."
Between thirty and fourteen days before the election, the time and place of
the election Must be provided to all registered Voters. At the same time,
descriptions of each candidate and explanations of referendums will be
provided. Each candidate will be given at least one side of a 8 1/2 by 11
page to describe eirself. The candidate will be allowed to submit a camera
ready page of any font type, with any black and white pictures, etc. These
descriptions and explanations will also be available at polling places on
the day of the election.
Every aspect of the counting of votes by the private vote counting
companies may be witnessed by any Oceanians. The same applies to any
transpiration of ballots.
A person offering to vote may be orally challenged by any Oceania, upon the
ground that ey is not the person entitled to vote as claimed, or has voted
before on the same day, in which case the Oceanian shall tender em the
following oath: "You do swear that you are the person whose name is entered
upon the registry list of this precinct." In case such person refuses to
take the oath so tendered, ey shall not be allowed to vote and the private
vote counting company clerks shall write the word "Challenged" opposite the
name of each person challenged upon the registry.
In the case of ties in elections, a coin toss will determine the winner.
If the tied contestants wish, a test of skill such as arm wrestling may be
done instead.
If it can be shown that illegal or tainted votes were cast, and the number
of votes cast in this manner were enough to change the election, a new
election will be held. This will hold true even if it can not be proven
with party the illegal votes favored. It will be assumed that the illegal
votes favored the winning party.
All Oceanians have the right to file a mandamus and obtain all documentary
evidence required to show election tampering.
Every person charged with performance of any duty under the provisions of
election laws, who willfully neglects or refuses to perform it, or who in
eir official capacity, fraudulently acts in violation of any election laws,
shall be deemed guilty of Election Fraud.
Every person who, after being required by the jury at any election, refuses
to be sworn, or who, after being sworn, refuses to answer any pertinent
question propounding by such jury touching eir right or the right of any
other person to vote, is guilty of Election Fraud.
Every Government official who prints materials at Government expense that
tell Oceanians which way they should vote in an election is guilty of
Election Fraud.
A general election shall be held on June tenth, and every year thereafter,
at which there shall be chosen all such officers as are by law to be
elected in each year, unless otherwise provided for.
It shall be the duty of the people by referendum to set off and establish
election precincts or districts when it may be necessary.
Counting of signatures on petitions shall be done by private vote counting
companies who are paid for this service. The Entity that collects these
signatures Must give this money to the vote counting company.
It shall be the duty of all vote counting companies to furnish the public
with copies of their poll books. These poll books Must be available at
request for a ten year period following the election.
Any Adult or Teen not currently in jail may run for any elective office. At
the discretion of the Entity administering elections, candidates may be
required to present a petition with the signatures of 100 Voters eligible
to vote for that office before that candidate is granted ballot access.
This should only be done to prevent ballots from containing hundreds of
names of frivolous candidates. It is normally recommended that all
candidates desiring access be granted it. No fee may be levied for access
to a ballot.
For each elective office, the ballot will list all candidates running, as
well as "None of the Above" and "Remove This Office". Each Voter will
indicate on eir ballot which, if any, of the candidates listed ey approves
of for each office. The Voter may approve of none, one, or any number of
candidates for an office. The candidate receiving the greatest number of
approvals will be given the office. If "None of the Above" receives the
greatest number of approvals, then the office will remain vacant and
unfunded for its normal term. If "Remove This Office" wins, the elective
office itself will be retired. Of course, no candidate may run under the
names "None of the Above" or "Remove This Office".
No Oceanian may hold an office for more than four years in a row. Once
these four years are up, ey may not run for that office again until four
more years have passed.
6.Political Campaigns
Political candidates do not surrender their Right to Free Speech. It is
illegal to require limits on campaign spending or to require candidates to
reveal their sources of funding. The Government and Entities administering
elections do not have this Right. It is forbidden for them to print
materials that tell citizens which way they should vote in an election.
Oceanians have the Right to form political parties. Political parties
cannot be given any Rights or Privileges not given to individuals running
for elective office. A petition for candidacy may be written to indicate
that in the event of the death or incapacity of the named candidate, the
ballot access granted to that candidate may be given to another Person
designated by the party. Of course, one Person may form a political party
and have the same Right.
The purpose of a political party is to give the Voters some idea of what
philosophies and opinions are shared by members of a party, to aid them in
their decision. Political parties have the Right to run any candidate they
choose, and to refuse to run anyone they choose. Under no circumstances
should political parties be used as a means to deny ballot access to those
who want it, or to grant special Privileges to members of major parties
that are denied to minor parties.
It is legal for political parties to pay Oceanians to register voters for
their party. Anyone convicted of falsely registering someone into the
wrong party will be convicted of Election Fraud.
7.The Right to Vote
All Adults and Teens in Oceania not currently in jail are Voters, and may
vote in elections. Children, including older Oceanians who have been
declared Children by a Court, may not vote. A Person under the age of
sixteen who has been declared a Teen or Adult by a Court may vote. The
Right of Adults and Teens to vote shall not be denied or abridged because
of race, creed, sex, sexual preference, handicap, or any reason other than
being in jail for a Crime. The reason for this restriction is that grand
juries and other officers of the Court are elected, and could be too
influenced by organized Crime if prisoners could vote.
8.Changing Laws
Oceanians do not give up their sovereignty as individuals by voting for any
Person. Oceanians have a direct Government and do not need anyone to
represent them in vital issues.
A.Passing Major Laws: Major laws Must be passed by referendum, as
described below.
B.Passing Minor Laws: The President of Oceania may bring minor laws and
Contracts to a grand jury and pass them with two-thirds consent. A
waiting period of 60 days Must then elapse before the law becomes valid.
If, in that 60-day period, a petition with the signatures of 1% of the
Voters is presented to the President, the law becomes a major one and
Must be brought before the people as a referendum.
C.Repealing Major Laws: Laws passed by referendum may be repealed by
referendum. The Anti-Law Department may request that the repeal of a law
be placed on a referendum.
D.Repealing Minor Laws: Laws that were instated by a jury vote may be
removed by a jury vote at the request of the President or the Anti-Law
Department. They may also be repealed in the same way that major laws
are.
E.Conflicting Laws should both be repealed by grand jury vote.
F.Referendums: For a referendum to gain ballot access, a petition
containing signatures of 1% of the Voters in the jurisdiction affected
by the referendum Must be presented to the election administrators. The
President of Oceania and the Anti-Law Department may also put
referendums on the ballot. Voters may vote either "yes" or "no" to a
referendum. If 66% of those voting on the referendum vote "yes", the
referendum passes and becomes law (assuming it is constitutional),
unless a different percentage is specified in this Constitution. The
vote for a referendum Must be held no later than 60 days after it gains
ballot access.
A referendum may be held to recall a public office holder, or to
eliminate the office entirely. In the case of imprisonment of an
election public office holder, ey will be prohibited from exercising eir
powers until a special election for that office is held. Such a special
election will automatically be called immediately after eir
imprisonment.
9.Election Results
There will be no central Government agency collecting or reporting vote
results. Election administrators will report directly to the press or other
Entities with whom they have contracted to do so. Candidates for office
Must discover for themselves who has won the office they seek, and in case
of disputes, Must resolve their conflict in Court. Election administrators
and their information may be subpoenaed for such cases.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Naturalization Laws
For a Person to be declared a Permanent Oceanian ey Must go in front of a
jury which will decide if ey has met the twelve months residency
requirement. It takes a unanimous vote by the jury against em for em to not
become a Permanent Oceanian. The residency requirement may be met by anyone
who is physically present in Oceanian territory for twelve months. It is
not necessary that they be consecutive months, and it is not necessary that
the resident own or rent property. Children less than twelve months old are
also declared to be Permanent Oceanians.
Spouses and other relatives of Permanent Oceanians may only become
Permanent Oceanians by meeting the twelve months residency requirement.
An Oceanian will not lose the status of Permanent Oceanian by joining the
military of another country unless that country is on the Government's
official enemies list. It is the duty of the Commander in Chief to make
such a list, which may be modified by referendum
Passports are given to Permanent Oceanians. They are good for ten years
after issuance. Passports are provided by private agencies and their design
and form is determined by the original founders of Oceania or by any
referendums passed by the people of Oceania.
It is recognized that in the first twelve months of Oceania's
existence almost no one will qualify as a Permanent Oceanian. Not
even the founders of Oceania will be able to get a passport.
CHAPTER NINE
Abortion
The constitutional authority for this law is Article 2, Section 3.
After the first three months of pregnancy, an abortion is illegal except in
the cases of rape, incest, or endangerment of a mother's life. There are no
restrictions in the first three months.
A doctor who knowingly performs an illegal abortion will get one quarter
the penalty that the mother gets because ey will be an accomplice to the
crime. Therefore if the mother was sentenced to one year in jail and fined
100 grams of gold, the doctor would be sentenced to three months and fined
25 grams of gold. None of this would be deducted from the mother's
punishment.
CHAPTER TEN
Death
The constitutional authority for these common law definitions is Article 4,
Section 3.
Clinical Death is the state reached by a patient when breathing and heart
action cease.
Biological Death is when the patient has stopped lung and heart activity
and eir brain cells die. Lethal changes usually begin to take place in the
brain within four to six minutes after breathing stops. This process may be
delayed by cold temperatures.
Scientific Death is when the patient no longer has the brain cells that
contain eir memory. In 1993, this includes most of the cells in the brain
as their exact functions are not yet known.
This law recognizes that avoiding Scientific Death is more important than
avoiding Clinical or Biological Death.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Symbols
The constitutional authority for these laws is Article 4, Section 3.
These symbols and observances are, of course, matters of personal
expression. Oceanians are free to celebrate as they choose, to display,
burn, refuse to display, or otherwise treat flags as they choose, and
otherwise express themselves freely. The name of Oceania, its flag, and its
passports will serve to identify it to the other nations of the world, but
Oceanians may use them or not as they choose. Constitutional authority for
these laws is Article 2, Section 3.
A.The Flag of Oceania has a background of two colors: dark-sky blue in the
upper left, and sea green in the lower Right. The two colors come
together in a curved surface. Two white dolphins create a circle in the
upper Right, with the dolphin on the left of the circle head up and the
other dolphin head down.
B.The fourth of July, the Independence Day of our country, is a national
holiday. Fireworks, which are legal in Oceania, may be used to celebrate
it. This is the day that Oceania was founded and the Age of Tyranny
ended and the Age of Justice began. The Constitution will be signed and
effective on that date.
C.The Oath of Oceania is the following:
"I, ------, do solemnly swear that I will support, protect, and defend
the Constitution of Oceania, against all enemies, whether domestic or
foreign. I do not believe in the initiation of Force or Fraud against
our people by the Government or others. Like the peaceful dolphin, I
believe such actions should only be used in defense. I disagree with
governments who imitate the shark and use Force and Fraud to extract
wealth from their citizens. And further, I will well and faithfully
perform all the duties of [the office of ------], on which I am about to
enter under pain of perjury.
[] may be replaced with [a witness] or other duties as required.
Elected Officials of Oceania Must only swear or affirm to uphold the
Constitution, but it is recommended that they take the full oath.
