Proto: Criminal Reform
ais523 is the coauthor of this proposal
[Summary:
New, simpler criminal process:
* Rests are the new blots.
* Streamlined Process: Accuser issues a Notice of Violation. If
notice is uncontested for 4 days, the accused automatically gets
Rests = power of rule violated. Case closed. Only if notice is
contested via COE in 4 days, accuser must then call a court
case to resolve. If accused contests cases that are trivially true,
e risks higher penalties. An after-the-4 days court case can go back
and remove Rests after the 4 days if mistakes are made.
* Some higher penalty actions defined as specific Crimes. More
can be added.
* Court case pretty direct, no pre-trial. Sentences simpler. No
Chokey. Exile and lower voting limits are now side-effects of Rests.
Community service and fines non-rest fines can be handled through
private economy (pay others to help you get rid of your rests).
Apology now needs w/o 2objections to prevent it being a free escape.
]
Create a power-2 rule called "Rests" with the following text:
Rests are a fixed asset, whose recordkeepor is the Conductor.
The creation and destruction of Rests is secured with a power
threshold of 1.7, a player generally CANNOT destroy rests
except as permitted by Rules explicitly stating methods by
which rests in particular CAN be destroyed.
Ownership of Rests is restricted to first-class persons;
however, if any positive number of Rests would be created in
the ownership of a non-first-class-person were it not for this
sentence, instead a number of Rests equal to the number which
would have been created is created in the possession of each
member of that person's basis.
A player CAN spend two Notes in order to destroy a Rest owned
by a player e specifies.
Create a power-2 rule called "Just Resting" with the following text:
Owning one or more Rests is a Losing Condition.
While a person owns at least 8 Rests, that person CANNOT spend
Notes except to destroy Rests e owns. This takes precedence
over any other rule.
While a player owns at least 24 Rests, that player CAN be
deregistered by any player by announcement. A person so
deregistered CANNOT re-register for 60 days following eir
deregistration, rules to the contrary notwithstanding.
A person who has one or more rests but is not a player is a
Fugitive. The Herald's report shall include a list of all
Fugitives and the number of Rests they possess. At the
beginning of each month, half of each Fugitive's rests (rounded
down) are destroyed.
Amend Rule 2156 by replacing the last paragraph with:
The eligible voters on an ordinary decision are those entities
that were active players at the start of its voting period. The
voting limit of an eligible voter on an ordinary decision is eir
caste at the start of its voting period, reduced to the next
lower caste (minimum Savage) for each positive multiple of 4
Rests that the voter posesses at the start of the voting period.
Repeal rule 2190.
Create a power-2 rule called "Notices of Violation" with the
following text:
A player MAY publish a Notice of Violation alleging that a
single entity (the Accused) has broken a Rule. To be considered
a valid notice of violation, the notice must specify all of:
(a) The identity of the Accused;
(b) The allegedly illegal action/inaction in question;
(c) The Rule that was allegedly broken;
(d) Only if applicable, the name of a Class-N Crime
specificied in the Rules as being associated with the
breach, where N is a positive integer specified in the
Rules for that particular crime.
Knowingly issuing a Notice of Violation with incorrect
information is the Class-4 Crime of Libel.
A Notice of Violation is valid if and only if:
(1) it clearly specifies the required information for a
Notice of Violation;
(2) no previous valid notice specified substantially
identical information (i.e. the same violation for the
same specific act).
(3) when a crime is named, the crime is specified within
the Rules.
As soon as possible after a player makes an announcement that
is reasonably recognizable as an attempt to issue such a
notice, the Clerk of the Courts SHALL announce whether the
Notice was valid. The Clerk of the Court's announcement is
self-ratifying. Affirming the validity of the notice does not
in itself certify the correctness of the allegation.
A valid Notice of Violation is initially Uncontested, unless
a crime is named in which case the notice is automatically
Contested. In the four days following the posting of a valid
notice, any player CAN make an uncontested notice contested by
an announcement contesting it; a player SHOULD do so if either
e believes the notice is factually incorrect or that the
punishment resulting from an uncontested notice would be
manifestly unfair according to the guidance of the Rules. A
call for judgement at any time on the correctness or fairness
(but not on the validity) of a Notice of Violation
automatically contests notice.
If a notice remains uncontested for four days, a number of
Rests are created in the possession of the Accused equal to
the power of the violated Rule rounded up. If the notice
becomes contested after four days, these Rests remain, but may
be later destroyed by judicial processes as described
elsewhere.
Amend Rule 1504 to read:
There is a subclass of judicial case known as a criminal case.
Any first-class person can initiate a criminal case by an
announcement calling for judgement on the circumstances
surrounding a specified valid Notice of Violation alleging a
rules breach by a single entity (the Accused). The initiator
and each member of the Accused's basis are unqualified to be
assigned as judge of the case.
A criminal case has a judicial question on culpability, which is
applicable at all times following the call for judgement. The
valid judgements for this question are:
* GUILTY, appropriate if the judge finds, beyond a reasonable
doubt, that ALL of the following are true:
(a) the Accused breached the specified rule via the specified
act;
(b) the breach occurred within 200 days prior to the case being
initiated;
(c) judgement has not already been reached in another criminal
case, or punishment already applied through another
uncontested notice of violation, with the same ninny, the
same rule, and substantially the same alleged act;
(d) the Accused could not have reasonably believed that the
alleged act did not violate the specified rule;
(e) the Accused could have reasonably avoided committing the
breach without committing a different breach of equal or
greater severity.
* NOT GUILTY, appropriate if GUILTY is not appropriate. In
delivering this verdict, the judge SHOULD indicate which of
of the sub-requirements for a finding of guilty were not found
to be true beyond a reasonable doubt. If the Accused is
found to be NOT GUILTY after a number of rests have been
created in eir possession due to the notice in question, the
judge CAN and SHALL any such rests by announcement.
A criminal case has a judicial question on sentencing, which is
applicable if the question on culpability is applicable and has
a judgement of GUILTY. If a criminal case has an applicable
question on sentencing which has a judgement, the Accused is
hereafter known as the ninny, the judgement in the question on
sentencing is known as the sentence, and the sentence is in
effect.
The valid sentences are:
* DISCHARGE, appropriate only in extraordinary circumstances, if
any available non-null punishment would be manifestly unjust.
Has no effect.
* APOLOGY with a set of up to ten words (the prescribed words),
appropriate for rule breaches of small consequence. This
sentence may only be assigned Without 2 Objections. When in
effect, the ninny SHALL as soon as possible publish a formal
apology of at least 200 words, including all the prescribed
words, explaining eir error, shame, remorse, and ardent
desire for self-improvement. Failure to do so is a Class-3
Crime of Failure to Apologize.
* FINE, a number of Rests, equal to the defined Class of the
Crime or (if the breach is not a defined crime) the power
of the breached Rule, are created in the possession of the
Ninny. If the Ninny showed bad faith by contesting an
obviously-correct notice or by obstructing the course of
justice, the judge CAN double the amount of the fine with
2 Support.
An appeal concerning any assignment of judgement in a criminal
case within the past week CAN be initiated by the accused by
announcement. If a verdict or sentence that led to the
creation of Rests is overruled, remanded, or reassigned, the
Rests are still considered to have been created, but the
appeals panel CAN and SHALL destroy any created Rests by
announcement.
