The Dragonlands

---

The Laws

Lady Catherine ti'Desdicara, Magistrate (NPC, position open)


The Local Court


Justice within the city of Kingsrill is administered by the Magistrate, who relies on the Constabulary to apprehend criminals and detain them so that they can be tried. There are no such things as "Miranda rights" in Kasuria, and while the current Magistrate is a reasonable and just women, she is inclined to consider you guilty until proven innocent. There is no such thing as "trial by jury." For most furres the judgment rendered by the magistrate is absolutely final -- be it banishment from Kingsrill, or simply paying a fine.

The victim and the accused furre are brought before the Magistrate, along with any witnesses that may have been present. Both furres plead their respective cases to the Magistrate, who then spends several minutes considering the evidence. If the accused furre is found innocent, then the charges are dropped. If the accused furre is found guilty, then the sentence she passes is carried out by the Constabulary.


The County Courts


House Desdicara (the governing Great House of Rovarri county) gives the Magistrate the right to deal with "low" and "high" crimes. Occasionally some "high" crimes require that the accused furre be transferred from the Kingsrill Gaol to the larger (and noticeably less hygienic) gaol in Falbert (the capital of Rovarri county), where a lesser House Desdicara noble will preside over the case and pass judgment.

The process for determining guilt or innocence is similar to the Local Court, but instead of being brought before the local Magistrate, both the victim and the accused are brought before the presiding House Desdicara Noble in the capital city of Falbert, Rovarri. Because the local Magistrate is also a House Desdicara Noble she is authorized to preside over all "high" crimes.

A warning: There is no such thing as an appeals process in Kasuria. If your character is very wealthy, he may be able to influence the outcome of his trial by bribery or some other monetary means -- but this is still very unlikely.


Noble Court


Noble offenders are usually dealt with in the Noble Court, which in Rovarri county is led by Count Harrystile ti'Desdicara. For a noble to be tried at all (since most minor offenses tend to get swept under the carpet) implies that his crime must be very severe -- but since rank has its privileges, even with a guilty sentence, he may only be forced to reside in the Count's house as a "guest" for a certain period of time, after which he will be released. (However, even a noblefurre convicted of treason will lose his head -- the flexible arm of the law only bends so far!)

The nobility are subjected to trial by tribunal, in which seven high ranking noblefurres from any Great House are invited to the capital city of the county in which the crime was committed. In this case, that city is Falbert. They listen to the details of the case as described by both the accused and the accuser, then discuss the evidence and come to a decision. This is the closest equivalent of "trial by jury" available in Kasuria -- and of course, it belongs to the privileged classes.

The tribunals are relatively informal and only tend to grow heated when matters of inheritance or questionable legitimacy of children are involved. Often, high crimes such as murder would be put on the back burner in favor of dealing with these problems. It is unlikely that a charge filed against a noblefurre by a member of the peasant class would receive any serious attention -- although, as is to be expected, if a noblefurre were to press charges against a peasant, the charge would receive immediate attention.

Because the local Magistrate is also a House Desdicara Noble she is authorized to preside over Noble Court within her courthouse unless it involves Treason.


Military Court


Crimes committed against any part of the garrison, whether by non-military, NCOs or below, shall be put on military trial, headed by the concerned area’s Colonel. If a CO is accused, the military trial will be aided by senior COs to the colonel’s disposition, although the area Colonel still presides as judge.

In general, commissioned officers up to and including the rank of Colonel are genuinely hard to sentence for anything -- besides treason, of course. Other matters are only really given attention when nobility is involved. (For twists between noble houses and the military, see ‘How Jurisdiction is Determined’.) The privileges of rank again arise here, making this by no means a ‘fair’ system. Field Marshals and High Constables are considered untouchable, again with the exception of treason, and basically will only go to any form of trial by decree of the King himself.

Treason shall be dealt with by triumvirates of whose composition depends on the wrongdoer's rank. Essentially, this is a lawful display of military force; conducting a full investigation and recounting before the offender is executed. It is an example for the public, warning potential traitors against making the same mistake.

In Rovarri county the closest barracks is along the southern road toward Port Lethora. Fort Shieldstone is headed by Colonel Agner ti'McDagger who oversees the military court there.


How Jurisdiction is Determined:
(The accused furre is listed first, the alleged victim second.)



Courthouse
Outside the courthouse doors, a list of crimes and punishments are tacked to the wall, as well as inside the town hall meeting chamber. Officialized by the Magistrate's seal, the lettering is large and bold, impossible to miss.

---

With the consent of the County Magistrate, when you commit the following crimes, you will be punished in these ways:

Low Crimes


High Crimes


Other Policies:

---

The Consent rule is of course an important aspect of the Continuity. Normally, you have the right to refuse to consent to the death of your character. However, there comes a point in time where one must acknowledge that In-Character Actions yield In-Character Consequences. If your character is found guilty of a crime, and the punishment for that crime is banishment, branding, or even death, you do not have the right to utilize the Consent rule anymore. The judgment rendered In-Character by the Magistrate supersedes the Consent rule. We do not wish to harm or kill off anyone's characters and so effort will be made on staff's part to ensure every player is worked with to find a happy medium.

The reason for this addendum should be very obvious: How much power would our continuity's justice system have if, when a criminal is found guilty of treason, that criminal is not executed? In order to maintain a sense of realism, we cannot allow the players of criminal characters to say, "No, I don't consent to the execution of my character." You chose to have your character commit the crime; it was a conscious act on your part, and not something that was thrust upon you, like some drunkard instigating a violent brawl with you in the tavern. The circumstances are completely different, and therefore the application of the rule is different.

So, keep this point in mind before you decide that playing a notorious kitslayer sounds like a good idea: If your character is caught, tried, and found guilty, you cannot refuse to consent to his or her death!

(This was borrowed and edited from the list previously used Challiston Cross with permission from their Rah.)