quote:

ORIGINAL: fergus

"depends" seems to be the key phrase for most people in this (and that other) thread.

fergus

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missturbation:  Considering the police killed the girl and my lover is being charged with murder and no mention of me being charged with anything is made - well i wouldnt have to plead.

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ORIGINAL: Emperor1956

The very heated discussion in another thread here about testifying against one's Dom/sub got me thinking.  A number of people posted to the effect "I would never protect a murderer, even if it was my life partner" and some the corollary "I don't have to worry about this because I would never love a murderer."  I was thinking -- "Never" is a long, long time, and pretty absolute.  Consider:

Your life partner and you are passionately committed to some cause, be it animal rights, gay rights, B/D/S/M rights, stopping the war, assisting the conservative Contras in a third-world country, whatever.  In the course of furthering that cause, you and your lover join with several other passionate believers and plan a non-violent protest at the headquarters building of "EVERYTHING WE HATE ON CAMPUS"  or EW-HOC.  Accordingly, you and your lover and 7 passionate, well meaning, peaceful followers assemble at midnight at the front door of EW-HOC.  Your plan is to enter the building, and lay down on the floor in order to obstruct the evil business of EW-HOC the next day.  But, surprise of surprises, the door is locked!  Your beloved, with the strong character you adore, breaks open the door and you all file in.  In so doing your beloved commits several felonies against property.  But the cause is supreme, and no one is hurt.

Unknown to you, the door was not only locked, but wired with an alarm that rings in the local stationhouse.  Crime on campus is a big issue, and the police are out in force.   Unfortunately, one of those police is Officer Barney Fife, a complete incompetent only on the force because he is the Chief's nephew.  Office Fife carries an unauthorized .357 Magnum revolver loaded with illegal wadcutters.  On arriving at the scene, Officer Fife draws this weapon, and in his idiocy and confusion, waves it around, drops it and it goes off.  The bullet kills a young woman who was lying on the floor in protest of EW-HOC.

Your State, has a statute known as the "felony-murder" statute, which says, in essence, that when a person is killed in the commission of a felony, then the charge of manslaughter will be upgraded to murder.  (Most US jurisdictions have a "felony murder" statute). Your lover committed the felonies of breaking and entering and criminal damage to property.  The girl was killed in the commission (but for your lover's felonious acts, she would not have been there, and would not have been in the way of Fife's bullet.)   Your love is a murderer, so says the state. 

How do you plead?  If you posted (or thought) "I would never protect a murderer" or "I will never be in love with a murderer", would you like to take another pass?

E.

quote:

Your State, has a statute known as the "felony-murder" statute, which says, in essence, that when a person is killed in the commission of a felony, then the charge of manslaughter will be upgraded to murder.  (Most US jurisdictions have a "felony murder" statute). Your lover committed the felonies of breaking and entering and criminal damage to property.  The girl was killed in the commission (but for your lover's felonious acts, she would not have been there, and would not have been in the way of Fife's bullet.)   Your love is a murderer, so says the state. 

quote:

ORIGINAL: Emperor1956

The very heated discussion in another thread here about testifying against one's Dom/sub got me thinking.  A number of people posted to the effect "I would never protect a murderer, even if it was my life partner" and some the corollary "I don't have to worry about this because I would never love a murderer."  I was thinking -- "Never" is a long, long time, and pretty absolute.  Consider:

Your life partner and you are passionately committed to some cause, be it animal rights, gay rights, B/D/S/M rights, stopping the war, assisting the conservative Contras in a third-world country, whatever.  In the course of furthering that cause, you and your lover join with several other passionate believers and plan a non-violent protest at the headquarters building of "EVERYTHING WE HATE ON CAMPUS"  or EW-HOC.  Accordingly, you and your lover and 7 passionate, well meaning, peaceful followers assemble at midnight at the front door of EW-HOC.  Your plan is to enter the building, and lay down on the floor in order to obstruct the evil business of EW-HOC the next day.  But, surprise of surprises, the door is locked!  Your beloved, with the strong character you adore, breaks open the door and you all file in.  In so doing your beloved commits several felonies against property.  But the cause is supreme, and no one is hurt.

Unknown to you, the door was not only locked, but wired with an alarm that rings in the local stationhouse.  Crime on campus is a big issue, and the police are out in force.   Unfortunately, one of those police is Officer Barney Fife, a complete incompetent only on the force because he is the Chief's nephew.  Office Fife carries an unauthorized .357 Magnum revolver loaded with illegal wadcutters.  On arriving at the scene, Officer Fife draws this weapon, and in his idiocy and confusion, waves it around, drops it and it goes off.  The bullet kills a young woman who was lying on the floor in protest of EW-HOC.

Your State, has a statute known as the "felony-murder" statute, which says, in essence, that when a person is killed in the commission of a felony, then the charge of manslaughter will be upgraded to murder.  (Most US jurisdictions have a "felony murder" statute). Your lover committed the felonies of breaking and entering and criminal damage to property.  The girl was killed in the commission (but for your lover's felonious acts, she would not have been there, and would not have been in the way of Fife's bullet.)   Your love is a murderer, so says the state. 

How do you plead?  If you posted (or thought) "I would never protect a murderer" or "I will never be in love with a murderer", would you like to take another pass?

E.

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ORIGINAL: dcnovice

quote:

Your State, has a statute known as the "felony-murder" statute, which says, in essence, that when a person is killed in the commission of a felony, then the charge of manslaughter will be upgraded to murder.  (Most US jurisdictions have a "felony murder" statute). Your lover committed the felonies of breaking and entering and criminal damage to property.  The girl was killed in the commission (but for your lover's felonious acts, she would not have been there, and would not have been in the way of Fife's bullet.)   Your love is a murderer, so says the state. 

Charging the lover, who did nothing more than break down a door, with murder seems seriously whacked in this case. I'd certainly move heaven and earth to protect my lover. As for testifying, would I be entitled to take the fifth, even though I'd know I was protecting someone else rather than myself? I honestly don't know if I'd commit perjury. My hesitation, though, stems less from conscience than from doubt about whether I could carry it off. The idea also flashed through my head that I'd consider confessing to the door-breaking myself.

You mentioned, Emperor, that many states have felony-murder statues, so I'll take it on faith that they have some merit. That's hard to see from this hypothetical, though.