Play Like a Pirate

What crimes are punished the most severely?

Are people presumed guilty or innocent?

Who decides the outcome of trials?

Does the law apply to everyone or are some (such as royalty) above it?

Does the death penalty exist? If so, how are people killed?

How harsh are punishments in general?

Are certain groups punished more harshly or leniently than others (e.g. the rich getting lighter punishments)?

Are people debating whether certain things (e.g. recreational drugs) should be legal?

What kinds of accusations can have a long term impact on someone’s reputation even if they are ultimately found innocent?

Do prisons prioritize punishment or rehabilitation?

How humane are the conditions in prisons? If they aren’t very good, does this bother the general populace?

Once released from prison, how hard is it for people to return to their old lives? How hard is it for them to get new jobs?

Are certain groups seen as more likely to commit crimes?

What is the most commonly committed crime?

What laws exist but are rarely enforced for one reason or another?

Does the society have any especially strange/unique laws that would surprise an outsider?

Who makes the law in the first place? Can it be amended, and how?

Where does the law apply? To the entire sovereign state, or are there multiple, maybe conflicting jurisdictions?

Is the law secular, religious, or a bit of both? Do these conflict at all? What happens then?

How is the outcome of trials decided? Is trial by combat (or similar) a thing? Is it supposed to be evidence-based? What sort of witnesses are considered reliable?

Do they interpret the law on a case by case basis, or take legal precedents into account? How do they keep track of legal precedents?

Are you sure there are prisons, i.e. is imprisonment an actual sentence? That’s a relatively recent development.

Are there lawyers around? What’s their purpose? Are they orators who write speeches for their clients? Are they experts of the law, perhaps because the law isn’t understood by common people? Do people have a right to a lawyer?

If the law treats repeat offenders differently, does it keep track of them, and how? Branding? Magic?

Katar - 17th Century Indian punch weapon [400x368]

Plachkova Irina

Month of Love Challenge - “Truth”