This is something I am contemplating doing myself, not something I am asking anyone else to do. I am creating this thread to gather input on whether this is a good idea and what specific changes would make sense.
Background
I am a real-life lawyer. Because I am a very boring person I also enjoy RPing a lawyer, both in SS13 and now in SS14. One thing that I found immediately frustrating is that the Space Law document does not really “feel like” law. Primarily this is because it does not have section or paragraph numbers; instead it is divided into named sections of prose paragraphs. For example, here is a quote from the “Space Law” document in the SS14 codebase:
Treatment Of Prisoners
Prisoners still have certain rights that must be upheld by law enforcement:
- Prisoners must be granted adequate medical care.
- Prisoners must be allowed access to basic communications equipment (Radios) so long as they are not abused.
- Prisoners must be granted clothing, food, water, shelter and safety. If the brig is no longer safe, confinement must be established in another location.
- Prisoners must be given access to legal counsel during an interrogation if requested and available.
- Prisoners must be given their shift mandated PDA after confinement has finished, unless there is solid proof of PDA tampering. In case of tampering, the PDA is to be secured and replaced with a new unit.
- Prisoners must be granted freedom of movement, and should not be restrained with handcuffs or other devices after incarceration unless there is an undue risk to life and limb. Similarly, any prisoners held for permanent confinement should be held in the communal brig, and should not be confined to a solitary cell unless they pose a risk to life and limb.
If “Space Law” were real law, it would look more like this:
Article 2. Rights and Privileges of Prisoners.
Section 2-1. Basic Rights. Prisoners are entitled to adequate medical care, clothing, food, water, oxygen, and shelter from hazards. If the brig is no longer safe, confinement must be established in another location.
Section 2-2. Right to Counsel. If a lawyer is on-station and available, prisoners are entitled to have a lawyer present during interrogations and to consult with a lawyer about the duration and conditions of their confinement.
Section 2-3. Privileges. Prisoners have privileges that may be limited or revoked on a case-by-case basis as outlined below.
Access to basic communications equipment. Prisoners are ordinarily entitled to use the radio. This privilege may be limited or revoked if the Warden determines that the prisoner has abused it.
Freedom of movement within cell. Prisoners ordinarily should not be restrained (e.g. with handcuffs) while incarcerated. This privilege may be revoked if the Warden determines that restraints are necessary to protect others from serious harm.
…
Section 2-4. Return of Prisoners’ Property; Contraband and Evidence. …
(The second example is not complete because I stopped working on the pull request after realizing that I should probably see how others felt about the idea. I also have a partial draft of the sections concerning searches and seizures that I can provide if it would be helpful.)
Reasons for Proposal
There are a few things about my proposal that, in my view, make it preferable to the existing language. I think my approach is clearer about what is required vs. encouraged vs. suggested, and I think that my approach does a better job of dividing Space Law into discrete topics and sub-topics. But the biggest advantage, and the one that motivated me to propose changes in the first place, is the use of Article, Section, and Paragraph numbers.
This is partly a flavor thing and partly a practical advantage. It is much easier to talk about a specific legal provision if you can say “Section 2-3-2 says…” rather than “the Treatment of Prisoners section, bullet point 6 says…” I had an experience last shift where being able to do this would have made a conversation much less frustrating.
This is also an opportunity for lawyers to develop and apply role-specific knowledge. In Med, if you see rads you know to give Arith. In the same way, in Law, if you see a 20-minute sentence for attempted murder, you know to cite Section 3-9-2, or whatever the actual number winds up being. Or at least that is ideally how it would work—currently, even if you know the applicable law by heart, you have to either convince Security to take your word for it, or open the book and start copy-pasting quotes.
Goals
I don’t want to make substantive changes to Space Law. There are a couple of minor changes I would suggest, but those are not the purpose of this proposal. (For example, currently Space Law says that prisoners should generally be kept in the communal brig instead of in solitary. Nobody does this, and most maps currently could not accomodate this. I would suggest changing Space Law to reflect the current practice.) In particular, I am not suggesting that we change any of the sentencing guidelines, redefine any crimes, or anything like that.
My goal is to preserve the substance of current Space Law while making it feel more like actual law. I think we can do this without making it denser or harder to read; in fact, I think these changes would make Space Law easier to read and learn.
Implementing
I am happy to make this change myself and to make a pull request. I can also make a proposal in Github if necessary. But my sense is that whether this proposal is a good idea depends not on technical factors (can this be achieved, am I capable of writing the code) but on player preferences (would people enjoy the change, would people dislike the change). So I am seeking input on the forum.
