Anybody up for a hypothetical legal discussion?

[Unrepentant Fenian]

I posted this in the "Justice" forum, but didn't get much of a response, so if nobody minds, I'll try it here.

We came up with this one at work, but couldn't come up with any good answers. Anybody want to weigh in????
Hypothetical situation: A person is standing exactly at "Four Corners", ( where the states of Colorado, New Mexico,Arizona and Utah come together) and they are shot and killed by a person who is straddling the Colo./ Utah border. When the person who was shot falls, he ends up laying across the Arizona/ New Mexico border. Who would have jurisdiction over the crime. Let's assume that "Four Corners" is not on federal land. it would seem that the defendant could keep a case like this tied up for years just trying to figure out where the crime occurred. Any ideas? Thanks!

[uppityperson]

1. Where does the greater portion of the body, and the head, lie?

Who wants the case and who doesn't? Did someone see this happen or was the body found and footprints?

[magellan]

2. Well, just a simplistic approach

But my instinct would be that wherever most of the body landed is the state that would have jurisdiction.

[Kitty Herder]

3. I have no legal training at all, so this is just a guess.

I would say that it would fall into Federal Jurisdiction since state lines were crossed in the commission of the crime.

[Unrepentant Fenian]

4. But....

But couldn't the defense argue that the shooter and the victim were in the same state when the crime occurred, but also claim that they don't know which state that was?

[Jamastiene]

5. Sounds logical to me.

I second this idea.

[Richard Steele]

7. I had the same thought. nm

[uppityperson]

9. I'd go with Fed with whichever state or counties were mostly involved.

[Richard Steele]

6. I'm certainly no expert, but it occurs to me that...

...all questions of jurisdiction could be avoided by simply
declaring it to be an "Interstate Crime" and letting the FBI
investigate and prosecute the case.

Isn't that one of the reasons it was created in the first place-
because the "Organized Crime" of the '20s and '30s had begun
to create complicated multi-state crimes that raised these sorts
of jurisdictional issues?

[sandnsea]

8. Counties prosecute murder

So whichever county has the most money available would prosecute, as a matter of practice more than law. This would be a matter of counties not wanting to get mixed up in the case, so they would all agree over jurisdiction pretty quickly. The defendant would get one shot at a jurisdiction argument, the counties would have their internal arguments, the defendant would get his county, and on they go with the trial. That's how I see it anyway.

[Andrea]

10. No real knowledge here, but

I'd say it does sound like something that could be argued for years.

I'd like to offer this warning:

If your dissatisfied spouse, who you think may be cheating on you, takes out a large life insurance policy on you and then suggests a vacation trip to the four corners, just say you can't get off work.

[seriousstan]

11. Your premise, the victim falls exactly on the intersection, leads to...where did they come from.

That will determine where it is tried.

[Unrepentant Fenian]

12. So, you're saying....

So, you're saying that if they drove through Utah to get to Four Corners they would be tried in Utah. I hadn't thought of that but it does sound reasonable.

[orleans]

13. the case is investigated and tried where the body is found

as far as i know.

[csziggy]

14. Four Corners is in the Navajo Nation, isn't it?

The Navajos have their own Navajo Nation Police. http://navajodps.org/Page.asp?CustComKey=30996&CategoryKey=30997

"Local and federal law enforcement agencies that routinely work within the Navajo Nation include the Navajo Division of Public Safety, with the Navajo Nation Police (formerly the "Navajo Tribal Police"), the BIA Police, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navajo_Nation

Read Tony Hillerman or Aimee Thurlo and David Thurlo mysteries for more fun explanations! ;-)

According to some of the Tony Hillerman mysteries, if it was a Navajo or other Native American who was killed, the investigation would likely be left to the Navajo Nation Police or other tribal police entity. If it was a non-native person, the FBI would probably get involved.

[MonkeyFunk]

15. Ooh! I know!

The doctor is the kid's MOTHER!

Oh wait...