Dead men tell no tales, or so it is said, but the fact is some do. Many leave behind wills, some leave behind works that are discovered posthumously which may or may not recieve attention and interest and some leave clues to secrets they probably wouldn't want revealed if given teh chance. Perhaps it is better said dead people don't tell the entire tale they would prefer to.
I have a living will. It is very clear about who gets what and what to do with my body. I like the idea that it has some measure of law behind it should anyone ever dispute the wishes regarding what (very little) property I may leave behind. Some would say that as long as you have this and a good life insurance policy then you're about as ready to go for the afterlife as you might, but there is one detail I would like to have a say about after I die. I would like to talk to the judge and jury of my murderer should I have been murdered.
Yes, being murdered is a grisly thing to think about but the fact is it happens. What bothers me most about it is how the true victim has absolutely no say in the trial of their murderer. Usually the people discussing the case are not the (alleged) perpetrator and actual victim, but a couple of lawyers, judge and supposed 'peers' of the person on trial. True, I'm uncertain how many people are true 'peers' of murderers other than those found in prison but let's not get sidetracked by the absurdities and shortcommings of legal logic.
What say in the trial does the victim get? Is it possible to set up some legal document admissible in such a trial, at least in terms of sentencing? Shouldn't we consider this if we live in a country with such a high murder rate? As I am unable to exact any kind of justice or revenge from the grave I can only hope this blog will express those things which should be considered our rights as victims, should we be unfortunate to become one. My hope is to get others to tell that possible jurror exactly what they expect as a victim rather than be handed some pathetic legal arguement removed from the real victim. Perhaps, should this blog grow, we could see a law supporting this idea.
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