Legal Basics                                                    Anchivius, M.Z.F.                                                                                                                                                  )	       
    4        Legal Basics            Ignorance of the law is no defense. Be forewarned that the following are but the most universal of Tamrielan laws and regulations. Your own local province or principality may have unique laws of its own. As a citizen of Empire, it is your right and responsibility to know and follow these laws of the land.      Breaking and Entering:    This refers to any act including, but not limited to opening, breaking, incinerating, magically transporting, or in any way causing a door, window, or other portal that has been magically or mundanely locked or which a reasonable person would assume to be so restricted to be passable, and the act (though the act is not required for the definition) of entering the house, business, or public location through said defined portal. The punishment for this crime may include a fine or incarceration, or a fine and incarceration.    The fine and incarceration, or both, or neither, may be less in a crime of Attempted Breaking and Entering. A crime of Attempted Breaking and Entering is defined as an any act that a reasonable person would perceive as the preparation for, an attempt (whether successful or not, or perceived to be possibly successful or not) to bring about the opening, breaking, incinerating, magically transporting, or in any way causing a door, window, or other portal that has been magically or mundanely locked or which a reasonable person would assume to be so restricted to be passable, and the act (though the act is not required for the definition) of preparing or attempting (whether successful or not, perceived to be possibly successful or not) entering the house, business, or public location through said defined portal.       Trespassing:     This refers to walking, flying, riding, teleporting, floating, or in any way moving or existing on a property without the explicit written or spoken permission (or permission a reasonable person might infer) of the owner or caretaker of the property. The punishment for this crime may include a fine or incarceration, or a fine and incarceration.       Assault     Any threat or attempt (whether successful or not) to do physical, emotional, mental, or magical harm or injury to another person, group of persons, or entity a reasonable person might assume to be sentient. The punishment for this crime may include a fine or incarceration, or a fine and incarceration.       Murder     Any act of premeditated or malicious or premeditated and malicious (or an act that a reasonable person would call premeditated and malicious or premeditated or malicious) or accidental but criminally intended (or what a reasonable person would call criminally intended) purpose that results directly in the death (or destruction with implied death) of a person, group of persons, or entity a reasonable person might assume to be sentient. The punishment for this crime may include a fine or incarceration, or a fine and incarceration.       Criminal Conspiracy     Any meeting, communication, or encounter with the purpose (or which a reasonable person might assume had the purpose) of preparing or arranging a crime of any kind (or crimes of any kind) to be commited or caused to be commited. The punishment for this crime may include a fine or incarceration, or a fine and incarceration.       Vagrancy     Any act of idleness, disorder, begging, or conduct unbecoming a person with occupation, gold, or a home, (or occupation, gold, and a home, or occupation or gold and home, or occupation and gold or home, or occupation and home or gold), or what a reasonable person would consider idle, disorderly, beggarly, or unbecoming. The punishment for this crime may include a fine or incarceration, or a fine and incarceration.       Smuggling     Any act of bringing in, taking out, teleporting, or causing to be brought in, taken out, or teleported an object considered illegal or, if not illegal, requiring an import or export tax which is not paid. The punishment for this crime may include a fine or incarceration, or a fine and incarceration, and will include confiscation of the offensive or illegal object. It may also include, but not be restricted to, execution or banishment, or execution and banishment.       High Treason     Any act against (whether directly or indirectly, or any nonaction which results in circumstances, directly or indirectly, against) a allegiated sovereign or by a vassal to a liege, resulting (or what a reasonable person would assume would result) in physical, emotional, mental, or magical harm or injury in said sovereign or liege. The punishment for this crime will be death.       Pickpocketing     Any act of stealing, taking, or, without explicit written or verbal permission (or what a reasonable person would infer as implied permission) an item or items a person, group of persons, or entity a reasonable person might assume to be sentient has on his, her, its, or their own person. The punishment for this crime may include a fine or incarceration, or a fine and incarceration.       Theft     (sometimes called Larceny)     Any act of stealing, taking, or, without explicit written or verbal permission (or what a reasonable person would infer as implied permission) an item or items from a person, group of persons, or entity a reasonable person might assume to be sentient's place of residence, business, person, or other location a reasonable person would assume is secured from looting. The punishment for this crime may include a fine or incarceration, or a fine and incarceration.       These are the usual, day-to-day definitions used by legal experts (like myself), but both the definitions and punishments may fluctuate wildly according to location and situation. In the Imperial City, legal counsel is available by persons like myself, but the provinces have no such system in place. Perhaps that will change in time. We can all hope so.       As a final note: the Tamriel legal system has its basis in the civilized, reasonable credo uttered by the prophet Marukh in the first era: "All are guilty until they have proven themselves innocent." Were truer word ever spoke?   