Magistrate
Assigned to:N/A
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Magistrate
Superiors: CentComm. Supreme Court.
Difficulty: Hard, Highly Roleplay Based
Guides: Standard Operating Procedure, Space Law, Internal Affairs, Guide to Paperwork and this page.
Access: Locations Brig, Security Office, Maintenance, Prison, Law Office, Firing Range, Labour Camp
Duties: Ensure Space Law is upheld, coordinate Internal Affairs
Summary
The Magistrate and his underlings, the IA Agents, are impartial and independant from the rest of the station, and are not part of the station's 'security team' and do not report to the Warden, the HoS or the Captain. The Magistrate reports to Central Command High Court, and is supervised by Head of Internal Affairs Mr. White.
The Magistrate is a Karma role, costing 45 Karma Points. It has such a hefty cost because, although it has an RP role, it is the kind of role that can save or break a person's round. Whereas the IA Agents are meant (and often fail) to be impartial, professional arbiters of the law, Magistrates must have a comprehensive understanding of Space Law, how to apply it, must be unbiased and have unimpeachable character. Why? Simply put, a good Magistrate can single-handedly curtail poor security, and a bad Magistrate can cripple good Security. The Magistrate is in charge of sentencing, and can overrule the Warden, Head of Security and even the Captain on all sentences regarding Space Law.
Not to mention they are also directly responsible for the Internal Affairs Agents, who have Centcomm's ear.
Do note, the code for this job is 'unfinished. Yet even in this state, the Magistrate is a powerful force and can be entertaining for those who want a crack at it. If you wish to join, do not declare ready, or you will spawn inside the lobby. Wait for the round to start, then click 'join game' and 'Magistrate'.
Duties of the Magistrate
- Ensure Sentencing is Just and Legal - You have the final say on all sentencing. You may want to leave sentencing for smaller crimes to the Officers (because let's face it, the Mime probably DID burn the NT Flags and draw 'Fuck the Police' in crayon) but if someone's brought in on blatantly trumped up or straight-up nonexistant charges (e.g Atmos Tech gets arrested for telling an officer 'DON'T OPEN THE SHUTTERS YOU FUCKING IDIOT or the Clown is brought in for 'excessive humour') it is completely within your power to completely veto the charge and let the person walk free. Do not abuse this, though. If someone did a genuine crime, they must do the time.
- Make sure Security Records are detailed and accurate - It'll keep you busy when there's nothing going on. In busier rounds, when the Warden is rushed off his feet putting people away, you may in fact become essential just because you're doing this. Having an attentive, active Magistrate helps when things are frenetic and 90% of Security don't know why any particular person is in the Brig.
- Supervise the Internal Affairs Agents - Point them toward cases, Investigate complaints against them, read the reports they submit and give advice/sentencing based on them.
- Be aware of Standard Operating Procedure - Know your Alert levels and what's legal therein, as well as Criminal Procedure
- Hold Hearings and Trials - A small part of your job. If you do not feel as though you have sufficient evidence to charge or release a prisoner, it can sometimes be helpful to call one of these. Prisoners charged with Serious Crimes under Space Law are also legally obligated to one of these.
Supervising your starched subjects
Internal Affairs are your domain. Whatever they call themselves, Public Defenders, Lawyers or Internal Affairs their duties are all the same and you are there to guide them. Do note that they are Nanotrasen Agents in their own right so you shouldn't micromanage their investigations and eavesdrop on their conversations with defendants or the accused whether they're preparing for a court case or conducting a routine civil affair. However, you will often by the first port of call for anybody with a grievance and it is from you many Agents will likely get their jobs. You will direct Internal Affairs to cases whether it's a complex case involving the Captain, HoS, HoP and a boatload of Space Law/S.O.P violations or the Clown demanding representation whilst in the brig for 5 minutes. You are also in charge of ensuring Internal Affair's quality and it is within your power to hire and fire Agents/Lawyers at will, in order to preserve the moral integrity and functioning of your department.
Also, Internal Affairs should present their resolved cases and judgements to you. Check for evidence, testimony, make sure you understand full facts of the case. Do not allow them to fax anything or demand anything until you personally are satisfied they've done their due diligence in advising someone's demotion, or championing someone's evidence. Remember, you're looking for REASONABLE doubt. You will never be 100% someone has committed a crime, but if enough evidence has been presented where it would be unreasonable to assume another verdict you may feel comfortable sentencing.
Sentencing
Before we begin, there is one thing you should be aware of. You have the final say on all sentencing. You even override the Captain. This is a responsibility, not a perk. You are here to ensure fast, accurate JUSTICE. You are not to deliberately hamper Security out of spite, or abuse your authority to show everybody what a boss you are.
You are only to concern yourself with crimes over 20 minutes, generally. Security tends to overcharge and a cursory question as to what the person is actually said to have done can reveal some frequent mischarges.
For example, a Prisoner who has been charged with Trespassing, Assault of an Officer, Resisting Arrest and Insulting an Officer can often be found to have merely run away when the Officer pulled a taser in Engineering, pushed the guy over and called the guy shitcurity on his way back. In such a circumstances the only appropriate charges are Trespassing and Resisting Arrest. Understanding Space Law and its nuances is very important if you wish to be a Magistrate. Being correct and fluent in Space Law is your entire job description. What could have been a 20 minute charge is rapidly cut down to 8. Not least because 'Assault of an Officer' isn't a charge registered in Space Law.
When Security does get the charges aligned correctly with what they're accused of doing, and the charge exceeds 20 minutes it becomes more important for you to ascertain whether Security can prove beyond reasonable doubt whether they did it. Typically you foist this job on your IA subordinates but if you're unable you can weigh up from the charges, the person and their condition how to proceed. You can have a brief, cursory investigation. Asking the Officer what happened, talking to the Accused and PDAing any witnesses which can take 5 minutes may be all you need to feel comfortable keeping someone in the brig.
However, when the evidence is murky, witness testimonies are conflicting and the stakes are high, you may be forced to call...
A TRIAL
The Trial is not the endgame of your role, it is a tool you seldom reach for because trials are: Slow, Difficult to Organise and chaotic to say the least. You only call a trial when you can't get a straight answer out of anybody, you need all evidence presented to you and you need to be able to talk to everybody at once. You do not need to troop all the way out to the holodeck and sit in a chair and bang your gavel in order to hold a trial. A trial can happen in a dingy corridor outside of the execution chamber or in the Security Office. However, these are the things you will need to ascertain before holding a trial.
- Who was involved. Suspect, Victim, Witnesses and Officers
- What evidence exists. Witness Testimony, Crime Scene Photographs, Processed Evidence, Coroner Reports (you may not be so lucky to get even one of these)
- What the Accused is supposed to have done. Do not ask for the charges, it is up to you to decide those. Ask for precisely what he did.
- Representation for the Defendant and the Prosecution
It's a short list, but getting every witness, officer, piece of paperwork and evidence together in one place can be very demanding which is why you want to avoid trials if possible. In addition to this list, the Journalist is permitted to attend the trial. However, you are also permitted to throw them out if they prove disruptive. You don't have to inform the Journalist that a trial is occuring, but you can't refuse him/her if they ask.
From there, you decide what the accused is to have done, beyond reasonable doubt. It is not your job to decide whether the Accused is Innocent or Guilty. It is your job to work out whether Security have done a sufficient job in proving the Defendant's guilt.
Record-Keeping and Paperwork
Very important! Gonna try to make this pretty comprehensive, but here's the Guide to Paperwork to tide you over until then.
Treachery
Magistrates are Loyalty Implanted which means they cannot be chosen for Traitor, Changeling, Vampire or similar at round start.
Roleplaying Advice
todo: Keeping a slow shift busy, dealing with burnout,