Bizarre reason why you can theoretically get away with murder inside area called 'zone of death'
There is a place in the world where you can get away with murder - no, really.
It's not in some corner of Siberia or part of a little known third world country.
It's actually in one of the most populated countries on Earth.
YouTuber Tom Scott posted a video on YouTube on in July 2022, explaining exactly how and why this zone exists in what is otherwise one of the most developed countries in the world.
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Just 50 square miles in size, the 'zone of death' can be accessed through the solitary road that is the only way in and out of the area.
It's part of Yellowstone National Park, which is predominantly in the US state of Wyoming, with areas also creeping into the neighbouring states of Montana and Idaho.
The zone is a small slither of the overlap that the park has with Idaho, and it was discovered in 2005 by law professor, Brian Kalt, who has since pushed for the government to fix this existing problem concerning crimes taking place in the areas.
In theory, you could literally get away with murder here, or any other crime for that matter, due to a slight legal loophole.
Kalt nicknamed the area the 'zone of death', but did highlight that there are a number of caveats and limitations, which Scott further explains.
Basically, in the US, you can either be prosecuted by the state or the federal government if you commit a crime, but Yellowstone National Park is different.
The entire area can only be prosecuted by the federal government, and how they work is by putting the area under the prosecution a federal district, which don't cross state lines.
So the whole park - despite overlapping - was given to Wyoming, and if you are tried in court by the federal government, the jury must be made up of people from the state and the district.
It means that it would have to consist of people who live in the 'zone of death' - of which there are exactly zero.
That's right - no jury, which means no trial, and presumably no conviction, right? Wrong.
Professor Kalt explained that the prosecution wouldn't just give in if you were to commit a crime, they would simply acknowledge that it's a technicality, which goes against the sixth amendment - a right to a jury.
The kicker here is that only one person can request a change of venue in the federal system: the defendant. Which just isn't going to happen, is it?
A few years ago, a man poached an elk in the Montana section of the park, but it wasn't possible to get a jury together from the few people that lived there, so the judge offered him a reduced sentence.
But here's the fishy part - the terms were that he didn't appeal the 'zone of death' issue but rather plead guilty.
Professor Kalt said it would take 'five minutes' for Congress to correct this loophole - but for some reason, they have chosen to let it remain.
Although, there have been no serious crimes committed in the 'zone of death' as far as the law is aware, and if you did commit a crime, then you wouldn't escape being arrested.
So it's not completely legal to murder someone there, but there is an easier way out of a technicality that would save you from similar trouble you'd be in if you were anywhere else in the country.
Joshua Nair