Well if you are ever feeling murderous, believe it or not but there’s an area in the USA where you can almost guarantee getting off scot free if you really decided to do someone in.
It’s absolutely true that there exists a part of the USA where you could quite literally commit murder and almost certainly get away with it.
Just in case you’re feeling murderous, the location is in Yellowstone National Park – and if you are wondering just how this could be – the answer is size. 
The park takes up a whole chunk of Wyoming but also stretches into both Montana and Idaho which creates a massive headache for both park rangers and law enforcement officers, creating a legal loophole, making it virtually impossible for any prosecutions of any major crime, being successful.
This is particularly true of the 50-mile square area known as THE ZONE OF DEATH.
Why might this state of affairs be so, I hear you ask?
Well it all comes down to the sixth amendment which states that juries in federal criminal cases have to be made up of people who are from the district as well as the state where the crime was committed.
But as no one apart from bears, elk and other wildlife – who aren’t going to get called up for jury duty, live in the area of Yellowstone Park that spills into Idaho, whilst the District of Wyoming has complete jurisdiction over the park as a whole.
So if a man charged with murder invoked his right to be tried by a jury residing in both states, it would be almost impossible to provide sufficient participants to form a jury.
To date the closest anyone has come to a prosecution was a poacher caught illegally shooting an elk, but for these very reasons no jury could be appointed, nevertheless the miscreant pleaded guilty.
Apparently this legal; loophole has resulted as the basis for a best selling Crime Novel, “FREE FIRE by C J BOX.
It seems that someone has petitioned the US government to close the loophole but to date it remains on the Congress “to do” list.
So it looks as though there’s still an opening for you if you are criminally minded.
Meanwhile news has come in from the state of Michigan, where you certainly would not get away with murder, but someone who might be feeling murderous is Alexander Morris, the current lead singer of the world famous Motown group, the Four Tops which he joined in 2019.
After suffering from chest and breathing problems in April last year, he went to the Ascension Macomb-Oakland Hospital in Warren, Detroit, for help but unfortunately the hospital didn’t recognise him, and were convinced that his claims to fame were delusional and that in all probability, he was mentally ill.
As a result they placed him in a straitjacket for at least 90 minutes whilst he underwent a psychological examination.
Morris has subsequently alleged racial discrimination and other misconduct after staff restrained him in the straitjacket.
In a statement issued by his attorney, he said “It was a terrifying experience to be in the middle of a medical emergency, to be placed into restraints, to have my oxygen turned off, my personal effects taken from me, with no help forthcoming from the doctors and nurses”, which he alleged was due to the colour of his skin.
He claimed that the hospital orderlies refused to allow him to prove his identity by showing his identification card, and that the white male security guard ordered him to “sit his black ass down!”
Rather discourteous and impolite, one might think!
He also claims that he was ignored when he told staff members he was struggling to breathe and asked for the oxygen back, and even when he asked for his possessions to be returned so he could seek treatment at another hospital.
The situation was only resolved when his wife arrived and saw what was happening.
After she told the security officers that Morris really was a famous Motown singer, a nurse went to his side where he showed her a video of him performing at the Grammys.
Only then, according to the legal action, was the straitjacket removed and the oxygen supply re-connected.
He has now issued a law suit against the hospital and is seeking more than $75,000 (£58,600) in damages at a jury trial.
The lawsuit added that Morris had a “significant known history of cardiac disease” and the alleged racial discrimination delayed his hospital treatment.
In a statement, the hospital later said: “We remain committed to honouring human dignity and acting with integrity and compassion for all persons and the community. We do not condone racial discrimination of any kind, but will not comment further, pending litigation.”
The hospital has since offered the singer a $25 (£19.50) gift card as an apology.
You may be surprised to learn that this offer received short shrift.
So long as I’m not hospitalised I hope to see you again tomorrow,
Scott
