No, this isn't some kind of joke. It's my interpretation of an actual CRS Legal Sidebar (report) written by Peter G. Berris and Michael A. Foster and released on 2 December 2022): 'If You Do the Space Crime, You May Do the Space Time'.
Download CRS_Legal_Sidebar_Space_Commit_Crime_Do_Time_2Dec_2022
Legal Sidebars have embedded links which you won't find in my pasted version. I have pasted some links myself.
Introduction
In recent years, a number of high-profile commercial space flights—some of which included celebrity passengers—garnered widespread media attention. Moving forward, one company aims to provide hundreds of passenger space flights per year. Another venture promises a “civilian lunar orbital mission” in 2023. One CEO has suggested the possibility of a “crewed mission to Mars in 2029.” Regardless of the outcome of any of these specific plans, space tourism companies are pursuing travel that is more frequent, ambitious, and perhaps longer in duration. In short, more humans may be spending more time in space, increasing the potential for crime to occur during a mission or voyage. The issue is not entirely speculative—a range of violent behavior and sexual misconduct has reportedly occurred during simulated space missions. Should a criminal act occur during an actual trip to space, is there federal jurisdiction to prosecute it?In light of Congress’s continuing work on various matters pertaining to space, including commercial space flight, this sidebar explores the situations in which federal jurisdiction over crimes committed in space might exist. The sidebar focuses on crimes committed by private individuals in space and concludes with a brief discussion of congressional considerations. This sidebar does not examine the various additional laws that may be uniquely relevant to military or official personnel in space and does not cover other regulatory frameworks that may be relevant to space commerce. Information on some of these topics may be found in CRS In Focus IF11940, Commercial Human Spaceflight, by Daniel Morgan; and CRS Report R45416, Commercial Space: Federal Regulation, Oversight, and Utilization, by Daniel Morgan.
Skipping ahead...
Sample Federal Statutes that Apply in SMTJ (Special Maritime and Territorial Jurisdiction)
An array of federal criminal statutes expressly apply to SMTJ. For instance, 18 U.S.C. §§ 1111 and 1112 punish murder (defined as the unlawful killing of a human being with malice aforethought) and manslaughter (defined as the unlawful killing of a human being without malice) within SMTJ. Other federal offenses applicable in SMTJ include, for example:
Assault (at minimum, an attempt or threat to injure another);
Theft (taking and carrying away, with intent to steal or purloin, the personal property of another);
Arson (willfully and maliciously setting fire to or burning any building, structure, or vessel, among other things);
Sexual Abuse (among other things, engaging in a sexual act with a person without that person’s consent);
Robbery (taking anything of value from another by force and violence or intimidation);
Kidnapping (seizing or confining, among other things, another person against their will for an appreciable period).
Skipping to the end...
Congressional Considerations
As discussed above, there are a number of ways in which federal criminal jurisdiction may reach conduct committed in space. As commercial space travel develops, it may present scenarios where jurisdiction is lacking or where an expansion of conduct subject to criminal sanction may be warranted. For example, Congress could extend federal statutes governing conduct such as hoaxes or violent threats to apply in SMTJ. Additionally, Congress could potentially use SMTJ as a jurisdictional hook to create laws criminalizing other conduct it believes worthy of criminalization in space, including offenses traditionally criminalized by state and local governments—such as vandalism, cruelty to persons, trespass, indecent exposure, disorderly conduct, and operating a vehicle while intoxicated.Federal jurisdiction and the existence of an applicable statute does not mean that either a prosecution or a conviction would necessarily result. Crimes committed in space would likely raise a number of other legal and practical issues. It is possible to envision scenarios that pose questions about the application of the laws and rules governing search and seizure, the extent of constitutional rights such as a right to counsel during custodial interrogation, and the limits of international cooperation in incidents involving crews or vessels from other countries. For now, these issues are speculative, but the existence of federal criminal jurisdiction is a key threshold that will allow judicial precedent on such topics to develop. As human space travel pushes to new horizons, the universe of relevant federal criminal case law will likely expand.
So you're now all set: if you are going to board a spacecraft with Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos to do some space hydrology, you'll be able to know how to behave. How about GRACE?
Do you think I am joking about this? Remember - in space no one can hear you call for your lawyer.
Enjoy!
"We always know when the humanities faculty come back to town - all the twelve-year-old Subarus reappear." - @ass_deans
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