Bill: Vote Towns' Local Crimes Act

[Julia_]

CONGRESS OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF REDMONT
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A BILL TO

Allow for increased prosecutorial powers of Towns and to increase local lawmaking




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The people of the Commonwealth of Redmont, through their elected Representatives in the Congress and the force of law ordained to that Congress by the people through the constitution, do hereby enact the following provisions into law:


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PART I — PRELIMINARIES

1. Short Title and Enactment

(1) This Act may be cited as the ‘Towns' Local Crimes Act’

(2) This Act shall be enacted immediately upon its signage.

(3) This Act has been authored by Senator Johnes and Representative JuliaMC_.

(4) This Act has been proposed by Representative JuliaMC_.

(5) This Act has been co-sponsored by Senator Johnes.

(6) This Act amends the following acts:

(a) Criminal Code Act​

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(b) Judicial Standards Act​

2. Reasons and Intent

(1) Currently, only petty and often times irrelevant local crimes are in place, with no way for Towns to enact criminal statutes that punish criminals in any meaningful way.

(2) Introducing a way for Towns to enforce and prosecute more serious crimes than "disorderly conduct" or "misuse of the Post Office" ensures better Town Rights and an incentive for them to be more active in their local matters.

3. Definitions

(1) For the purposes of this Act, the following definitions shall apply:

(a) "Local crime" — A bylaw passed by a Town illegalizing a certain act, omission, negligence, or conduct specified in the bylaw and applies only to the relevant Town jurisdiction.​

(b) "Town" — An entity with local lawmaking powers recognised by Part V of the Constitution.​

(c) "Town bylaws" – A regulation made by a Town subservient to Federal Laws.​

PART II — AMENDMENTS

1. Amendments

(1) Part I § 3 of the Criminal Code Act shall be amended as follows:

3 - Codification of Criminal Law
(1) This Code and any local crimes defined in Town bylaws constitutes the exclusive and exhaustive listing of criminal offences within the jurisdiction of Redmont.

(2) No person may be charged with a criminal offence unless that offence is contained within this Code; or within Town bylaws.

(3) Any new offence that seeks to impose a fine or imprisonment must be introduced as an amendment to this Code; or be within Town bylaws.

(2) Part I § 7(3) of the Criminal Code Act shall be amended as follows:

(3) Indictable Offence means an offence that must be prosecuted through formal legal proceedings, where the accused is entitled to a fair trial and the opportunity to contest the charges before a judicial officer, and are prosecuted by the Department of Justice; or by the relevant Town for a local crime.

(3) Part I § 6(8) of the Criminal Code Act shall be amended as follows:

(8) Proceeds of Crime
(a) The funds or assets acquired from criminal acts can be seized by the Government; or Town in court proceedings.
(i) Fine or civil recovery of an amount up to the total proceeds of the offence committed.

(4) The Criminal Code Act's Part I shall be appended by inserting the following after § 7 and renumbering § 8 to § 9 thereafter:

8 - Local Crimes
(1) Towns may pass bylaws that shall act as parts of this Code and shall apply only to the relevant Town's jurisdiction.

(a) Such bylaws must be formatted as additions to this Code and must specify if it's a summary or an indictable offence.​

(b) Such bylaws shall not be a part of this Code; they must be properly announced and posted by the relevant Town and the Town must update its citizens if any changes occur.​

(2) Towns are responsible for enforcement and prosecution of their local crimes.
(3) Any local crimes passed by a Town shall not copy a crime in this Code and must build on top of this Code.
(4) If there is any conflict between Town bylaws and this Code, this Code shall prevail.

(5) Part II § 1(2) of the Judicial Standards Act shall be amended as follows:

1. Commencing Proceedings
(1) Any person may commence a civil proceeding by filing a civil complaint with the court.

(2) The Commonwealth or a Town may commence a criminal proceeding by filing a criminal complaint with the court.

(3) The Commonwealth may apply to the court for a warrant.

(6) Part II § 2(1)(b) of the Judicial Standards Act shall be amended as follows:

2. Burden of Proof
(1) The burden of proof is held by:
(a) In a civil case, the Plaintiff; and
(b) In a criminal case, the Commonwealth or a Town.

(7) The Judicial Standards Act shall be appended by inserting the following after § 4 and renumbering the following sections thereafter:

5. Representation of Towns
(1) The legal representative of a Town shall be defined in the Town Constitution or Town bylaws.
(a) Where there is no legal representative defined, the Mayor of the Town shall be the default legal representative.
(2) The legal representative of a Town is responsible for the representation of the Town in every proceeding.
(3) The legal representative may appoint a delegate to represent the Town in a proceeding.