Condemnation of the Recent Trial, a Call for Review, and a Path Forward

[Cpt_Noobman 1376]

Condemnation of the Recent Trial, a Call for Review, and a Path Forward

 

The recent trial against the Rhun Oathed religious sect, was in frank terms, a biased charade and mockery of justice. The only way to restore the honor and legitimacy of the courts of Urguan, the clergy, the Grand King, and the Grand Kingdom itself, is to declare an immediate mistrial and pardon all individuals involved. There are many points to get through, so I will begin forthwith;

 

Earlier in the stone week, a number of Ruhn Oathed faithful were accused of a slew of crimes, of which, many were dropped at or before the time of the trial. The sheer amount of absolutely baseless charges that had to be dropped before the trial even began is already evidence that the trial was conducted in bad faith, with the express purpose of throwing refuse at the defense until something stuck. The only accusations which made it to court were the charges of Treason and Sedition, which will be the focus of my later inquiries.

 

However, the first undeniable miscarriage of justice is the fact that the entire organization of the Rhun Oathed were charged for collective crimes. Only individuals may be charged with crimes as per;

 

Article VII: The Codex of Civil Law: “The Codex of Civil Law is the collective of all rules by which every citizen of the Grand Kingdom of Urguan and any residing within its borders are subject to. The Codex of Civil Law is limited towards interactions between people and the criminality thereof and is not to be used to describe interactions between governmental systems of trade.”

 

 This important aspect of the law was flagrantly ignored when both trial and punishment were applied to the Rhun Oathed collectively, and is already grounds for a mistrial. How can an individual be held responsible for something they may not have done themselves?

 

Additionally, the prosecution opened the trial by stating, and I quote  “First oi'd like teh clarify et was teh Legion that brought forth charges, teh clergy only approved an investigaion.”  (Garedyn) The Legion is not mentioned anywhere within the Articles of Urguan to have the authority to levy charges against any citizen or visitor within the kingdom. In fact, the Legion is expressly denied this power by the phrase, previously quoted, “The Codex of Civil Law is limited towards interactions between people…and is not to be used to describe interactions between governmental systems of trade.” (A.VII)

 

Even if the legion did have this power, the Grand King has ultimate authority over the legion and thus would need to approve or deny levying of any charges, and could drop them at any point. “The Grand King has ultimate authority over the management of the Legion of Urguan.” (A. II S. 1.2) Yet the Grand King was not sufficiently consulted ahead of time of any charges his deputies brought forth. Again, this fact is made redundant because the legion has no legal standing to levy charges against individuals.

 

Ignoring these immediate glaring issues, the charges themselves are built on flimsy ground. In the order of severity, I will start with treason, the most egregious crime mentioned.  

 

TREASON:  “Attempting the subversion of state authority or assassination of a representative of the king” First-degree crime

 

The charge of treason stems from the dissolution of the clergy by Norli Starbreaker, which is said to violate;

 

Article VI: The Clergy of Urguan. “Since the times of the first meeting of the hallowed hosts of Khaz’A’Dentrumm and the Paragon Urguan Silverbeard, Father of all Dwarfdom and First of Prophets, there has always been a priestly order to guide the faith of the dwarves and direct the blessings of the Brathmordakin upon the folk. To this end, the Grand Kingdom assures certain rights towards the clergy caste. In the event of any substantial change to the hierarchy and structure of the order, so long as it can be said of a clergy it is a successor to the old then it inherits its rights as per the Articles of Urguan.”

 

Although through this article the clergy is guaranteed many rights and much authority,  it is ironically not required nor guaranteed to exist. This is, perhaps, a grossly negligent oversight by the writers of the articles, yet the point stands. Norli Starbreaker cannot be charged with the crime of dissolving the clergy, when in fact it is not a crime to do so at all! The article simply states that if the clergy does exist, it inherits all the rights and privileges afforded to it by the article. Which, brings us to the next point,

 

The clergy was, in fact, dissolved. This is a fact which both prosecution and defense can agree on. So, there being no formal clergy, and several denominations and cults springing up in its absence, which of these organizations can claim to be the true successors of the clergy? The articles give no process for deciding which organization is the true successor to the clergy. Is it the current iteration of da Kirkja Dverga? Perhaps the Rhun Oathed are in fact the legitimate successors, as their leader is the one who in fact dissolved the old clergy? Or, maybe the Seers of Heffrumm, or the cultists of Kjellos are the true inheritors of the rights and privileges of the articles? Ironically enough, many of the current leaders of the organization currently called “Da Kirkja Dverga” are in fact leaders of, or are otherwise involved with some, or all of these additional cults and denominations, further blurring the lines between what can be considered the successor of the old Kirkja Dverga.

 

In fact, I argue that none of them are the true successors to the Kirkja Dverga of old. Since there is no process in the articles for recognizing an official clergy, and the old clergy was dissolved, the only logical conclusion is that there is currently no official clergy! No current religious organization within Urguan is in possession of the rights of the clergy, thus any charges brought against Norli or the other Rhun Oathed by the current organization called “Da Kirkja Dverga '' or their representatives have no standing in court, and must be dismissed. 

 

The charges of treason now being utterly thwarted, leaves only the charge of sedition. Logically a much less severe crime, but still a serious one nonetheless.

 

SEDITION: “The crime of spreading literature or speech intended to provoke revolution or treason” First-degree crime

 

The charge of sedition stems from the writings of several dwarves, including some Rhun Oathed, who left the Grand Kingdom to form the settlement of Khron’Hundmar. Specifically, members of the party were said to reject the authority of the Grand King and Grand Kingdom. In their decision to leave, a notice was made , expressly stating “In the pursuit of a noble dwarven society, the Rhun Oathed reject the Grand Kingdom and its Obsidian Throne, and set out to build a new future”.

 

Rejecting the authority of the Grand King and Kingdom might indeed be a serious and damning crime, if the defense had actually done so. The defense did not reject the authority of the King or the government over the Kingdom, but instead rejected their involvement with that tyrannical king and government of the time. The defense were not living within Urguan at the time, nor engaging in any attempt to usurp the power of the King and Kingdom. They were content to let the Grand King rule the Grand Kingdom, and to forge their own path parallel to it. 

 

Revolution, by its very nature, is the process of toppling an old form of government and replacing it with a new one. Leaving the kingdom’s bounds cannot be considered a revolution, as the action's intent was not to replace the existing government of Urguan, but simply to live apart from it. This statement cannot be construed as an attempt to provoke treason or revolution , because the Dwarves who left the kingdom made no calls for violence, subversion, or replacement of the Kingdom’s government.

 

Relevant to the case of sedition is the following right; 

 

The Rights of Citizens 4. The Right to Happiness: It was Belka who filled the hearts of the dwedmar with a fiery passion for love, and the importance of commune among the dwed people. As such, it is the right of all dwed to pursue happiness and love with their fellow dwed.  Specifically relevant is right  4.2: A citizen is to be able to pursue their passion and dreams without heavy and unreasonable restriction from the government. 

 

It was the passion of the Dwarves of Khron’Hundmar to leave the capital in pursuit of a better future, which the articles allow them to do by their right to happiness. Any attempt to restrict them from doing so would be a violation of these rights guaranteed to them by the Articles of Urguan. Trying to punish these Dwedmar for their actions of leaving the bounds of the Kingdom, is a violation of their rights and is illegal, as outlined in 

 

Section 1.2 of the Codex of Laws of Urguan “No Citizen of Urguan, that is of Dwarven descent, shall be denied their basic rights, as outlined in Article VI of the Articles of Urguan”

 

CONCLUSION:

 

As I have made clear by my inquiry into the basics of Urguan law, the trial of the Rhun Oathed was a gross perversion of justice that should never have been brought before the courts at all. The Legion of Urguan, which the prosecution claims to be bringing forth the charges, has no legal authority to do so, and even if they did, would require the consulting and approval of the Grand King, who by virtue of heading the prosecution, would be able to drop the charges at any point, and being involved, could not sit on the trial.

 

Also, the organization called “Da Kirkja Dverga”, being headed by Garedyn, of Treebeard descent, is in fact, not the official clergy of the Grand Kingdom. The old clergy being dissolved, and no new one selected via any legally outlined process, there is currently no official clergy. Thus, any organization claiming to be the clergy has no legal standing to claim the rights guaranteed to the true clergy as referenced in the Articles of Urguan. 

 

The crimes of Sedition have no merit, as the Dwarves of Khron’Hundmar did not engage in subversion or revolution, nor did they attempt to goad others into committing treason through speech or literature. The right to leave the kingdom is intrinsically guaranteed to them by the right of Happiness, specifically right 4.4 as listed in the rights of citizens of Urguan.

 

Although some of the actions taken by the Rhun Oathed may be considered uncouth or condemnable, none of them were illegal. What this trial has done, in fact, is highlight the massive issues surrounding the current institutions upheld by Urguan. Urguan as a kingdom is being held down by bureaucratic bloat and corruption. Individuals constantly try to weaponize these institutions to persecute their political and ideological rivals. This mode of action must cease immediately,

 

I call upon Grand King Agnar directly, to take action to move the kingdom to a brighter future. The articles must be reformed as soon as possible, and every institution forming the government of Urguan must be expunged, and a simpler, purer form of government put in place. As Grand King, you have the authority, at least, to rectify this one injustice. 

 

Article II: Section 1.6 “The Grand King shall be able to grant pardons and override verdicts of the High Courts…”

 

Grand King Agnar, annul this trial, and lead the dwarves of Urguan in a great reformation of the broken and polluted governmental system within which we now find ourselves mired. The Dwarves can be united again, and step one is clemency and justice.

 

Sincerely Yours,

Barundin of Clan Goldhand

[UnusualBrit 2058]

"Aye, he's right yer know, good old Barundin." Thalgrim spoke, satisfied at his clan-mates legal expertise. 

[Elite Snipes 3542]

Bakir chuckles "Looks like another dwarf corrupted by the Rhun is attempting to subvert justice. They cried out to the courts when they wanted my clan condemned, but when they don't get their way in the same court, they call bias and review."

[Legoboy7984 2441]

The Grand King looks over the appeal before going to gather the other Magistrates in order to review over the missive presented.

[Cpt_Noobman 1376]

22 minutes ago, Elite Snipes said:

Bakir chuckles "Looks like another dwarf corrupted by the Rhun is attempting to subvert justice. They cried out to the courts when they wanted my clan condemned, but when they don't get their way in the same court, they call bias and review."

"I do not follow the Ruhn, but refuse to stand idle while our nations institutions are bent for sinister purposes." Barundin responds

[Xergarok 297]

Dwonki was speechless, euphoric and enraged at the same time. "Wot ah grand reasoning tah beh sure! Ah wish ah 'ad dah patience tah dig thru maneh documents tah delve up dah truth!" he said. "Rraaaaaaaaaah!" he let out in frustration, knowing he didn't have the patience at all. After he calmed down he checked the name. "Barundin..." he echoed softly.