Imagine there is a big Island the size of New York city populated with dragons of all shapes and sizes, I put up a spell around the island to prevent the dragon's escape but visitors can pass through unimpeded as long as they are unarmed. As I don't own the island nor the animals residing within, my question is am I guilty for negligence to all the death by putting in place a half-assed spell? I'm the only wizard in town capable of erecting a wall to keep out the fantasy creatures but I intentionally allows people to flock in knowing the danger they would face, can I argued that this island is free and I do not have any rights to stop others from entering the premises? Also since I managed to put up a barrier to contain any potential threat I should be conferred instead of being criminalised for allowing people to risk their lives? Another note is my spell interferes with electronic and ferrous metal much like you have to bare yourself before the MRI scanner and the barrier is extinguished once I am too far away or having mood swings. Of course I can totally made the barrier impenetrable but why should I do that...
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$\begingroup$ Whether you are culpable of negligence or not depends on (1) in what country is that island; and (2) whether you were hired to put that spell in place or not. Laws differ from country to country. If putting the spell in place was not your responsibility in the first place, then what are you doing interfering with somebody else's property? $\endgroup$– AlexPCommented Mar 29, 2022 at 7:58
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$\begingroup$ "If I put up a wall with automated doors around an area with dangerous wildlife, am I culpable of negligence if the doors only allow people in but don't open to wildlife to let them out?" $\endgroup$– VLAZCommented Mar 29, 2022 at 8:27
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1$\begingroup$ Too many questions! Please focus! $\endgroup$– elemtilasCommented Mar 29, 2022 at 10:37
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$\begingroup$ First you need to clarify if the relevant authorities are aware of the existence of the island. It is difficult to conceive of a situation where a national government wouldn't be aware of a significant land mass within it's national borders. And if they are aware of the island then by default they would be aware of the dragons also. Which makes warning off citizens their responsibility. You putting up a ward is neither here or there unless such unauthorized acts of magic are illegal. If the island just 'magically' popped into existence one day & you discovered it? You might have problems. $\endgroup$– MonCommented Mar 29, 2022 at 11:27
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1$\begingroup$ Law is always dependent of country, and depending of it one or the other could be taken as liable... Or not. Under which juridiction is your island? Who ordered the act (the wizard alone, the country/city, the island's owner?)? Do we know who put the dragons there? Is the island easily accessible, or are specific contraptions needed (big boat, helicopter...)? $\endgroup$– Tortliena - inactiveCommented Mar 29, 2022 at 11:30
6 Answers
The phrase you might be looking for is "attractive nuisance".
From that well-known source of legal knowledge, dictionary.com:
a doctrine of tort law under which a person who creates or permits to exist on his or her land a dangerous condition attractive to children, as an unfenced swimming pool, is liable for their resulting injuries, even though the injured are trespassers.
(doubtless you can find better descriptions elsewhere)
Now, that applies to the landowner, and so long as it isn't your island and they aren't your dragons you're probably OK.
Of course I can totally made the barrier impenetrable but why should I do that...
If you're the only person who can solve the problem and you're just not interested in doing so then maybe there are larger problems, but the legislative sausage-making machine takes a while to work so you'll probably remain OK in the short term. Longer term though, I suspect that public and legal opinion will turn against you and new laws could be made to compel you to not do a half-assed job, at which point the question is more about how much money and power and influence you have as the only wizard in town...
No, building a wall isn't directly illegal.
It's not uncommon for people to build walls around natural areas. This is completely legal assuming you have correct permits to build such a thing, and since magic is generally not legally restricted you can do so. You're not responsible for wildlife management, whoever legally owns the land is.
Someone could theoretically do a civil case against you for some sort of animal imprisonment, or for you illegally building a wall on their land, but that would require them to prove the existence of a magical wall you made and would be legally complicated. I would recommend putting up signs warning people of the dangerous wildlife to reduce your liability from any such claim.
There is only one situation I can see where you might be liable; that is for the owner of the island (which may be the government). You are preventing them from entering their own property with weapons.
For all others, we have to compare it to the alternative, no wall at all. Then the monsters are free to roam wherever they like.
It is an island so presumably nobody gets there by accident, and since they are blocked if they try to pass with arms, they absolutely know they are going in unarmed, to somebody else's property or wilderness, and thus have chosen to risk whatever may be there.
For the clueless and unarmed accidentally ship-wrecked on the island, the situation is exactly the same as if the wall were not there. Except they are safe outside the wall, and nothing can chase them any further than the wall.
This is not your property and not your monsters.
Thus you are providing a public service by keeping the monsters in. Without your wall the monsters could roam and pose a public health hazard. With your wall, that doesn't happen.
Just because you did not provide a totally comprehensive protection against a natural hazard doesn't make you liable for the mishaps that do happen.
Imagine I go to a public park to play frisbee with my kids. In the park, while we play, I find a broken beer bottle in the grass. I stop and collect all the pieces of broken glass and put them in the trash, to remove the threat of somebody being hurt by that broken glass. It is an altruistic public service, I donated my time and energy to make the park a slightly safer place.
That afternoon, somebody else falls and cuts themselves on a different broken beer bottle. Should I be held liable for that accident, because I did not spend my own time and energy to ensure the entire park was free of broken beer bottles? I don't think so! I did not put that broken bottle there. The accident is exactly the same as if I were never at the park at all. But it is still possible the one I cleaned up did prevent an accident.
Your magical fence is similar; an altruistic public safety measure. Anybody trying to go through your wall with weapons is stopped, so they absolutely know they are unarmed if they shed their weapons and go anyway. For those unarmed to begin with and unaware of monsters, it is the same as if you did nothing at all; just like I did not scour the entire park for broken bottles.
You were not liable for the monsters before you erected the wall, and you are not liable after you erected the wall, and you performed a public safety service by keeping them in there.
I don't think the armed/unarmed issue is relevant; except possibly for the owner of the island; they may be afraid to enter or use their island without their protective weaponry. You may be endangering them.
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$\begingroup$ It's more like you have put a sign "barefoot only" and surround the area with a tape rope rather than taking out the bottle to the trash can, and the accident is made on said bottle. Indeed the threat is still there and no new threat has been made, it is just surrounded by a wall you can walk in and out. $\endgroup$ Commented Mar 29, 2022 at 12:31
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1$\begingroup$ @Tortliena No, it is not like that. It's more like caging a poisonous snake, with a gate in the cage. You are forgetting that the wall is keeping monsters IN, and that is protecting everybody outside the wall. $\endgroup$– AmadeusCommented Mar 29, 2022 at 13:41
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1$\begingroup$ That was as far as the bottle metaphor could go, your new one is certainly more accurate 🐍. $\endgroup$ Commented Mar 29, 2022 at 15:11
You're interfering with wildlife
If you trap a deer inside your garden fence and decide to keep it as a "pet", even on your own land, there's usually some Game Commission fellow who wants to have a chat with you. Interfering with wildlife on a large scale might also interest an environmental agency.
You're interfering with people
The laws for your scenario can be whatever you want, but do they include giving you a right to set up your own checkpoint in the middle of a road or waterway and run everything they have through a metal detector? If your wizards have this much leeway to interfere with people, the travellers may never get to the island in the first place.
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$\begingroup$ Note : Wildlife are animals or in general pieces of nature which were not artificially introduced by people. The dragons need to be there naturally to be considered as such and not as invasive species you'd want to get rid of. $\endgroup$ Commented Mar 29, 2022 at 12:56
Like anything legal: it depend
The law is very ofent a finicky thing even in normal world when power are evenly matched. but when you are
To me there are two very important parameter that will dictate the situation
Jurassic petting
this doesn't seem to be the case, but is your wizzard just putting up a spell and forgetting about the island, saying it's not his job to contain people? in that case it's pretty arguable and unless he own the island. and even then, he could get off with a 200$ fine and the obligation to put up a sign
what would start to become dicey is if he start to advertise the island as a tourism spot and actively encourage people to come in. in that case he would be much more likely to be found responsible for the safety of the attraction
Do you want dragon in your city? if no then fuck off
Scratch the first part. what is really important to take into account is how dangerous the dragon would be if running wild and how hard it is for other people to contain them. the dangerous part seem obvious, but can the army (at great cost) shot those that decide to take a stroll in the city? or would the spell breaking mean the end of thie city if not the whole coast?
And are you replaceable? if no then perfect, but even if you could be replaced by some, how many wizzard in the country/world could replace you. AKA, how much
Old money? more like old magic
Depending on those two previous factor, you could very well find yourself unable to be put on trial. no matter what you do with the island, it's the second part that can make you untouchable.
If his fonction is of very high importance to the city and he is the only one able to handle the situation, you are in a sens owning a monopoly on safety. and in that case what would be most likely is that at best they would put a commision up and negociate with you to make the island safer.
But the law is alway extremly lenient with key figure: they can't put to jail the man keeping the city safe from the dragon just because a few stupid get transformed into BBQ. And that's even if the law say so. worst case scenario your mage can simply say "if im in jail i won't keep the spell up, so let's negociate shall we."
in conclusion, unless your running literally dysneyland and any street magician can do the same job as you, your nighly unprosecutable.
Unarmed means no defense
Your spell forces the people to enter the island UNARMED so they have no defense against the dragons. If anyone dies then you may be responsible because you did not allow him to take a weapon to defend himself.
