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quotable_muse] 90 - Lenient
Nov. 19th, 2008 10:31 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
prodigalwatcher90 - "Well, I've always thought the law was meant to be interpreted in a lenient manner. Sometimes I lean one way and sometimes I lean the other." - 'Hud'
The law-- the law of the land, that is-- can be a very tricky consideration in my chosen profession. More often than not, my efforts and those of my friends in combating the forces of evil must be undertaken on the very outskirts of what would be considered right and legal by the authorities. After all, even the simplest and most straightforward of fights with the weakest of the supernatural powers can involve destruction of private or public property, as well as displays of misconduct.
In general, any vampires we might come across are in the eyes of the law deceased, so destroying them should not necessarily subject someone like myself to any sort of legal repercussions, though there have been a number of notable exceptions wherein vampires will take on legal, living aliases. The same is true of many demons, especially those who have taken on human form or possessed a human host in order to more completely camouflage themselves.
Here in Los Angeles, things get even more complex when one discovers how thoroughly intertwined the "normal" human criminal element has become with the supernatural criminal element. Demons have business with gangster on a regular basis, and vice versa. At first, we were appalled at the level of influence on everyday life and politics exercised by Wolfram & Hart. Then, after confronting the Circle of the Black Thorn, we found the Circle's evil and inhuman influence on nearly every vice and wrongdoing in the city.
Our enemies are not the only extralegal consideration, of course. The tools of our trade are weapons of violence, and are not often easy to explain as "collector's pieces" or "objet d'art" when having one's home visited by a police officer. I in particular have concerns in this arena, given my penchant for more explosive modern armaments, a number of which-- my sawed-off shotguns and high-capacity magazines for my pistols-- are not supposed to be in the hands of private citizens and were acquired through means outside of normal channels.
It does turn out, of course, that extralegal means can work to our advantage at keeping our activities out from under the scrutiny of the authorities. A few friends in the correct offices and just a bit of money or favours exchanging hands, and business runs quite smoothly.
(387)
The law-- the law of the land, that is-- can be a very tricky consideration in my chosen profession. More often than not, my efforts and those of my friends in combating the forces of evil must be undertaken on the very outskirts of what would be considered right and legal by the authorities. After all, even the simplest and most straightforward of fights with the weakest of the supernatural powers can involve destruction of private or public property, as well as displays of misconduct.
In general, any vampires we might come across are in the eyes of the law deceased, so destroying them should not necessarily subject someone like myself to any sort of legal repercussions, though there have been a number of notable exceptions wherein vampires will take on legal, living aliases. The same is true of many demons, especially those who have taken on human form or possessed a human host in order to more completely camouflage themselves.
Here in Los Angeles, things get even more complex when one discovers how thoroughly intertwined the "normal" human criminal element has become with the supernatural criminal element. Demons have business with gangster on a regular basis, and vice versa. At first, we were appalled at the level of influence on everyday life and politics exercised by Wolfram & Hart. Then, after confronting the Circle of the Black Thorn, we found the Circle's evil and inhuman influence on nearly every vice and wrongdoing in the city.
Our enemies are not the only extralegal consideration, of course. The tools of our trade are weapons of violence, and are not often easy to explain as "collector's pieces" or "objet d'art" when having one's home visited by a police officer. I in particular have concerns in this arena, given my penchant for more explosive modern armaments, a number of which-- my sawed-off shotguns and high-capacity magazines for my pistols-- are not supposed to be in the hands of private citizens and were acquired through means outside of normal channels.
It does turn out, of course, that extralegal means can work to our advantage at keeping our activities out from under the scrutiny of the authorities. A few friends in the correct offices and just a bit of money or favours exchanging hands, and business runs quite smoothly.
(387)
