The Law!

Code 20: Contraband

Exotic (and hence illegal, highly controlled or highly taxed) substances arrive in Mega-City One from many sources: other Mega Cities, the Cursed
Earth and off-world. With so many of these tempting goodies banned outright, organised crime can make literal and metaphorical killings by
supplying contraband merchandise at outrageous prices. Umpty Bagging – the sale of Uncle Ump’s extraordinary candy – is a case in point.
Psychologically addictive, the recipe was shipped off-world with its creator but that did not stop pirates from capturing Ump’s lone spaceship and
extorting the secret recipe from him. This counterfeit candy is now smuggled back into Mega-City One by the organised crime gangs to satisfy the
needs of Umpty cravers desperate for their next fix. Similar is true for many other substances deemed too bad for public health – such as sugar,
caffeine and other innocuous pleasures that were once considered harmless in the simpler days of the 20th and early 21st Centuries.
Section Offence Sentence
1 Possession or manufacture of illegal substance with intent to trade 5-30 years
2 Possession of illegal substance with intent to use 1-10 years + compulsory detox
3 Smuggling 8-20 years
4 Illegal or unlicensed firearm 6 months-3 years
5 Umpty bagging 5-30 years
6 Possession or trade of restricted publications 1-8 years

Code 21: Genetic Purity

The war that led to the Cursed Earth created extensive and hideous mutations in many Americans. It also created fear, suspicion
and loathing, rather than pity, amongst those not afflicted. Legislation early in Mega-City One’s history led to the Mutant Act
banning mutants from the Mega-City One environs, condemning them to life in the Cursed Earth. The act enforced regulations
surrounding genetic purity, the reasoning being that all kinds of devastating diseases might infect non-mutants, giving rise to
uncontrollable and exotic plagues that would destroy the remaining populace. Thus, any sign of mutation in the gene pool
was considered illegal, with sufferers being automatically exiled to the Cursed Earth. Similarly, the law applied to genetic
manipulation and testing that might give rise to further mutation, such as cloning (even though the Justice Department has,
itself, used cloning successfully to create Judge Dredd). Code 21 offences have recently been repealed, but are included here
for completeness.
Section Offence Sentence
1 Mutant DNA Cursed Earth Exile
2 Concealing/harbouring a mutant 1-5 years or Cursed Earth Exile

Code 22: Pollution

Mega-City One operates a sophisticated weather control system, developed in the wake of the great Climate Change Meltdown
scare of the early 21st Century. However, even with the ability to programme weather down to a street-by-street level, pollution
is still a major concern and is therefore clamped-down with the kind of zeal that still recalls the environmental doom-mongers
of the Climate Change era. Any form of harmful pollution, be it smoking the odd cigarette outdoors or excessive noise, is an
offence punishable by a spell in the iso-cubes – and Judges are provided with handheld pollution meters to record any offending
outputs be they emissions or decibels.
Section Offence Sentence
1 Interfering with operation of Weather control 20-30 years
2 Creating atmospheric pollution Cr. 5,000 fine or up to 2 years
3 Noise pollution Cr. 2,000 fine or up to 2 years

Code 23: Perverting the Course of Justice

Any action to prevent the law from working as it should, or the agents of the Justice Department doing their job, carries an
iso-cube sentence. Most citizens know better than to get in the way of a Judge but there are still those who see the Judges
as oppressors and are willing to run the risk of imprisonment if it means taking a stand, however small, against the totalitarian
justice regime.
Section Offence Sentence
1 Resisting Arrest 5-8 years
2 Escaping from Justice Department custody or imprisonment 10-20 years
3 Perp running (aiding an escape out of Mega-City One) 5-30 years
4 Perverting the course of Justice 15 years-Life
5 Aiding and abetting a known criminal 3-10 years
6 Obstructing a Judge in his duty 5-15 years

Code 24: Secondary Offences

Secondary offences usually accompany the offences under the sections of the primary codes and have sentences that add onto
the sentence for the primary crime – or carry sentences of their own.
Section Offence Sentence
1 Attempt to commit any category of crime +25%-50% of the offence’s sentence
2 Conspiracy to commit any category crime +25%-50% of the offence’s sentence
3 Withholding information about any crime 2-15 years
4 Actual or attempted bribery of a Judge 10 years
5 Bribery of a citizen 2-10 years
6 Withholding evidence 10-15 years
7 Fabricating evidence 10-15 years
8 Perjury, lying to a Judge or malicious accusation 3 months-5 years
9 Persistent offender +25% of the offence’s sentence
10 Overdue library slug Cr. 100 per slug, per day

Exceptions to Sentencing

Despite the impression that all Judges are iso-cube happy,
the law allows for discretion based on circumstances. A
Judge is never compelled to impose a custodial sentence
where there are grounds or mitigating circumstances for
leniency. Some examples of where a Judge can impose a
different form of sentence are:
• Criminal Activity is the Result of Insanity:
Indefinite psycho-cube observation until mental state is
determined.
• Homicidal or Compulsive Violent
Behaviour, Psychotic or Sociopathic
Tendencies: Indefinite psycho-cube incarceration
with occasional behavioural modifying brain surgery.
• Clear Evidence of Future Shock: Medical
treatment in a psycho-cube until medical specialists
deem the instance of futsie to have abated.
• Obsessive/Compulsive Non-Violent
Criminal Behaviour (Kleptomania,
Spontaneous Confession, ‘Petty Crime’
Addiction): Iso-cube incarceration. A citizen
completely unable to behave and conform will be
sentenced to a compulsory frontal lobotomy.
• Crimes Resulting From a Frustration
at Being Unable to Work for a Living or
as a Result of Losing a Treasured Job:
Hard Labour community service for a period of time,
depending on the nature of the crime. Hard labour of this
kind involves community rebuilding schemes, production
line work and so forth. Often, this kind of sentence is
welcomed with gratitude by those who want to work.