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: the 13th juror

Ever wondered what life would be like without a legal system?

By Jacqueline Dowd

Things spun out of control on Pitcairn Island, one of the British Empire?s most isolated remnants. Settled in 1790 by the mutineers from the storied H.M.S. Bounty, Pitcairn barely recognized that it was ruled by British law.

Pitcairn did have its own legal code, mostly dealing with theft and property disputes. The island statutes also addressed some local peculiarities, like prohibiting a shout of ?sail ho? without a ship on the horizon.

For more than 200 years, no British attorney or judge ever set foot on the island.

Then, in the 21st century, six men ? a third of the island?s adult male population ? were convicted under English law of 33 sex offenses.

The legal case threatened Pitcairn?s survival.

Read the fascinating Vanity Fair article here.

Full post as published by the 13th juror on February 15, 2008 (boomark / email).