A legal anomaly?

[chickenfeet]

On Boxing Day, a fifteen year old girl was killed while shopping. She was hit by a single stray bullet after a gun fight broke out between two youths in a busy part of downtown. Police have arrested the two alleged gunmen and charged them with fire arms related offences. No-one has been charged with murder because they haven't identified who fired the fatal shot. Surely there is something wrong with the law here? Both gunmen are equally culpable and should face murder charges. If a person or persons open(s) up unlawfully with a fire arm in a crowded place, purposing the death of Person A or B, they are surely equally culpable if person X, Y or Z is killed, regardless of which gunman fired the fatal shot.

Comments

[sollersuk.livejournal.com]

Ahem. I had to check out your profile to see where you live.

In the UK, the legal situation has been (I think it has been sorted out) that where a child has been battered to death, neither parent could be charged if there was no way of proving which one did it. In the UK anybody using a handgun would, of course, be prosecuted simply for possessing it

[karen2205]

This one only really works if the parents are married to each other and cannot be compelled to give evidence against one another.

[sollersuk.livejournal.com]

No, actually, there was a prominent case a few years back where the parents weren't married to each other. The question wasn't whether they could be compelled to give evidence but a lack of direct evidence - I think each blamed the other.