220 / 13 / 07 - Rainbow Crew not pursued for crimes

Last month accusations were made against a local mercenary group known as the Rainbow Crew by members of the Copper Beaks who operate out of Lorin. The Beaks had accused the Rainbow Crew of assault, theft, and murder, and had sent witness statements to Chirin rather than appearing in person as the surviving Beaks had been allowed to live on the condition that they not return to Chirin. Although highly unusual, the witness statements were accepted as proof as they were verified by clerics of Tarin based in Lorin. These clerics are able to detect if a person is lying (a fact confirmed to the council by Bowin Gableson), so the council voted to permit a trial based on these statements.
The descriptions of how the Rainbow Crew viciously attacked the Beaks' camp at night were extremely detailed and would have been convincing as evidence even without the verification of their truth. A verdict of guilty seemed certain, especially with the Rainbow Crew having swiftly departed Chirin after committing these crimes. Our judges took very little time to decide that the Rainbow Crew were guilty of these crimes but in a surprising turn of events, Councillor Nyls of Westerfield decided to intervene.
Seeing an opportunity to clarify a matter which may have an impact on future trials Councillor Nyls put a question to the council around whether it was fair to apply the laws of Chirin when an event happens outside of Chirin's borders. The argument that the Councillor put forward was that neither party would have believed they were operating in an area under Chirin's control. Both sides acted as any mercenary company would when two groups with conflicting contracts encounter each other in the wilderness. Councillor Nyls also argued that while the battle occurred in an area now claimed by Chirin, retroactively applying the laws could be seen as unnecessarily hostile to mercenary groups. Although some Councillors are known to dislike such groups, especially given their general absence during the demon attacks, mercenary companies can help provide additional troops to deal with external threats. Despite their at times questionable methods it must be acknowledged that the Rainbow crew have dealt with several threats to Chirin with minimal cost to the town.
Following an extended debate between Councillors Nyls of Westerfield and Councillor Terence Carter the council voted to clariify the law around when and where laws can be applied. Going forward it will only be possible to press charges against someone for commiting a crime within Chirin's borders if the event took place when that location was formally recognised as part of Chirin. While this does not clear the Rainbow crew of charges (and the guilty verdict will stand) the mrecenaries cannot be punished under Chirin's laws. The authorities in Lorin may choose to take a different stance and at Councillor Terence Carter's request a summary of the trial has been sent to Lorin.