Life of Being a Crown Prince in France-Chapter 616 - 526: Death Penalty as a Starting Point, No Upper Limit

Chapter 616: Chapter 526: Death Penalty as a Starting Point, No Upper Limit

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Adjacent to Paris, the province of Reims.

Reims District Court.

Judge Fosne listened to the prosecutor demanding the death penalty for the defendant and couldn’t help but show a look of utter exhaustion on his face.

Previously, he had only presided over minor cases of theft, vandalism of public property, and the like. A case of this magnitude, involving several hundred thousand francs with the likelihood of a capital sentence, was a first in his twenty years on the bench.

in 1786 and collected a ‘legacy tax’ of 300 francs each from Mr. Blanche and others, which led to the bankruptcy of Blanche’s workshop and Blanche’s suicide…

“That same year, Boka had subordinates beat Mr. Nei Ri because of unpaid taxes, and Nei Ri died 5 days later…”

...

Attorney Corantin screeched in his objection, “Your Honor, to begin with, people die of starvation or illness in Meidion Village every year. Those 9 individuals could likely have died within that year regardless of the fines.

“And as for the matter regarding Mr. Blanche, it is even more far-fetched. How can you be certain that he didn’t commit suicide over a quarrel with someone or due to a mental problem?

“The circumstances of Mr. Nei Ri’s death are also filled with doubts…”

He rambled on for half an hour, his main tactic being to employ equivocations and confusions, insisting on the obsoleteness of the events since many pieces of evidence had disappeared years ago.

He had many ways to drag out the trial for a long time. If he could stall until the uproar over the Tax Farmers subsided, perhaps a lighter sentence might ensue. Even by bribing judges and the like, he might secure an acquittal.

After all, he had collected a hefty 7,000 francs in attorney’s fees from the Boka family; he was naturally determined to exonerate his client completely.

The prosecutor was livid with anger at the attorney’s words, but given that his preparation time for the case was too short—he was currently handling four cases involving Tax Farmers—he simply didn’t have enough time to gather detailed evidence. The evidence he had on hand was essentially what the tax bureau had handed over to him.

He continued to argue his point vehemently when attorney Corantin suddenly changed tack, “Ah, Mr. Prosecutor, the matters you’ve brought up today should all be subject to private lawsuits by the concerned parties or their next of kin. I believe it is unreasonable for you to bring public charges, on the grounds that…”

These shysters always found novel angles to manipulate the law.

“The families of those concerned simply cannot afford the costs of litigation, nor do they even know how to file a lawsuit!” the prosecutor exclaimed angrily, “Otherwise, Boka would have been in prison long ago!”

then forcefully hammered down the gavel, proclaiming loudly, “This court hereby declares, Boka is guilty of illegal tax collection, murder, fraud, forgery of public documents…

“The charges are established, and this court sentences Jacques Ethor de Boka of Turaine…” according to the “Dohrn Decree,” “Sylvans Ordinance”…

“…to death by decapitation.”

Corantin was stupefied. How had the sentence been passed already?

Even though he had suffered some setbacks in court, there were many facets of the case that could still be exploited, yet the judge had rendered a verdict in less than a day!